Eindhoven city council has warned roadbuilders KWS it will shut down its asphalt factory ACE if excessive benzene emission levels don’t come down, the Eindhovens Dagblad reports.

A new report by the city’s environmental department shows excessive levels of the substance, which can have harmful effects on bone marrow and can affect the immune system. Short-term effects resulting from inhalation are dizziness, headaches and, in extreme cases, loss of consciousness.

KWS will have to pay a fine of €10,000 for every new infraction and if it continues to fail to limit emissions production will be halted. Norms for benzene emissions were tightened in 2019.

However, the report also showed that only substantially diluted benzene reached the homes closest to industrial estate De Hurk, where the factory is located. The risk to the population is negligible, according to the regional health board.

The results of the report will be shared with locals at a meeting on Wednesday.

Asphalt factories in Nijmegen and Bergen op Zoom are also facing fines while an asphalt factory in Den Bosch closed of its own accord while it investigated potential dangerous substance emissions, the Eindhovens Dagblad said.