For decades of dispute over the jockgrim landfill!

For decades of dispute over the jockgrim landfill!

In the district of Germersheim, after years of legal disputes about the responsibility for the former landfill in Jockgrim-Büchelberg, there is a decisive turn. The Administrative Court of Neustadt an der Weinstraße hired the operator's responsibility procedure on November 28, 2024, after the Structure and Approval Directorate South (SGD Süd) has overturned its controversial decision to the responsibility of the district. This decision, which was issued in January 2023, had determined the district as the last operator of the landfill and obliged to carry out renovation measures, which led to intensive legal disputes, such as Pfalz-Express reported .

origin of the controversy

The landfill has a long and complex history: originally the site was a tone reduction area for a brick factory before it was leased by a society for the elimination of industrial waste in 1970. Due to contamination in the surface water, the operation was soon prohibited and the approval was revoked. The district of Germersheim began backing the site in 1972 and registered the operation of a central landfill in 1973, whereby the use of the "barrel bearing" remained excluded. After several official measures for security measures, the site was returned to the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in 1976. As a result, the responsibility for further investigations in the country, which only contacted the district in 2019.

In the latest court decision, it was clearly stated that the district of Germersheim cannot be held responsible for the groundwater pollution outgoing by the "barrel warehouse". The court emphasized that the district never had control over this area and that the deeds of third parties are responsible for the pollution. These legal assessments led the SGD Süd to leave the decision and both parties declared the procedure as completed. This means that the year-long dispute in connection with the former Jockgrim-Büchelberg landfill.