Lake off Horgen ZH polluted Former paper mill bosses must pay back millions
The Federal Supreme Court has ordered the former directors of the Horgen paper mill to pay CHF 2.15 million to the Canton of Zurich. The background to this is the remediation of the polluted lake bed.
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- Two former board members of the paper mill in Horgen ZH must pay CHF 2.15 million to the Canton of Zurich for the clean-up of the polluted lake bed.
- The Federal Supreme Court has confirmed a ruling to this effect.
- The paper mill discharged sludge into the lake with official approval until the 1960s.
The Federal Supreme Court has ruled: Two former board members of the paper mill in Horgen ZH must pay the canton of Zurich CHF 2.15 million. The sum is earmarked for the clean-up of the polluted lake bed off Horgen, as reported by the "Zürichsee Zeitung".
The Zurich Commercial Court had already ordered the two members of the Board of Directors - a man and a woman - to make this payment in December 2023. The defendants took the case to the Federal Supreme Court. The court has now confirmed the decision.
Until at least the 1960s, the Horgen paper mill discharged its sludge into the lake bed, albeit with official approval. The soil is still polluted today as a result. The canton estimates that the clean-up will cost 11.5 million francs.
The paper mill would have had to pay around 8.5 million francs of this. The company subsequently became overindebted and had to file for bankruptcy at the end of 2019. 1.8 million francs remained, with taxpayers at risk of having to pay the rest.
2.15 million francs in dividends
According to the court rulings, those responsible for the paper mill knew from 2008 at the latest that they would face high restructuring costs, writes the "Zürichsee-Zeitung". But instead of forming provisions, the then board members paid out cash dividends and loans of CHF 2.15 million at a general meeting in 2011.
The husband and wife justified their decisions in court by arguing that the dividend payments were "transparently reflected in the accounts at the time and were not objected to by the auditors". It was also unclear whether the claim for the lake bed remediation was time-barred.
Criminal proceedings still pending
The Federal Supreme Court, however, followed the lower court and has now held the two former board members financially liable.
However, the case concerning the Horgen paper mill is not yet legally closed. In the canton of Aargau, where the former board members last worked, parallel criminal proceedings are underway against the man and the woman for their actions.
The editor wrote this article with the help of AI.
