– This is one of the biggest crimes against the environment that we have had for quite some time, says Knut Christian Hallan. He is a spokesperson for the environmental organization Neptune Network. In recent days, they have demonstrated in Borg harbor in Fredrikstad. Here, the Norwegian Coastal Administration is carrying out trial dredging at the outlet of the Glomma. The police boat has had to make several trips to the area. – We have physically stopped work for several hours. In the end, the police intervened and arrested two who were on board the barge, says Hallan. Environmental activists have been trying to stop work in Fredrikstad for several days. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen/news Over several years, the fairway into the multi-purpose harbor has become shallower as a result of mud and silt the river has carried south. Now 700,000 cubic meters of these masses are to be removed, so that larger ships have access. The Norwegian Coastal Administration will dump more than half of this further into the sea. Acting head of MDG, Arild Hermstad, reacts to the way the work is carried out. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen/news – We know far too little about the life and microorganisms that live in this area, says Arild Hermstad, acting leader of the Green Party. On Tuesday, he visited the area where the Coastal Administration will dump the mud in the Outer Oslofjord. He thinks it’s a very bad idea. – You cannot gamble that it will not spread environmentally toxic waste. Dumped at holiday paradise The Norwegian Coastal Administration has received permission from the Norwegian Environment Agency to establish a marine landfill at Svaleskjær, right on the border with Hvaler municipality. Hvaler is one of the country’s largest cottage municipalities with over 4,300 holiday properties. The cabin owners also fear the consequences of the dumping. Large parts of the mud to be removed are contaminated. – The nature and archipelago on Hvaler is very vulnerable. We are terrified that this will affect natural life under the sea, says Mona Flemmen, head of the Hvaler cabin association. During the test dredging that is currently underway, 10,000 cubic meters of mass will be removed. Half will be stored on land, while the remainder will be brought down to the seabed. Project manager at the Norwegian Coastal Administration, Martin Fransson, says that the test dredging is important to see how the particles move when they are dumped into the sea. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen / news The masses that are dumped in the sea must be monitored. – The goal is to get as much data as possible. We will learn more about the sediments, about how the particles move in the water. It is important as we are in an area with a lot of vulnerable nature, says project manager at the Coastal Administration, Martin Fransson. Fears for the Oslofjord Marine biologist Pia Ve Dahlen fears that the mud will contaminate far beyond the specified landfill. – It’s so fucking typical scumbag rhetoric. After all, the sea runs in the lines we draw on the map, she says. Marine biologist Pia Ve Dahlen thinks the dredging is very jarring when she sees the plans in the context of efforts to clean the Oslofjord. Photo: Stein Ove Korneliussen / news The Oslofjord already has major problems with pollution. On the seabed, green sea plants are suffocated by slimy algae. Cod and mussels are gone in many places. Dahlen fears the dredging in Fredrikstad will make it worse. – The mud is so fine-grained that it swirls up as soon as a small boat arrives, and then you think of moving it to another place in an already closed fjord. Mercury and metals The test dredging will continue until next week. The main project is planned to start in autumn next year. The Norwegian Coastal Agency believes it is important to remove the contaminated masses. – The pollution situation in Borg harbor is similar to what we see at other large Norwegian ports, says Fransson of the Coastal Agency. – There is a lot of copper, PAH elements from wood and creosote. We also find mercury and other metals. The most contaminated masses must be stored on land. Although the main aim of the project is to ensure good framework conditions for sea transport, the Coastal Administration believes that the project will also have positive environmental effects. – We are happy that we are going in and dredging, and removing a large part of the environmental toxins. The environmental activists have announced that they will continue to demonstrate against the trial dredging.
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Activists protest against test dredging – news Oslo and Viken – Local news, TV and radio
