The College of Environment has just canceled the decision of Brussels Environment, which imposed many restrictive measures related to the fact that the discotheque made too much noise, in particular at a direct neighbor who had lodged a complaint.
“The College of the Environment ruled following appeals lodged by the complainants and the manager of the nightclub. On March 6, he canceled the decision taken at the end of January by Brussels Environment, without taking an alternative decision”, details the regional administration. The Brussels environment administration “takes note of this”. And recalls that it “in particular reduced the operating time of the Fuse from 3 to 2 years by accepting temporary exceedances of noise standards and by setting stricter schedules.”
In its arguments, “the College of the Environment considers that Brussels Environment has modified the conditions of the environmental permit (which is the responsibility, in this case, of the city of Brussels) when the only possibilities were to decide on a partial or total closure.”
This implies that the file returns to square one. The Fuse can continue to operate on the basis of the initial environmental permit. But “the decision of the College has the consequence that it is required to comply to the letter with the noise standards: the decrees for neighborhood noise, classified installations and amplified sound”, warns Brussels-Environment.
When this decision was announced, Regional Minister Alain Maron (Ecolo), in charge of the Environment, was skeptical: “I note that the decision of the College of the Environment returns the file to the initial situation and imposes on the Fuse a very strict respect of the permit of the City and the standards. This does not seem to bring a lasting balance. It is now necessary to seize the creative tracks of the TaskForce NightLife to reconcile the standards, the well-being of the neighborhood and the festive life.“
