The Dutch based oiltrading group Trafigura is back in court on Monday. It is appealing against the €1m fine it was given by judges in Amsterdam in the summer of last year for exporting toxic waste to Ivory Coast in the ship Probo Koala.

What happened?
In June 2006 Trafigura approached the local authority owned waste processor Amsterdam Port Services (APS). It wanted an estimate for taking in 200 tonnes of chemical slops, a mixture of caustic soda, water and gasoline. The slops were on board the Greek tanker Probo Kaola. They agreed on a price of €1,200. On pumping out the slops, a foul stench emanated from the mixture and APS ascertained that the slops were 250 times more contaminated than is allowed under the rules for handling this kind of waste.
How did the waste end up in Ivory Coast?
Another company, ATM, agreed to do the job for €500,000 but Trafigura balked at the price and the slops were pumped back into the Probo Kaolo. The ship set off to Estonia were it also took in gas oil which was delivered to Nigeria. It then headed to Ivory coast were local company Tommy was contracted to deal with the waste. The authorities and Tommy had been told about the high toxicity of the waste but the company nevertheless proceeded to dump it on ten waste grounds around the city of Abidjan. According to the government 16 people died and thousands suffered health problems connected to the waste. Trafigura has always disputed the claim that the waste was detrimental to human health but did pay out €33m to the victims in the case.
Why was Trafigura fined?
Not for making people in Ivory Coast ill. It was fined for exporting waste to a third world country which is forbidden under the EVOA treaty. The company also failed to check whether the West-African company had the means to deal with the waste adequately. Lawyers for the company claim that, as the waste was onboard ship, the judge should have invoked the Marpol treaty which covers pollution from oil tankers.
What happened to the Dutch end of the scandal?
The former APS director was in the dock but exonerated because he had been given permission by the Amsterdam city environmental service to handle the slops and took it as a go ahead. The council itself was ‘exectuting a public task’ which gives it indemnity.
Did Trafigura ‘get away with it’?
According to Greenpeace, it certainly did. The environmental organisation had to admit defeat. There was no judicial recourse left, it said, and the case proved that ‘serious environmental crimes by multinationals will go unpunished.’