Høfde 42 pollution cleanup stalled due to delays from Danish Environmental Protection Agency
The generation pollution at Høfde 42 on Harboøre Tange will not be removed anytime soon. This highly publicized project has encountered unexpected obstacles from the Danish Environmental Protection Agency. Bent Graversen, a member of the Liberal Party and Chairman of the Regional Development Committee in Central Jutland, stated that the responsibility for eliminating the pollution, resulting from the disposal of toxic waste from the Cheminova chemical plant in the late 1950s and early 1960s, lies with them.
Before the contractor can construct the necessary treatment facility to remove the buried toxins, they must obtain an environmental approval from the agency. While this seems to be a straightforward task, it has become problematic. Graversen explained, “The Environmental Protection Agency is the authority that must issue the environmental approval for the project. However, the issue is that the processing of cases is getting bogged down, and the wait time may stretch to several years.”
He expressed frustration at the lengthy delays, labeling it a social issue since Central Jutland and the contractor, Arkil, are ready with personnel and equipment but face an extended waiting period to begin work. Graversen has reached out to the relevant ministers to highlight the issue and urged for resource reallocation to alleviate the backlog affecting all those facing excessive waiting times at the agency.
The Agency for Green Area Planning and Water Environment, part of the Environmental Protection Agency, confirmed receipt of Central Jutland’s application on September 23, 2024, noting that it is a complex matter that cannot be expedited. Høfde 42 is part of the initial phase of addressing ten pollution sites in Denmark associated with the former Cheminova factory. Test drilling has already commenced, with 200 boreholes planned to assess the extent of contamination and identify challenges during the cleanup, expected to conclude in a few weeks.