Sweden’s “Queen of Waste” never recycled: tons of waste buried everywhere

Brussels – “The Waste Queen” is the name by which Bella Nilsson, former managing director of the Swedish waste disposal company Think Pink, called herself. Nilsson is currently under indictment along with ten others for illegally burying and dumping tons of waste at 21 sites in 15 municipalities in Sweden.

As The Guardian reports, the charges involve both environmental and economic damage for all defendants. Between 2018 and 2020, the company was famous for its low-cost waste disposal and recycling, easily recognized by the pink bags it used for service.

Sadly, “the garbage queen” and her collaborators have dumped at least 200,000 tons of garbage throughout Sweden, causing the release of pollutants such as lead, zinc and dioxins. In addition, numerous fires were caused by the waste piles, further aggravating the situation. Debris was hidden at sites under construction or demolition and then buried, wrapped in plastic bales.

The lawyer for Mrs Nilsson (who has since changed her name to Fariba Vancor), who claims to have acted according to the law and been the victim of plots by rival companies, argues that there is an explanation for these crimes. The trial, which will begin shortly, is expected to be less straightforward than Nilsson’s explanations since it will last about nine months and will be supported by a 50,000-page police report.

Chief prosecutor Linda Schön commented on the case, wondering if anyone had questioned Think Pink’s ability to recycle the waste collected in the famous pink bags and the low price charged for the service. The evidence shows that the case was not, so much so that Anders Gustafsson, one of the prosecutors in the trial, described it as the “biggest environmental crime in Sweden in terms of scope and organization.”