ANTWERPEN/ROTTERDAM - The social damage of air pollution caused by the (petro)chemical sector in the ports of Antwerp and Rotterdam runs into billions of euros. This is according to an investigation by Apache and Follow The Money based on official figures on emissions and transfer of pollutants from large industrial facilities.

For Rotterdam, the amount is between EUR 1.3 billion and EUR 3.9 billion. For Antwerp, the figure is between €1.2 billion and €3.3 billion. The figures are an underestimate of reality because not all companies are obliged to report and by no means all substances of concern are on the list.

In the coming months, Follow the Money and Apache will delve further into the emissions from the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp. In the first part of a comprehensive investigation into the environmental and climate impact of both ports, we show how damaging emissions from the chemical industry are to health.

Photo: © Peter Lipton

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