Report dismisses Algerian fuel infrastructure as ‘inadequate’ Algiers – Hocine Bousalah A report by an environmental conference in the Algerian city of Tlemcen has presented attendees with a grim picture of the country’s environmental prospects in 2013. The document, published by the National Conference on the Environmental Risks of Used Oils, claimed: “About 150,000 tonnes of vehicular used oils are dumped in the streets, without taking into account the environmental damage they cause.”
Only 12 percent of these used oils are returned to sustainable holding stations officially linked to Algeria’s National Company of Petrol Products Distribution [NAFTAL], the report said, highlighting  an “inadequate” infrastructure unable to hold more than 25,000 cubic metres of fuel in each facility.
The conference’s closing statement warned against the “catastrophic situation” facing rivers and valleys across Algeria, claiming citizens used these areas to dump used fuel, meanwhile endangering fish stocks, public health and water used for irrigation and drinking.
Experts have touted the Sipos Valley as such an example. Over 40 factories have allegedly deposited used oils in the area, which some observers dubbed “Red Valley” last year after traces of toxic and contaminated materials were found there.