Steel plant forces a grim choice on the Dutch

Hard questions: A file photo of the Tata Steel plant in IJmuiden. Tata announced last month it was scrapping 800 jobs at under-pressure plant to bring down costs. — AFP

AMSTERDAM: Anne Albers is the three-time Dutch longboard surf champion, but she can’t enjoy her “little surfing paradise” in Wijk aan Zee, a seaside village of about 2,000 people.

The town has the best waves in the Netherlands, but it’s also been struggling with serious health and environmental problems connected to Tata Steel, Europe’s second-biggest steel plant.