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Ebbarp Pollution

Country/Territory
Sweden
Type of court
National - higher court
Date
Apr 25, 2005
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Court name
Högsta Domstolen
Seat of court
Stockholm
Reference number
B4647-04
Language
Swedish
Subject
Waste & hazardous substances, Land & soil
Keyword
Resource/damage valuation
Abstract

The main question of the case was whether an act by an individual, L.E., including pollution of land, water and air was to be seen as a serious offence or not.

L.E. had emptied waste, including substantial amounts of pesticides, paint residues and waste oil, on a property in Helsingborg by the Hasslarpsån river. He then set fire to the different substances, some of which were at the time forbidden to use in Sweden. Through his actions, L.E. intentionally polluted the soil, river and air in a way that could entail health risks for humans, substantial damage on animal and plant species and a nuisance for the environment in general.

The Environmental Code stipulates that when determining if a crime is serious ”special attention shall be paid to whether it caused, or might have caused, lasting damage on a large scale or whether the act was otherwise of a particularly dangerous nature.”

The Supreme Court did not found that the crime was of a serious character and affirmed the judgment by the Court of Appeal. L.E. was therefore convicted for environmental crimes and the sentence was conditional sentence with a day-fine.

Full text
B4647-04.pdf