There is a risk of a production stop
Tesla factory significantly exceeds pollutant limits
February 27, 2024, 8:02 a.m
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Tesla is said to be releasing significantly more pollutants into the wastewater in Grünheide, Brandenburg than permitted. The responsible water board is alarmed and wants to turn off the factory’s pipeline – with potentially far-reaching consequences.
According to the Straußberg-Erkner water association (WSE), the Tesla factory in Brandenburg is said to have violated the permissible limit values for water-polluting substances. Measured values are said to show that Tesla has been constantly and significantly releasing too much phosphorus and total nitrogen into the wastewater system for around two years – by up to six times. This emerges from a letter from the WSE, which was given to “Stern” and RTL is available exclusively.
The WSE has invited its members to an extraordinary meeting on Friday. In the letter to the mayors of the region, the water association urges Tesla to close the sewer line until further notice. This could mean a production stop for the factory.
Tesla did not deny the increased readings upon request. A spokeswoman wrote that the factory has a wastewater treatment plant. Essentially, the company still discharges wastewater from sanitary facilities and kitchens into the municipal network. This has “no negative impact” on the sewage treatment plant. When asked, the Berliner Wasserbetriebe also said that the increased phosphorus and nitrogen values had “no influence on Berlin’s drinking water quality”. The water scientist Martin Pusch from the Leibniz Institute for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) in Berlin, however, warned that the high concentration of hazardous substances in the wastewater could endanger Berlin’s drinking water supply if they found their way into Berlin’s waters. Part of the water purified in the sewage treatment plant flows into the Müggelsee in summer. One of Berlin’s largest waterworks draws its water from the lake’s bank filtrate.
Steffen Schorcht from the Grünheide citizens’ initiative said he was “shocked” by Tesla’s renewed violation of environmental regulations. It is not surprising that the protests against Tesla continue to grow, said Schorcht. In a recent citizen survey, two thirds of the residents of Grünheide spoke out against expanding the Tesla factory.