Facts
The Canton of Lucerne filed an administrative court appeal against the decision of the Federal Valuation Commission, according to which the neighbors of a public facility (National Highway A2 in the area of the Sonnenberg Tunnel) should receive compensation for the noise emissions until the facility is remediated.
The Federal Supreme Court upheld the administrative court appeal. It stated that the operator of a public facility that exceeds the immission limit values and is therefore subject to remediation is generally not obliged to pay compensation for the expropriation of neighboring legal defense claims before the expiration of the statutory remediation period.
The Federal Supreme Court justified this by stating that the Environmental Protection Act grants the facility operators a deadline until April 1, 2002 to adapt their facilities to the requirements. Until this time, the immission limit values must be complied with, unless exemptions are granted. Expropriation compensation would unnecessarily hinder the remediation efforts, which is not in the interest of the affected neighbors.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court further stated that similar considerations have already led to the admission of compensation for the expropriation of neighboring legal defense claims in the case of a road facility subject to remediation only within narrow limits even before the entry…