Air quality in Barletta, «ARPA data not published for days»

«Who pulled the plug this time? No, it’s not a joke, but a legitimate question.” This is what we read in the note signed by the lawyer. MicheleAlfredo Chiariello, vice president of the Clean Air Operation committee. «In fact, after dozens of reports, for years, by the undersigned, last May 2nd, the Municipal Administration, with a certified e-mail signed by the Councilor for the Environment and the Manager of the same sector, triumphantly announced that it had resolved the problems of electricity supply which, according to what was stated by the Arpa leaders, had for some time been compromising the detection and, therefore, the publication of the data relating to the fundamental Ipercoop control unit in the industrial area.

Evidently, however, the replacement of theswitch magnetermic (the cost of which is lower than that of parking a car in the center for a few hours) has not solved the problem, if it is true, as it is true, that several times, only starting from April 30th (date of the intervention on the electric cable) the findings, on the Arpa Puglia website, were published in fits and starts.

As per the report downloadable from the aforementioned portal, the data relating to:

• PM 10 for the days 19-20-29 May, as well as 5-8-9-11-12-13 – June;
• PM 2.5 for the days 19-20-29 May, as well as 5-8-9-10-11-12-13 – June;
• NO2 for the days 19-20-27 May, as well as 6-9-10-12-13 June;
• O3 for the days 19-20-27 May, as well as 6-9-10-12-13 June;
• CO for the days 19-20 May, as well as 6-9-10-13 June;
• H2S for the days 19, 20, 27 May, as well as 6-8-9-12-13 June;
• S02 for the days 19, 20, 27 May, as well as 6-9-10-12-13 – 14-15-16 June.-

After years and multiple requests, the reasons for these frequent omissions have not been clarified at an institutional level, evidently not entirely attributable to mere questions of “electrical power cables”in light of the fact that this anomaly affects the detection of only some pollutants, rather than others and on days that are not entirely overlapping.

Furthermore, an important circumstance, and not to be underestimated, is that in the last ten days – precisely those for which several surveys are missing – our city was brutally attacked by miasmas, for hours, as per dozens of reports on social media and – also on the initiative of the Bat Clean Air Committee – right on the ARPA portal.

To date, however, the lack of publication of this data is not known – nor, as far as we know, justified – which, in an urban context mixed between industrial and residential settlements, would allow, with an in-depth analysis, to get closer to the identification of the origin of air pollution in our city.

Here, apparently, in addition to the killer of the Environment (as the Mayor likes to repeat), we also have the saboteur of the power supply of the control unit! I hope that the Administration can promptly communicate the reasons for this failure to publish”.