The Swedish “Queen of Trash” has been sentenced to six years in prison for serious environmental crimes.
Fariba Vancor ran a waste management company in Sweden and was found guilty of illegally dumping toxic waste, according to a
report
from the BBC. Over the course of five years, she dumped or buried about 200,000 tons of trash improperly in nature.
Vancor was the CEO of Think Pink, which was marketed as a resource for safely disposing of all types of waste, such as building materials, tires, toys, and electronics. But this was not the case.
Instead, the trash was dumped in places like agricultural properties and nature reserves.
In court, the prosecutors said Vancor had “no intention or ability to handle [the waste] in line with environmental legislation,” per the
BBC
.
“This trial is unique in scope,” Prosecutor Anders Gustafsson
told
Agence France-Presse, per the Times of India. “There has been a lot of material to go through, large amounts of waste… and the investigation and trial lasted a long time.”
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Along with Vancor, 10 other people were charged as well, including former employees and her ex-husband, the BBC reported. They all defended themselves against any wrongdoing, and Vancor’s lawyer said she plans to appeal the verdict.
The waste piles associated with Think Pink were not handled properly or taken to the correct dumping sites. Some of the trash caught fire, endangering people nearby and exposing them to toxic chemicals,
according to
The Times of India.
Substances that are harmful to human and environmental health, including arsenic, lead, and mercury, were identified in the waste. It is incredibly dangerous to leave these substances out in the open because they can leach into the soil, air, and
local water supply
.
It’s not uncommon for major corporations to face repercussions for
improper waste management
, but it is uncommon to uncover that a small
business
owner is engaging in the same types of
alarming practices
.
This case has been described as Sweden’s biggest environmental scandal in recent history. In addition to serving jail time, those charged will also have to pay millions of dollars in damages so the dumping sites can be cleaned up properly and legally, the BBC
reported
.
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Self-proclaimed ‘Queen of Trash’ hit with jail time for repeated dangerous acts: ‘Large amounts of waste’
first appeared on
The Cool Down
.
