Daily air quality monitoring begins near Kazokiškės landfill after pollution concerns

The Lithuanian Environmental Protection Agency (AAD) will now conduct daily air quality measurements near the Kazokiškės landfill following requests from local residents and authorities, agency officials announced on Wednesday.

Acting AAD director Eglė Paužuolienė told the Seimas Environmental Protection Committee that monitoring equipment was returned to the site on March 27. “It has been agreed that daily measurement results from the previous day will be provided to Elektrėnai municipality,” she said, noting that overnight readings from March 30–31 showed no exceedances of hydrogen sulfide limits.

Paužuolienė cautioned that the reasons for the improved readings remain unclear, suggesting possible links to changing weather conditions. Further analysis of recent data is expected later on Wednesday.

The move follows an emergency declaration by Elektrėnai authorities on March 24 after smoke from the landfill spread to nearby areas. Officials ordered the covering of 14,000 tons of semi-burned waste—originating from last year’s fire at an “Energesman”-operated waste sorting plant—to reduce emissions.

Mid-March measurements had revealed hydrogen sulfide levels exceeded permissible limits by roughly fivefold during parts of the monitoring period. The Vilnius Region Waste Management Centre (VATC), which operates the landfill, was instructed to cut pollutant levels and given until April 10 to fully remediate the environmental damage. The agency also fined VATC’s director for the violations.