Weekend Festival noise dispute reaches European human rights court

Residents living near the Weekend Festival's location at the Vermo Racetrack in Espoo, Finland, are enduring what they describe as unbearable noise pollution. Kristiina Heimonen, a local resident, stated the noise was "unbelievable" and penetrated "the house and structures non-stop for ten hours a day."

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The noise was absolutely unbelievable. You don't understand it until you experience it. It penetrated the house and structures non-stop for ten hours a day.

Heimonen explained that the persistent noise forced families with children to relocate to hotels. "We tried to endure the first year, but in 2024 and 2025, we also left for a hotel because the noise level remained the same," she said. When she submitted hotel bills to the festival organizers, she received no compensation, being told that the activity was legal and there was no obligation to pay.

Espoo city officials suggested informing residents about potential noise disturbances in advance so they could prepare by closing windows and using earplugs. However, Heimonen argues this is insufficient. "Closing windows and earplugs for ten hours a day don't help, because the low frequencies are felt throughout the body. And you can't put earplugs in, for example, a 17-year-old cat," she countered.

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We tried to endure the first year, but in 2024 and 2025, we also left for a hotel because the noise level remained the same.

The festival, organized by All Things Live Finland Oy, has obtained permits from the Espoo environmental control department each year. Noise levels have been measured and, in 2023, were reportedly within the permitted limits. Heimonen, however, believes the limits are set too high, causing suffering. She and her neighbors pursued legal action through administrative courts, arguing the festival should not be permitted and the area is unsuitable. Their appeals were denied.

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Closing windows and earplugs for ten hours a day don't help, because the low frequencies are felt throughout the body. And you can't put earplugs in, for example, a 17-year-old cat.

In the spring of 2025, Heimonen escalated the matter to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), with the Finnish state as the respondent. The government's submission to the court argues that ten hours of noise over two days does not constitute a disturbance severe enough to violate the right to respect for home and private life in a modern urban setting. The ECHR has accepted the case for review, a process that could take a long time. Heimonen awaits this year's festival with dread.

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The government's view is that ten hours of noise disturbance per day for two days in 2023 is not such a disturbance that exceeds the normal inconveniences associated with living in a modern city and thus reaches the minimum level of severity required to be considered an infringement of the applicants' right to respect for their home and private life.