The IJmond municipalities choose together letter from yesterday the attack when it comes to the future of Tata Steel IJmuiden. They are only a small player in the web of government layers, regulators, the steel giant itself and the parent company from India. But a player with knowledge of the current state of affairs and a clear idea of how things should be done during and after the company’s sustainability efforts. Yesterday the municipalities demanded their place at the table with the big boys.
“If Tata Steel’s sustainability efforts are successful, we will have a very cool, innovative company here in IJmuiden,” Velsens councilor Jeroen Verwoort excitedly sketches a bright picture of the future.
He sits in front of a handful of journalists, at the press conference about the letter that went out this afternoon to the party leaders in the House of Representativesa day before it is installed.
Next to him are two more aldermen: on one side Brigitte van den Berg van Beverwijk and on the other Aad Schoorl van Heemskerk. With combined forces, they yesterday demanded their place at the discussion table about the future of Tata Steel, which is located on the territory of all three municipalities.
It is their residents, the Velsen residents, Beverwijkers and Heemskerkers, who work at, suffer from, or are simply used to the 105-year-old Hoogovens. Yet the municipalities have little say in the matter when it comes to ambitiousand also risky sustainability plans, which should make the company almost completely clean by 2045.
Tata Steel: continue like this, close or option three?
The municipalities may not have much say, but they do have a lot to lose if the greening effort fails. The IJmond municipalities have recently been considering how they actually see the future of Tata Steel in the region.
“Tata Steel cannot continue as it is now, that is simply not possible,” Beverwijk councilor Van Den Berg raises one finger in the air. “Close? Not an option either,” she says as finger two goes up in the air.
Then finger three: a successful greening effort, which means that almost ten thousand people will keep their jobs and perhaps the greenest steel company in the world will be located in IJmuiden.
The councilors see it as the only remaining option: the train is already on its way, now they would rather just jump on it.
Indian owner
Will that be easy, fast enough or without difficulties? Absolutely not, they know. Councilor Schoorl van Heemskerk: “Would it be easier, for example, if we could talk to Dutch bosses of Tata Steel instead of Indian ones? Yes, but that’s just the way it is, we have no influence on that.”
Hard requirements
Velsen, Beverwijk and Heemskerk therefore focus on the matters over which they have influence, as they say. Starting with their letter from yesterday. If the government soon sits down with Tata Steel for so-called tailor-made agreements about permits, health and possible financial support, the municipality wants to take part. With its own requirements, which are stated in the letter.
So far, Tata Steel IJmuiden, for example, has only made statements about the first part of the greening plan. The company must get rid of half of its coal by 2030. But the other half of the plan remains silent. The municipalities now want the company to get rid of coal by 2035 and to adhere to WHO requirements for air quality.
Prestige
Van den Berg: “It is useful for everyone if we sit at the table. We have local knowledge that the government does not have. Some people in the IJmond are bothered by noise, others by smell. We know where they live. That kind of knowledge you can coordinate your plans and make a difference.”
If Tata Steel’s greening efforts ultimately succeed in the way that the municipalities have in mind, it will not only ensure the preservation of many jobs and a cleaner living environment. Verwoort looks even further: it also creates prestige in the IJmond, and he likes that idea very much.
Verwoort, twinkling: “Then we have wind turbines at sea, we are the green plug of the country, and one of the largest steel companies in the world is located here.”