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BRAZZAVILLE, Congo — In the heart of a working-class neighborhood, residents have grown accustomed to the smoking chimneys, lead-laden dust, and pungent smells emanating from a local factory. Despite years of exposure, men, women, and children in the area have alarmingly high levels of lead in their blood, putting their health at increasing risk.
“This factory makes life difficult for us. When they blow the smoke, our stomachs hurt, my child and I are contaminated with lead," complained one resident.
The factory in question is Metssa Congo, a Congolese-registered Indian company and one of the world's leading recyclers of used batteries and lead, one of the most dangerous metals. Residents like Cyrille Ndembi, along with their neighbors, are now waging a legal battle against the company, seeking the closure and relocation of the factory.
Cyrille and his family have suffered from chronic pneumonia since moving to the neighborhood in 2019. “We consulted a laboratory, which took samples, and the analyses were carried out in France at the CERBA laboratory. It turned out that we were intoxicated with lead. And that's on a sample of 26 people,” said Cyrille.
As a result, the administrative summary judgment judge has ordered the temporary suspension of the plant's activities, pending a final ruling. However, the factory continues to operate, and residents remain exposed to the toxic emissions.
“Indeed, the blood lead levels we found were significant enough for there to be no scientific doubt that it came from this plant, because of the radio concentration—those closest to the plant had the highest levels,” explained Fréderic Mavoungou, a pharmacist and biologist.
In response to the accusations, Arun Goswami, head of the METSSA Group, defended the company, stating that METSSA operates in strict compliance with international industrial standards.
With lead poisoning confirmed in a sample of the population, the court must now decide whether the factory is indeed the cause of the contamination. Meanwhile, more cases of lead poisoning may come to light as the investigation continues.
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