France: after the Lubrizol fire, the State singled out by the Senate

Text by: RFI Follow

"Problematic" health monitoring, insufficient means ... In a report published this Thursday, June 4, the Senate commission of inquiry into the spectacular Lubrizol fire denounces "unacceptable blind spots" in the prevention of industrial risks in France. She pins the passage the government and in particular the former Minister of Health Agnès Buzyn.

Publicity

"  Like health monitoring proper, the identification of the health risk as practiced by the Ministry of Health was both late and incomplete  ", write the rapporteurs Christine Bonfanti-Dossat (LR) and Nicole Bonnefoy (PS) in their conclusions on the "major industrial accident" of Lubrizol. A spectacular fire with no " apparent  " victim  , which was the subject of "  200,000 tweets in 24 hours  ".

Occurred on September 26 on the Seveso high threshold site, the fire had caused a huge cloud of black smoke 22 km long with fallout of soot into the Hauts-de-France. Nearly 9,505 tonnes of chemicals had burned in this automotive lubricants plant and on the neighboring Normandy Logistics site.

Problematic methodology

For the commission chaired by the centrist Hervé Maurey, the methodology adopted by the Ministry of Health, then headed by Agnès Buzyn, for health monitoring is "  problematic  ". "  The public decision to launch health monitoring remains suspended on the undeniable discovery of a proven risk  ," say the senators, despite "  the uncertainty about the toxicity of the fumes emitted during the fire  ".

However, continue the two rapporteurs, "  it appears [...] that it is impossible to give a definitive opinion on the health impact of the Lubrizol fire, in view of the only data collected in the context of environmental monitoring , the latter being totally or partially unusable  ”.

Even “  in the short term, despite a generally reassuring assessment, there remains a risk of exposure to benzene for the populations located on the site of the Lubrizol factory on the day and the day after the fire, as well as significant uncertainty concerning dioxins and furans  ".

► To listen: Lubrizol: "The great fear is the appearance of chronic diseases delayed over time"

Emergency decision

The senators also denounce the decision of the Minister of Agriculture "  taken urgently on October 11  " to lift the ban on the sale of milk produced in more than 200 municipalities. This decision taken "  three days before the publication of the first ANSES opinion [health authorities, note], seems premature: it could not take into account the strong reservations expressed [...] confirmed in the subsequent opinions  ", according to the report. The government then "  ignored the incomplete nature of the analysis of air samples  ".

The Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition is not to be outdone. Its stated objective following the disaster "  50% increase in controls by 2022 at constant staff  " is "  unrealistic  ", according to the report. Because "  for fifteen years [...] the number of inspections  " of classified industrial sites "  has practically been halved  ". For the senators, it is necessary to "  reinforce the human and financial resources devoted  " to prevention.

Blind spots in prevention policy for 40 years

The government is not the only one pinned in this report. "  The industrial risk prevention policy deployed for 40 years in France reveals significant and unacceptable blind spots  ", write the rapporteurs. "  The budgetary appropriations allocated by the State to the prevention of technological risks have been decreasing for several years,  " add the senators.

Elected officials of the High Assembly also point out "  the reduced number of sanctions imposed, their weakness and the higher clearance rate for environmental offenses than for the average  ". This is "  perceived by some observers as a sign of a form of indulgence of the public authorities vis-à-vis industries,  " they continue.

In addition, “  it is urgent to review the doctrine of State crisis communication. Wanting to reassure at all costs makes us lose sight of the main objective: to inform as clearly as possible and in real time  ”.

► To listen: Lubrizol fire: "We must set up a large-scale exercise every year"

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