The documents describe them as "odorous emissions." A stench that makes the air unbreathable, according to numerous reports from residents of Capoterra and Sarroch. These ongoing complaints have placed Saras under scrutiny, first to the ARPAS (Italian Environmental Protection Agency) and now to the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security, which has initiated a review of the refinery's integrated environmental permit. The goal: to impose restrictions to understand the cause of the phenomenon and, of course, put an end to it.
The story is well-known: in recent years, the atmosphere above the Gulf of Angels has often been filled with fumes released by the Saras flares—now owned by Vitol—during the restart phases of the production process, perhaps halted by malfunctions or other causes. And while it's predictable that the stench would be noticeable in those cases, less understandable—for residents of the western Gulf—is the lingering smell when everything seemed to be proceeding "normally" at Saras. Complaints and protests about burning throats and eyes would continually pour in, forcing many to barricade themselves indoors.
ARPAS wrote to the ministry on October 29: the agency, it states, "in recent months, has received numerous reports from both the municipalities of Sarroch and Capoterra and from residents of those areas, regarding the persistent presence of odors potentially attributable to emissions from the Sarlux refinery." Specifically , "frequent activation of combustion flares was recorded during the reporting period of odorous phenomena, as also confirmed by communications from the Manager." The reports "received highlight that the olfactory nuisance has a negative impact on residents' quality of life, being noticeable even at considerable distances from the facility."
Hence the residents' request for "extraordinary checks and transparent environmental monitoring in the affected areas as well as the adoption of any protective measures if exceedances are found."
Arpas emphasizes that the air quality monitoring stations "have not shown any exceedances of regulatory limits and, although a slight variation in the concentrations of some volatile organic compounds, such as toluene and xylene, was detected, sulfur dioxide concentrations were not significant."
However, the Agency also admits that "monitoring does not cover all substances potentially responsible for odor impacts. Furthermore, assessments based on air quality data do not fully represent odor nuisance incidents, as these phenomena can be perceived even when legal limits are met." Therefore, "the assessments conducted to date by Arpas must be considered partial and incomplete with respect to the odor problem and the information to be provided to the public and authorities for a full understanding of the reported critical issues." It also emphasizes that Saras "does not have continuous monitoring systems for odor emissions, as such controls are not required by the currently applicable Integrated Environmental Authorization (AIA)."
Hence the Ministry's decision, which has ordered " the initiation of the AIA review procedure for the operation of the refinery complex, combined cycle gasification plant (IGCC), and northern facilities of Sarlux Srl, aimed at reassessing the requirements relating to odorous emissions."
