The preliminary results of the analysis by the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA), released this Friday, indicated that the “significant change” in the water quality of the Onda River is “presumably linked” to discharges from the company Lactogal in Vila do Conde, in the district of Porto.
Lactogal responded to the news in a statement, expressing regret over the situation and reiterating its “total commitment to cooperating with the competent authorities for the swift and effective resolution of this occurrence caused by organic waste.”
The agro-food company emphasizes that the Modivas Industrial Unit, like other food processing units, “generates organic waste” and “these wastes, although biodegradable and exclusively resulting from its industrial process, require appropriate treatment to be returned to the environment.”
While aiming for the proper handling of waste flows, Lactogal says that “like many companies in the agro-food sector, it has been impacted by the fact that the management of organic waste in Portugal represents a complex challenge.”
After finding limitations in seeking partners in Portugal, the company sought partners in Spain but “faces a technical and regulatory barrier.”
“While the waste is, from a compositional point of view, considered ‘green’—meaning suitable for biological treatment—the classification assigned by the APA is ‘orange.’ This classification imposes significant restrictions on its treatment in some facilities, particularly in Spain, which only accept effluents classified as ‘green,'” it explained.
In this context, Lactogal calls on the responsible authorities to ensure that “this classification discrepancy is resolved and does not represent an unexpected and limiting obstacle in the search for external treatment solutions.”
The company further assures that “it is working tirelessly to resolve this situation in a lasting and effective way, since its activity, which arises from the daily milking of animals, cannot stop,” noting that “a total production halt would mean the death of many animals.”
These discharges into the Onda River had already led the APA to advise against bathing since this Friday at the beaches of Angeiras Norte in Matosinhos and Labruge in Vila do Conde, both municipalities in the Porto district.
In a statement, the environmental agency reported that the “preliminary results [of the analysis] revealed a significant change in the water quality of the Onda River, presumably linked to the discharge of wastewater from the Modivas Industrial Unit,” in Vila do Conde, by the company Lactogal.
