The legal presumption of evidence, with which residents do not have to prove themselves that damage has been caused by the gas storage in Langelo, must return. State Secretary Hans Vijlbrief (D66) emphasized this once again this week during a legislative consultation in the House of Representatives. A law amendment is in the works.
According to Vijlbrief, the legal presumption of evidence is ‘well regulated’ by law. “But it depends on how you do it.” By this he refers to the Institute for Mining Damage Groningen (IMG), which has stopped recording damage around the gas storage facilities in Langelo (also known as UGS Norg) and Grijpskerk. The IMG had investigations carried out from which they concluded that the legal presumption of evidence surrounding both gas storage facilities no longer needs to apply to a large extent. Vijlbrief is not happy about that.
During the consultations in the House of Representatives, the State Secretary reflected on a consultation this summer in Niezijl, where he spoke with residents of UGS Norg. “Norg bothered me a lot”, Vijlbrief looks back. “In my opinion, the presumption of evidence was introduced to ensure that people would be in a stronger position vis-à-vis the IMG. If the IMG then uses a model that leads to the legal presumption of evidence no longer being used, then you are fulfilling the wish of the IMG parliament. I have a big problem with that.”
The IMG itself says it does not use a model to make things more difficult for people. The studies commissioned by the institute were intended to show the Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij (NAM) where and why it should pay out. “That must be scientifically substantiated and we had it done by experts. We do not have that expertise ourselves,” says the IMG.
The IMG expects researchers from TU Delft, TNO and Movares to jointly conclude that the results of the study are correct, because Movares has already said in the review that they believe there is no doubt about the outcome. A re-entry of the legal presumption of evidence must therefore come from ‘The Hague’. In other words: it is up to State Secretary Hans Vijlbrief.
The IMG has announced that it has been pushing for a change in the law for some time. “We have been calling for a solution to the problem of claims handling in this area in The Hague for some time now. We are pleased that this is now being initiated.”
State Secretary Vijlbrief can count on a majority in the House of Representatives for an amendment to the law. However, it may still take a while before that legislative change is actually implemented, as this can easily take a year.