Environmental authorities target hazardous goods at Port of Santos

From November 7 onwards, the storage and movement of hazardous goods in the Port of Santos will be the target of an operation led by Brazil’s central environmental agency Ibama. Operation “relic” will also monitor abandoned cargo.

Among the institutions that will take part in Ibama’s action are the National Waterway Transportation Agency (Antaq), the National Land Transportation Agency, the Federal Revenue Service, the Military Police, the Fire Department, in addition to the Navy’s Captaincy of Ports in the state of São Paulo, the Army, and the Santos Port Authority. Operation “relic” shall finish on the 18th.

This is the third year that the Port of Santos has been subjected to such an operation. The inspection became necessary following an accident involving chemical products at the Port of Beirut, Lebanon, in 2020. Although Santos moves substances similar to those that exploded in Lebanon, authorities have concluded that the operations are safe.

According to federal environmental agent Ana Angélica Alabarce, head of Ibama in the region, the institution will conduct physical inspections and documentation checks. The operation will focus on operational processes, areas destined for storing dangerous products, safety systems, waste management, and counter-accident equipment.

The documentation checks aim to verify the terminal’s risk management actions. The information to be collected are specific to Operation Relic.

Abandoned cargoes

Abandoned goods, which were not removed from port terminals by their owners, will also be inspected. In this case, the idea is to check for products such as food, medicines, or other substances with polluting potential.

The teams will look for loads that have lost their properties or undergone changes in their physical or chemical characteristics that indicate degradation or deterioration. Products that have passed their expiration date will be inspected as well.

Five years ago, 115 cylinders with toxic gases were found in the Port of Santos. They had been stored irregularly at Storage 10 for decades (in the Valongo region). Diborane, silane, phosphine, hydrogen chloride, diazomethane, and boron trifluoride were among the cargoes destroyed in a multi-million dollar operation. This is one factor that emphasizes the importance of inspecting abandoned products.

Source: A Tribuna

To read the full original article, please go to: https://www.atribuna.com.br/noticias/portomar/operacao-do-ibama-no-porto-de-santos-mira-carga-de-produtos-perigosos

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