Residents of Babyn village, near Rivne, regularly complain about the strong smell of acetone and carbon monoxide, the source of which, in their opinion, is the neighboring printing company Megapak-Zakhid.
The head of the community, Volodymyr Boyko, promised to bring up the issue of allocating money for a lawyer to represent people's interests in court, Suspilne reports.
It is noted that community members came to the village council demanding to allocate money for a lawyer. The smell of acetone is so strong that people cannot open windows. They attribute their headaches and high blood pressure to the plant's emissions.
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"It's impossible to go outside in the summer, it's hot and the smell gets worse. We can't even take our children to kindergarten because the air smells of acetone. To go for a walk, we have to leave the house," said village resident Maryna Voytovych.
The material said that "Megapak-Zahid" started its activities in June 2022. The enterprise is engaged in printing on polyethylene, which is then used, in particular, as packaging for bread.
Boyko explained that the local government has no opportunity to influence the entrepreneur, who instead is accusing him of obstructing his activities.
"People accuse the village council of inaction, on the other hand, the entrepreneur blames what I said. I went to the district state administration yesterday because I had to consult before today's meeting. I heard the following: "All the documents are in order, all the examinations are in order, that's why there is nothing to do. You as a village council have no powers, we as a district council have no powers either, so the only option is for people to resolve this issue in court," he said.
Boyko promised to bring to the session the question of allocating money to a lawyer who will represent people's interests in court.
According to Yury Sheremet, the owner of "Megapak-Zahid", locals are biased towards his company. The company ordered five air tests, which found no contamination.
"As a result of the fact that we received complaints, the Regional State Administration decided on a comprehensive inspection. We fulfilled all the materials of the order, did everything that was required of us, paid, so I consider this matter exhausted," he said.
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The head of the regional ecology department, Volodymyr Zakharchuk, said that in September-October, eco-inspectors conducted air pollution checks. They did not find an excess of the emission limits. However, the company was fined for starting work before they received an emissions permit.
Earlier, EcoPolitic wrote, that in Rivne, under the city council, a working group was created, which will study every case of unpleasant odors and look for their causes, which the citizens have been complaining about for several years. This is due to unauthorized emissions and local air pollution.
As EcoPolitic previously reported, in the Rivne region near Berezny, law enforcement officers discovered 12 metal barrel-stoves for burning charcoal during preventive measures to combat environmental crimes.
