BBL exposes Lantis environmental scandal: “148,000 tons of soil containing PFAS hidden under the asphalt of the Oosterweel link”

Between November 2021 and December 2021 and between March 2022 and April 2022, each time before the technical reports were suspended by the State Council, Lantis intentionally built up large portions of the Oosterweel Connection with tons of PFAS-contaminated soil. Bond Peter Leefmilieu announced this after they were given access to the file. The global environmental organization reacts angrily: “This cannot go without consequences. Lantis management is not a reliable partner.

The Flemish Environmental Inspection Authority prepared a report because Lantis used soil containing PFAS under motorway complexes in the Scheldt Tunnel, the Sint Anna interchange and the Antwerp West interchange in 2021 and 2022 without obtaining an environmental permit for it. The land is waste and should simply not be used. The PV with the reminder was sent to Lantis on Monday, October 9, 2023 and was also forwarded to the Public Prosecutor’s Office for further criminal investigation.

Can Lantis management still survive?

“It’s another bug in the Oosterweel file. This action by Lantis is another indication that it is not a reliable partner to address the PFAS issue. If you act in the public interest, you do not quickly hide the reasons when you know they will soon be classified as serious. Simply“, responds Tycho van Huart of Bond’s Peter Lefmilio sharply.

The question is what to do with illegal lands? Just organizing it and wiping it with a sponge is not an option. BBL requires an independent risk assessment and investigation of the solution that is legal and least harmful to the environment. In addition, the Flemish government should immediately oblige Lantis to complete its descriptive soil research in order to begin the real remediation of Oosterweil.

Bond Beter Leefmilieu urges further investigations and stricter enforcement so that solutions can be found quickly and any further violations can be ruled out.

The report talks about 148 thousand tons of contaminated soil. You can’t accidentally move it. It makes sense to investigate this matter: who informed and who made the decision? Lantis simply cannot justify this crime in legal terms. It is up to the prosecutor’s office to formulate the correct conclusions and punishment.

The facts date back to before the conclusion of the reform agreement between the Flemish government, Lantis, Natuurpunt Waasland, the municipality of Zwijndrecht, the citizens’ movement Zwijndrecht Gezond and the Bond Beter Leefmilieu.