December 16, 2013: The
Brantafors waterworks in Kallinge is closed after the municipal company Ronneby Miljöteknik discovered elevated levels of the now banned substance PFAS (poly- and perfluorinated alkyl acids) in drinking water.
Spring 2014:
Samples of residents in the area show greatly increased levels of PFAS substances in the blood.
Several studies on the health effects of PFAS are beginning to be carried out, at Lund and Gothenburg universities, among others.
November 27, 2014: The
Swedish Armed Forces assumes responsibility for PFAS substances ending up in drinking water.
It comes from fire foam that has been used at their training ground at F17 air base since the 1980s.
March 5, 2015:
Affected Kallinge residents form the PFAS association, whose purpose is to hold those responsible accountable through a legal process.
June 15, 2015: The
government rejects the PFAS association's application for a grant to investigate the health effects of the elevated PFAS levels.
August 14, 2015: The
PFAS association submits claims for damages to the Armed Forces.
March 2, 2016:
A government inquiry directs strong criticism at the authorities' work on the PFAS scandal.
May 30, 2016: The
Armed Forces has investigated how their employees were affected by the use of the fire foam.
However, the investigation is not published.
July 20, 2016: The
PFAS association, with its 174 members, submits a lawsuit against Ronneby Miljöteknik.
They believe that it is the municipality's responsibility to ensure that the drinking water is usable.
They choose not to sue the Armed Forces.
June 15, 2017:
The two parties meet in court for the first time.
Both agree that the issue should be raised with the Supreme Court, to decide which law to apply.
June 26, 2017:
Blekinge District Court decides to send the case directly to the Supreme Court.
December 13, 2017: The
Supreme Court grants leave to appeal
June 14, 2018: The
Supreme Court decides that Miljöteknik's delivery of municipal drinking water is covered by the Product Liability Act.
July 27, 2019: The
PFAS association wants Ronneby municipality to sue the Armed Forces due to poisoned drinking water.
But Ronneby municipality has no plans to follow the call.
November 18, 2019:
It turns out that several of the authorities were aware of the risks with PFAS substances, according to a review from Sveriges Radio's program Kaliber.
February 4, 2020: The
Government demands that the Armed Forces draw up an action plan on how PFAS-contaminated sites are to be handled.
The action plan must be completed no later than 1 June.
June 1, 2020:
The PFAS-contaminated areas cannot be cleaned up, the Armed Forces writes in an action plan to the Ministry of Defense.
September 10, 2020:
Around 160 Kallinge residents are the plaintiffs in the civil case.
During the trial, it will be decided whether the municipality has any liability for damages towards the victims.
However, late submission of evidence led to the postponement of negotiations until February 2021.
October 12, 2020: The
PFAS association accuses the municipality of having lied and obscured what contacts they had with the researchers at Occupational and Environmental Medicine, before the evidence that postponed the trial was submitted.
November 25, 2020: The
District Court decides that Miljöteknik may not submit any new evidence after January 8, as they can be assumed to try to delay the legal process.
February 8, 2021: The
trial begins again.
This has happened in the PFAS scandal
2021-02-08T09:57:17.500Z
Who is really responsible if residents drink toxic or polluted water from the tap? The question has come to the fore after the so-called PFAS scandal in Kallinge.
Source: svt