The case in summary Large amounts of contaminated material from Norway have been found in a disputed landfill in Denmark, which has caused a large landslide. The waste originates, among other things, from a residential landfill in Bergen, and has been transported across the Skagerrak by cargo ship. Envir AS, which handled the waste, has permission to export lightly contaminated soil masses to Denmark. The company believes that the pulp has been “utilized” in Denmark by being used for landscaping, but only around 5 percent of the pulp at the plant has been treated and transported out of the landfill. Bergen municipality expresses that they think the situation in Denmark is “horribly boring”. Large quantities of contaminated waste from Norway are buried in the giant landfill which has recently made headlines in Denmark. The landslide at the Nordic Waste company is being referred to as an environmental disaster. The price tag for the clean-up will be huge. This week, news was able to tell that almost half a million tonnes have been transported on cargo ships across the Skagerrak. – Don’t want to transport waste over long distances But where do they come from? Among other things from a boss landfill in Bergen. In 2020, work began on what was to be Norway’s first remediation of a historic boss landfill. OUT OF SIGHT OUT OF MIND: For many decades, the citizens of Bergen laid their waste buried under these football pitches. Now the area has been excavated and the masses cleaned and sent for recycling. Many tonnes lie in the landfill in Denmark. Photo: Bergen municipality All that time, the municipality said that parts of the unclean masses could end up abroad. – We are required to think about the environment here as well, and we do not want to transport waste by car or boat over long distances, said the project manager to news in 2020. sent to the landfill site of Envir in Laksevåg. Most of this was unloaded on cargo ships and sent directly to Nordic Waste in Denmark. This was primarily a layer of soil that lay above or below the landfill itself, and categorized as “lightly contaminated soil”. Daily manager Kolbjørn Akervold confirms this. – A rough sorting was done, and items such as large stones, roots, nets, ropes and other debris were picked away. But most were probably sent to Denmark. The old landfill on Slettebakken is the first landfill in Norway to be excavated and sorted on site. Over 200,000 tonnes of soil are washed and sorted. Soil that cannot be reused is sent for “treatment”. Over 6,000 tonnes, or around 500 lorry loads of pulp, have been driven to Envir in Laksevåg as contaminated soil waste. But Envir barely manages to recover 20 percent. Most of the pulp from Slettebakken was sent directly on large cargo ships to Nordic Waste in Denmark. The goal was further “use of the pulp”. But the Danish media write that barely 5 percent were treated. Almost everything from the landfill in Bergen was buried in the giant landfill at Ølst. – Terribly bored Around 80 per cent of the landfill at Slettebakken consisted of household waste. The municipality found tires, bottles and exhaust pipes, among other things. A careful sorting and washing system has handled the boss itself, and sent a lot for recycling and reuse. The pure masses have been reused at the plant. – In addition, there have been quite a few lots where we have sorted out stones and gravel, which have been reused on the Slettebakken. The rest is delivered to Envir, says Geir Haveraaen, head of department in the Urban Environment Agency in Bergen municipality. – Does Bergen municipality have a comment on the fact that parts of the soil from the landfill at Slettebakken were transported by cargo ship to Denmark and even in what is now considered a scandalous landfill? – The mass has been delivered to an approved reception in Norway, Envir. I think the situation that has arisen in Denmark is terribly sad, and I hope they close with the work they are now doing to get control of the situation. Sends 80 per cent to Denmark Envir profiles itself as a company that wants to “redefine the way the construction industry handles remote mass”. The aim is to offer “truly circular, profitable and risk-free solutions” to customers. Envir As currently has a license to operate a waste facility where they receive, treat, store and load contaminated waste by boat. Simply explained, contractors drive contaminated excavated materials in for delivery. The company sorts out clean stone and offers this for reuse. But the company only manages to use just under 20 percent of what comes in. The rest goes on cargo ships to Denmark. LOSSEKAI: Here in the Simonsviken business park in Laksevåg, Envir has sent out almost half a million tonnes of contaminated soil. Photo: John Inge Johansen / news In the export papers sent to the Danish authorities, the explanation is that since 2020 they have sent 450,000 tonnes of soil: “No utilization solutions in Norway”. – That is right. Those that exist (two in Austlandet, one in Rogaland and one in Trøndelag) are altogether too small to be able to cover Norwegian needs. If there is something we have historically had more than enough of, it is soil and stone, and forests, valleys and areas to dump masses in. The Danes do not have it the same way, says Akervold in Envir, before adding: – Norway is a sink in this area. The company is now rebuilding its facility. When it is clear, they will be able to produce and utilize up to 80 per cent of what they take in. This is also part of the reason why the suspension of exports to Denmark has no consequences for operations. Here you can see how the earth moves slowly but surely over everything it encounters. The picture from 2021 shows a large warehouse building. In the picture from 2023, large parts of the building are gone. Aerial photo: sdfi.dk What does “utilize” mean? Envir AS currently has permission to export lightly contaminated soil masses for a “remediation project” in Denmark. In the contract between the Bergen firm and the Danish company that formally receives the masses, it is stated that Envir risks having to take back the soil waste if the requirement for “utilization” is not met. The company has delivered lots on two contracts to Denmark, both for 300,000 tonnes. A total of 448,924 tonnes have been delivered from the company in Bergen. Dansk Radio has mentioned that only around 5 percent of the total soil mass at Nordic Waste has been treated and transported out of the landfill. In the contract that news has seen, it is stated that the amount of waste to be used is 300,000 tonnes. “Amount of waste that is not to be recovered amounts to 0 tonnes”. – How does Envir assess this wording and this condition in the contract? – Our clear assessment is that these conditions have been met, in that Nordic Waste has utilized the masses and confirmed this to us. – In Danish, “utilize” is used for what in Norwegian we would call hill planning or landscaping. “Utilization” must not be confused with what is happening at Slettebakken in Bergen and what Envir is going to do; which is sorting, washing, cleaning and reuse of various stone, gravel and sand fractions in the masses, says Akervold. He adds that Nordic Waste was in the process of treating already deposited pulp, and that the statement about 5 per cent manageable pulp is a bit unvarnished. He nevertheless underlines that mass landfill is yesterday’s way of doing it. – The future is washing facilities. news has asked the Danish Environmental Protection Agency for a comment on the clause in the contract on utilization. The Danish Environmental Protection Agency did not respond on Friday afternoon.
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Soil from historic landfill on Slettebakken in Bergen sent to scandal landfill in Denmark – news Vestland
