Latest news with #PFAS
NHK
a day ago
- NHK
Italian court hands down prison sentences for PFAS pollution from chemical plant
An Italian court has sentenced former executives of a chemical manufacturer to prison terms of up to 17 and a half years for polluting groundwater. The court in the northern city of Vicenza on Thursday handed down the sentences to 11 officials out of 15 defendants who were executives at the company. The remaining four were acquitted. The 11 officials were found guilty for their roles in contaminating groundwater with PFAS from a chemical plant. PFAS are a group of organic fluorine compounds, some of which are considered potentially harmful. The 11 convicted officials' prison terms range from two years and eight months to 17 years and six months. Three of the 11 are Japanese from Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation, which was a parent company of the chemical maker. Two of the three were reportedly sentenced to 16 years in prison and the other was given 11 years. Local media say the chemical company was making products including PFAS chemicals from the 1960s until it went bankrupt in 2018, and that water from its plant polluted groundwater. Mitsubishi Corporation says it will refrain from making comments on the ruling as they would be related to the ongoing legal proceedings. The trading house says it will continue to respond sincerely to debate in the judicial arena.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Executives Get 141 Years in Prison for Italy PFAS Contamination
Eleven former executives of companies linked to Miteni SpA were sentenced to a combined 141 years in prison by an Italian court for one of the largest groundwater contaminations of forever chemicals in Europe. Parent company Mitsubishi Corp., Japan's biggest trading house, and Luxembourg-based International Chemical Investors Group were found to be liable along with the individuals for damage caused by pollution with per- and polyfluorinated chemicals, also known as PFAS or forever chemicals.
Japan Times
a day ago
- Japan Times
Three Japanese nationals found guilty over PFAS pollution in Italy
An Italian court on Thursday found three Japanese nationals, including an ex-executive of a former subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corp., guilty over polluting water with PFAS, often referred to as "forever chemicals." The three were among 11 defendants sentenced to prison terms of between two years and 18 years over their roles in the PFAS contamination. According to media reports, two of the Japanese nationals were each sentenced to 16 years in prison, while the remaining national was given 11 years behind bars. A total of 15 people were indicted in the case. Four were found not guilty. The former Mitsubishi Corp. unit Miteni, which went bankrupt in 2018, produced PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, at its plant in the province of Vicenza in Veneto starting in the 1960s. Leaks of waste from the plant are believed to have led to widespread water and soil pollution. In 2013, the Italian government alerted Veneto about worrying levels of PFAS in its water supply, prompting the region to notify judicial authorities. The court also recognized the civil liability of individuals and corporations involved in the pollution, ordering the payment of over €60 million (about ¥10.2 billion) in total damages to citizens, the region and the central government. Veneto President Luca Zaia said that the court's recognition of environmental damage and water pollution was a step toward justice.
2 days ago
3 Japanese Found Guilty over PFAS Pollution in Italy
News from Japan World Jun 27, 2025 18:08 (JST) Paris, June 26 (Jiji Press)--An Italian court on Thursday found three Japanese nationals, including a former executive of a former subsidiary of Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp., guilty over polluting water in the northern Italian region of Veneto with PFAS, which are potentially carcinogenic chemicals. The three were among 11 defendants sentenced to prison terms of between two years and eight months and 17 years and six months over their roles in the PFAS contamination. According to media reports, two of the Japanese nationals were each sentenced to 16 years in prison, while the remaining national was given 11 years behind bars. A total of 15 people were indicted in the case. Four were found not guilty. The former Mitsubishi Corp. unit Miteni, which went bankrupt in 2018, produced PFAS, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, at its plant in the province of Vicenza in Veneto from the 1960s. Leaks of waste from the plant are believed to have led to widespread water and soil pollution. [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
Asahi Shimbun
2 days ago
- Asahi Shimbun
3 Japanese sentenced to prison over PFAS pollution in Italy
The presiding judge, center, delivers the ruling in a case concerning chemical pollution at a district court in Vicenza, Italy, on June 26. (Kosuke So) VICENZA, Italy—Eleven individuals, including three Japanese nationals, were sentenced to prison here over chemical pollution caused by a former Mitsubishi Corp. subsidiary that contaminated groundwater and rivers, affecting hundreds of thousands of people. The district court in Vicenza on June 26 handed down prison terms ranging from 2 years and 8 months to 17 years and 6 months. Four Japanese, including board members of the former subsidiary, Miteni, were indicted in the case. Two of them received 16-year prison sentences while one was handed an 11-year term. The other Japanese suspect was acquitted. The chemicals released by the Miteni factory in northeastern Italy's Veneto region were polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as 'forever chemicals' because they are nearly non-degradable in nature. The court ordered the convicted defendants to pay a total of about 57 million euros ($67 million or 9.6 billion yen) to the Italian environment ministry. In addition, the court recognized Mitsubishi's responsibility for the water contamination and ordered the corporation to provide compensation to victims, including individual citizens, the Veneto region and the municipal government where the factory was located. The trial stemmed from an investigation by Veneto regional authorities in 2013, which identified the Miteni plant as the source of PFAS pollutants in the area. The factory, previously owned by Mitsubishi, produced the chemicals for textile and other industrial purposes. Italian authorities estimated that 350,000 people in three provinces were affected by contaminated tap and groundwater. Subsequent investigations found PFAS concentrations in blood samples of local residents far exceeded acceptable levels, and the pollution issue became a serious public health concern. Prosecutors in 2021 accused Miteni of failing to properly treat PFAS waste generated during the manufacturing process and allowing the chemicals to enter the groundwater. They also said Miteni attempted to conceal the problem after the pollution was discovered. Italian authorities indicted 15 individuals, including three Japanese who served as business managers of Mitsubishi's fluorochemical business division and one Japanese who was general manager at the division. Two of these Japanese individuals were also board members at Miteni before the subsidiary was sold in 2009. The factory has been shut down and Miteni has gone bankrupt. According to Marco Casellato, a lawyer representing the victims, the ruling represents the first time in Europe for corporate managers to be held criminal responsibility for PFAS pollution. 'This was a groundbreaking ruling that almost entirely recognizes corporate responsibility,' he said. Mitsubishi declined to give its opinion on the ruling. 'We will refrain from answering questions because our views on this ruling are deeply related to ongoing legal proceedings,' the company said in a statement. 'However, we will continue to engage sincerely in discussions through the judicial process.' PFAS is a collective term for organic fluorine compounds that are resistant to water, oil and heat. They have been widely used since the 1950s in waterproofing and firefighting foams. In recent years, PFAS contamination has been linked to health problems, such as kidney and breast cancer. (This article was written by Kosuke So, correspondent, and Shiki Iwasawa.)
