The regional ministerial secretary of Health in Concepción (Chile) Patricia González, has filed an accusation against five fishmeal plants, after having detected serious defects in their production processes and in the handling and storage of their raw material, according to FIS.
The official decided to start inspections after receiving several claims from residents of the area, who complained over the strong smell and the pestilence in the air.
González said that during inspections carried out at the plants, it was detected that the raw materials remained too long in storage, and that the vapours resulting from the production of fishmeal did not receive adequate treatment.
The head of the Health Action Department at the Regional Ministerial Secretariat of Health in Concepción, Hugo Rojas, evaluated the situation as "quite complicated, as the issue of smells is not regulated and what bothers some people may not bother others." He explained that during inspections, some significant deficiencies were detected, "which must be dealt with so that they will not continue to affect air quality." Although there is no legislation that establishes how long a fish cargo remain in storage, Rojas said that "if the bad smell persists, industries should not be allowed to receive raw material until they process the one stored."
