07.08.2021 | Press release PFOS ENVIRONMENTAL INCIDENT DEMAND:

Members of Grondrecht, together with Greenpeace and Thomas Goorden, are filing an environmental injunction against Lantis because of the PFOS pollution on the Left Bank.

press contact 

Thomas Goorden
Eva Frooninckx – Fundamental Right
Mieke Windey – Fundamental Rights
Greenpeace press service

PRESS RELEASE

Antwerp, 07.08.2021

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Six residents of Linkeroever, Zwijndrecht and the surrounding area of Antwerp, together with Greenpeace Belgium, filed an environmental injunction with the Antwerp court on Friday 6 August 2021, against nv BEHEERSMAATSCHAPPIJ ANTWERPEN MOBIEL (nv BAM with working name “Lantis”) and Rinkoniên (association without legal personality). They are represented by Equal Partners. With the environmental injunction, they seek judicial protection against the unlawful PFAS pollution in the work zone of the Oosterweel connection and the inadequate way in which Lantis deals with this serious toxic pollution.

“Because our previous notice of default to the city of Antwerp and the municipality of Zwijndrecht was not complied with, we now feel forced to go to court,” says Thomas Goorden, environmental activist and whistleblower on the PFOS dossier.

Mieke Windey of Grondrecht adds: “To be clear, this is not a procedure against the Oosterweel tunnel itself. If the works can be carried out in a way that can be considered safe according to the most recent scientific insights, all the better. However, the works may not be at the expense of public health and the environment. We are therefore not asking for the works to be halted, only for measures to be taken against the most unsafe situations.”

Greenpeace also joins the action, Mathieu Soete: “The response so far from Lantis, the city of Antwerp and the Flemish Government is completely out of proportion to the extremely high PFOS blood levels that were found in both residents and animals in the vicinity of the Oosterweel. The precautionary principle, which would dictate a strong response based on the most recent scientific knowledge and measurements, is simply not applied by Lantis.”

“We are asking the court to immediately impose precautionary measures that are in line with the recommendations of the Soil Removal Committee, which was appointed by Minister Peeters,” explains Thomas Goorden. “This means, among other things, immediately covering all remediable and non-remediable soils to prevent the PFOS contamination from spreading further.”

Thomas Goorden continues: “Basically, we are asking that no illegal storage of hazardous waste is created, because that is what these contaminated grounds are. This concerns, for example, the so-called 'security berm' at 3M, which is actually an unlicensed above-ground landfill.
For all soil that has not yet been excavated, we request a thorough investigation into the need for remediation as soon as possible, carried out by independent soil experts and based on the most recent and substantiated studies. Based on that, we want a clear action plan, with remediation where possible, but above all no further spread of the pollution, now and in the future.”
“We just want a plan to clean up our municipalities now, and that the Oosterweel works do not make that cleanup impossible. Is that so much to ask?” says Mieke Windey, spokesperson for Grondrecht.

The applicants for the environmental injunction indicate that they wish to make one last attempt at reconciliation, although they are very aware of the fact that Lantis has already repeatedly indicated that it wants to continue working as quickly as possible. 

“Although this approach is understandable, it can hardly be at the expense of public health and create an irreversible situation on the Left Bank that will be difficult or impossible to rectify afterwards,” said Mathieu Soete of Greenpeace.

“The door is always open for a substantive discussion with the necessary dossier experts and transparency,” concludes Mieke Windey of Grondrecht.

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