MGF, another Danish firm, did the environmental impact assessment. Activists charge that more than half of this sum would revert to Danish firms involved in the construction and consultancies. The study criticised Danida for not considering less risky and less polluting options to incineration, such as exporting or non-combustion chemical detoxification. The permit has since been revoked. Activists point out that even without imported toxic waste, burning pesticides in Matola is worrisome enough.
Residents complain of a high incidence of respiratory diseases.
The site was contaminated by previous hazardous storage, was not de-contaminated, and sits in the middle of houses, shops and factories. Livaningo charges that some metal drums are not properly covered and are unlabelled, and that thieves could easily break into the building and steal drums for resale. Earlier this year, the Food and Agriculture Organization warned about the danger posed by poor storage of obsolete pesticides in developing countries. Livaningo says Danida has been arrogant, ignoring their concerns for months. Last October, Livaningo sent a member to explain its objections to the Danish Parliament and press.