After several twists and turns in the procedures, Daikin Chemical France, the chemical subsidiary of the Japanese giant specialized in air conditioning, should be able to resume in a few days its production of “precompound”, a new rubber composed of perfluorinated polymers, at its Pierre plant -Establishment of Bénite (Rhône), in the “valley of chemistry”, south of the metropolitan area of Lyon. The project raises concerns among local people about pollution, particularly perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which are very persistent in the environment and are suspected of having health effects even at very low doses.
The prefecture of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region gave its agreement, on Tuesday, October 15, modifying its previous decree “activity supervision”taken in February. This decree was suspended in a summary procedure on June 20 by the administrative court of Lyon, due to the manufacturer’s failure to provide sufficient details on the development of the product. From a strictly regulatory point of view, this new Daikin production is not subject to an authorization order because it is not considered “a substantial modification” of its activity in Pierre-Bénite, to the point that it uses 60% of its base rubber production to manufacture this new product, without increasing the overall production volume of the plant, by a maximum of 1,500 tons per year.
Faced with this weakened issue, Fabienne Buccio, prefect of the region, launched a public consultation that was not formally mandatory and decided to make public all the studies dedicated to the chemical site. The Regional Directorate of Environment, Planning and Housing (Dreal) made public, on Tuesday, October 15, its summary of the study of the file. “make noticed” presented by the industrialist. In summary, state services recommend increasing measurements of atmospheric emissions from the Daikin site, increasing the frequency of controls from one year to six months.
Dreal also proposes to reduce the threshold for air release of bisphenol AF (perfluorinated used in this new production) from 1 mg to 0.5 mg per cubic meter. Bisphenol AF is not banned, but was recently classified as a “substance of very high concern” by European regulations, which require manufacturers to use “the best techniques available” limit products dangerous to health and the environment. The prefecture requires a replacement product within two years, not three years, with a progress report within one year. For its part, the Japanese group indicates that research is already very advanced and that its clients are testing a new chemical agent. But residents, associations and elected officials remain immersed in concern and questions about the effect of “eternal pollutants.”
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