EFTA Surveillance Authority Launches Infringement Proceedings Against Norway Over Illegal Dumping of Mining Waste in Fjords
Norway Faces Legal Action Over Fjord Mining Waste Disposal Violations
Oslo, 23 April 2026 – The EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) has initiated formal infringement proceedings against Norway over its approval of tailings disposal in the Førdefjord and Repparfjord. The authority accuses Norway of failing to properly and fully implement the Water Framework Directive and of misapplying its provisions in two mining waste disposal projects in the fjords. The announcement comes just four days before Norway's Supreme Court (Høyesterett) is set to hear a case on the Førdefjord tailings permit on 27 April.
Under the directive, EEA states are required to prevent the ecological deterioration of all water bodies. Exemptions may only be granted under strict conditions if a project serves an overriding public interest or provides significant benefits for human health, safety, or sustainable development that outweigh its environmental impact, the ESA states. It finds that Norway has not correctly or fully transposed these exemption rules into national law, including by not requiring that the interest pursued be of a public nature. The Water Framework Directive was incorporated into the EEA Agreement in 2009 and is implemented in Norway through the national Water Regulations.
Norway has invoked these exemption rules to justify the disposal of mining waste in the Førdefjord on the west coast and the Repparfjord in northern Norway. In both cases, the ESA expects the ecological status of the affected waters to deteriorate.
The authority concludes that Norway has failed to demonstrate an overriding public interest that would justify such deterioration, meaning the conditions for granting an exemption have not been met.
The ESA's assessment is based on the interpretation of EEA law by the EFTA Court in an opinion issued in March 2025.
Since Norway has neither properly nor fully implemented the relevant provisions of the directive into national law nor ensured that projects leading to water deterioration were approved only where valid exemptions apply, the ESA has determined that Norway has breached its obligations under the EEA Agreement. The authority has therefore decided to issue Norway with a formal letter of formal notice—the first step in infringement proceedings against an EEA EFTA state. Norway now has two months to respond to the ESA's concerns before the authority decides on further action.
Read the ESA's decision [here].
For more information on the legal battle over mining waste disposal in the Førdefjord, click [here].
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