Dutch government extends steel slag restrictions to await RIVM study

Restrictions on where steel slag can be used will be extended for six more months. State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management, Annet Bertram, announced the extension of the “pause button” to wait for RIVM research during a debate in the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of Dutch parliament, keeping the ban on steel slag dumping in many cases.

In July, Bertram’s predecessor, Thierry Aartsen, stepped in over concerns about the environmental and health risks of steel slag. He aimed to use the pause to draft new policies and initiate research, but Nieuwsuur reported on Wednesday that some of that research has yet to begin.

The extended pause will remain in effect until January 23 next year. Bertram told the debate that she plans to make a final decision by then and is committed to ensuring the RIVM has completed the research as agreed.

In a letter to the Tweede Kamer sent just before the debate, Bertram explained that it is “not unusual” for a study to take months to begin. “Formulating the right questions and ensuring a careful approach are essential, and this takes time and attention.”

A study examining the potential risks to humans from contact with steel slag is expected to be completed by the end of this year. Additional field and laboratory research will follow, which may take several years to finish.

Steel slag is a rocky byproduct of steel production, often used as a construction material in road projects. Tata Steel produces an estimated 650,000 tons of it each year in IJmuiden. The RIVM has warned that it contains harmful substances that can enter the soil via rain or groundwater.

Last year, the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate warned that the current rules are inadequate. Environmental damage had occurred even in areas where steel slag had been applied in accordance with the regulations.