Environmental Infringements Down in 2011
The Environmental Inspectorate's 2011 overview concluded that environmental violations decreased compared to the year before.
“The times when environmental destruction and recklessness were the norm are fortunately in the past,” said Minister of the Environment Keit Pentus.
The statement came just days after a study by Yale and Columbia universities gave Estonia's environmental record a crushing assessment.
In 2011, the agency counted 2,326 violations, down by about 300 compared to the year before. As in previous years, the most infringements - 1,420 - were in the fishing sector. Another 266 violations were revealed in waste management and 155 in forestry.
Fines for a total of 197,517 euros were issued to 1,205 violators. The environmental damage resulting from the infringements was estimated at 288,155 euros, for the most part related to the mining industry.
Ott Tammik