An environmental group has reported a significant spillage of meat waste across roads in Moià and Calders, in Central Catalonia, on Tuesday morning. The group, El Fanal, described the incident as "brutal irresponsibility" and has filed a complaint with the Department of Agriculture, the Public Health Agency of Catalonia, and the Waste Agency of Catalonia.
Residents in Moià found animal viscera scattered on major roads, including the Manresa and Vic roads. The spillage continued along the N-141c towards Calders, just before the town centre. Pilar Clapers, a member of El Fanal, stated it was "very clear that a lorry had been losing these meat residues". The group believes the waste came from a local abattoir.
Clapers located a lorry stopped near the Grossa farmhouse in Calders that same day, noting a strong smell. A road maintenance vehicle was also present. El Fanal later learned that road maintenance services likely cleaned up the spilled waste. The group warned that beyond the unpleasant odours, the incident posed "very dangerous" health risks, especially as warmer weather begins.
Repeated Spills and Regulatory Challenges
This is not an isolated incident, according to El Fanal. The group filed a complaint last year after several spills occurred at the junction of the Manresa, Vic, and Barcelona roads and Moià's Avinguda de la Vila. Clapers explained that an uncovered lorry would spill waste, including blood, when braking at traffic lights. That complaint was sent to the Waste Agency of Catalonia, which acknowledged the seriousness but referred the case to the Department of Agriculture, which did not respond.
On another occasion, waste appeared near the abattoir in the Prat industrial estate, Clapers said. Regarding the current complaints, sources from the Department of Agriculture's Livestock sub-directorate indicated that such cases, involving meat products rather than animals or carcasses, fall outside their jurisdiction and would instead be handled by the Department of Health. However, as of Thursday afternoon, the public health delegation in Central Catalonia had no record of the complaint. The Waste Agency of Catalonia, which El Fanal says was also informed on Tuesday, has not yet commented.
Abattoir Expansion Concerns
El Fanal plans to file another complaint, alleging that the abattoir slaughters more than double the number of pigs it is authorised to process. "We are quite tired," Clapers said, also recalling an organic waste spill in the Castellnou stream a few months ago. She added, "They break the rules right and left, and nobody does anything; they have a brutal capacity for influence."
El Fanal is among the organisations opposing the expansion of the Moià abattoir. This expansion is linked to a biogas plant project that Moià Town Council intends to promote. The ongoing issues with waste management and regulatory oversight are central to the group's opposition to the abattoir's growth and the proposed biogas facility.
