The administrative appeals court in Douai found the prefecture’s decrees that regulated atmospheric emissions from the factory to be insufficient in view of the accumulated pollution. It orders the state to compensate the local population with 1.2 million euros.
There is a reminder of what the state must not do and must no longer do. The judge looks and the environment is no longer an empty shell rejoiced David Deharbe, the lawyer of the victims, after the conclusions of the public reporter before the appeal administrative court in Douai.
He can let his joy burst forth after the utterance decision this Thursday, May 23. 51 judgment, the court actually condemns the state to compensate the residents of the Mtaleurop factory, victims of heavy metal pollution, in the total amount of 1.2 million euros due to the loss of the market value of the property and interference with enjoyment.
The Noyelle-Godault and Courcelles-lès-Lens (Pas-de-Calais) factory was operated from the 1920s by the Pearroy company for the production of lead and zinc, to which other metals were then added. The site was taken over by Mtaleurop Nord in the 1990s before stop its action in 2003.
About fifty locals appealed to the prefect, then, in the absence of his answer, to the administrative judge to, on the one hand, urgently clear and restore their land, and on the other hand, request compensation from the state for damage caused by exposure to heavy metals. After the Lille Administrative Court rejected their request, they appealed the ruling to the Douai Administrative Court of Appeal. Kudos to them as the latter acknowledges the state’s error in exercising its police powers in matters of classified objects (ICPE) and awards them substantial compensation.
A permanent and historical mistake
Since the end of the 1960s, the Administration has had sufficient information about the existence of excessive pollution resulting from the activities of the Mtaleurop Nord plant and the fact that its activity created special risks in the context of strong historical soil pollution, which made this a fact in the neighborhood since the beginning of the last century , the judges report. If the state services, they add, kept a close eye on the issue of atmospheric emissions in gradual strengthening of requirements related to chimney discharges in pipes, by requiring studies and conducting inspections the restrictions imposed on the factory by the prefect were shown were mostly insufficient to prevent excessive pollution and did not address diffuse pollution arising specifically from workshops .
And if the legislation in force allowed the state to allow the continuation of exploitation, the time to regulate the situation for reasons of general interest related to the economic and social consequences of a possible interruption of exploitation, the judge notes here that Atmospheric pollutant discharges, channeled or diffused, which pose a danger to the neighborhood, continued until the cessation of activities in 2003. .
() The State has committed an error of such a nature that it entails liability by not requiring, through the prefectural decrees governing the activity of this classified facility, a significant reduction of atmospheric pollutants, in relation to multiple discharge points, including diffuse pollution, even if this means anticipating, according to need, wider national standards the court concluded.
This implicitly says that the factory was irreparably polluting and therefore had to be closed, explains David Deharbe. It is a condemnation of the state for a permanent and historic error in pollution matters, which, to our knowledge, is the first in matters of industrial environmental protection law. adds the lawyer.
Loss of market value and enjoyment disorders
The court acknowledges that the victims have suffered damages resulting from the loss of value of their properties due to heavy metal pollution and urban planning restrictions, directly related to the fault committed by the state. As well as pollution-related enjoyment disturbances that do not result in regional health agency (ARS) recommendations not to soak soil, not to consume plants from the soil, or to carry out regular wet cleaning. This limits their behavior and the behavior of the people, especially children, they might welcome into their home.
The court, however, refuses compensation for anxiety damage. It does not follow from the investigation that a causal connection has been established between land pollution and lead rate or cadmium observed in the blood of examined people the judges justify.
Having failed to establish such a link, the court in Douais also rejects the state’s fault in refusing to clear the applicant’s property. The contamination poses a risk to public health only in the event of ingestion or consumption of the plants, and that risk can be controlled by precautions which the appellants do not allege they could not observe. In these circumstances, the state was not obliged to exercise its police powers by conducting clearance operations on the appellant’s land. indicates a stop.
Other decisions are expected
The legal successes of the victims of this historic pollution may not end there. It must be remembered that in the 51 cases that were adjudicated, none involved young children nor, moreover, eight cases lead poisoning and 74 cases before lead poisoning finally detected in 2022 in the municipalities of the Project of General Interest (PIG) wants to point out David Deharbe.
Rather, justice is still needed to rule on compensation for physical injuries suffered by children, but also compensation for environmental damage, especially due to the loss of land use for growing vegetables, as well as taking over the complete decontamination of the site.
Article published on May 24, 2024