Assessment of the potential impact of incineration and co-incineration of waste on human health effects: a model study on the case of the Salonit Anhovo cement plant

The amount of waste produced worldwide is increasing, and more and more consumer products are single-use only. Waste disposal strategies include recycling, landfilling and incineration. incineration and co-incineration, depending on a number of factors, generate and release a mixture of toxic substances into the atmosphere. Combination of these can have various effects on human health and the environment due to the deposition of hazardous substances on soil and surface water through dry and/or wet deposition, and their consequently leaching into the groundwater. In addition, harmful gaseous substances and particles of different sizes are also generated during cement production. The results of the systematic literature review indicate that the cement industry poses a risk to increasing concentrations of heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

(PAHs) in the surrounding soils. This is important due to the exposition of humans to the pollutants through soil, water, and especially food of plant and animal origin.

The goals of the research project are:

1. to assess the relationship between the operation of the Salonit Anhovo cement plant and the health status of the population, using available environmental data on ambient air quality, water and soil status, and available health data in the study area around the Salonit Anhovo cement plant (hereafter: the model area). In this manner, a temporal and spatial analysis of the relationship between environmental and health data at the population level is needed;
2. if the existing environmental data referred to in the previous paragraph are insufficient, additional sampling and analysis of environmental sam ples shall be carried out (pilot study);
3. to determine the extent of the area of influence of Salonit Anhovo on ambient air quality, using appropriate air pollution dispersion models;
4. to assess the relationship between exposure of the population to environmental risk factors and health;
5. on the basis of the study results, to provide measures to improve environmental and health status.

To develop and implement an integrated public health approach, we have formed a consortium including experts from public health (NIJZ, NLZOH, 01 Ljubljana), clinical medicine (UKC Ljubljana) and environmental disciplines (ARSO, ULBF, UNG, GeoZS, IJS). In the project, cancer epidemiologists from the Institute Oncology Ljubljana will use data from the Slovenian Cancer Registry to assess possible excesses of cancer in the model environment of Anhovo and check possible connections with a polluted environment.