Dzemyuk v. Ukraine

The applicant complained that the construction of a cemetery near his home in Tatariv, in Yaremeche, violated his right to respect for his home and private life, in violation of Article 8 of the European Convention.  Specifically, he argued that the cemetery had led to the contamination of his water supply.  The European Court stated that in the absence of actual damage to the applicant's health, the Court must establish whether the potential environmental risks established a close link with his private life and home sufficient to affect his quality of life.  It noted that the cemetery was sited in clear and blatant violation of applicable environmental health and sanitary regulations, which prohibited placing it in close proximity to residential buildings and water sources.  Therefore, the cemetery reached the minimum level of interference with the right to respect for home and private life to trigger application of Article 8.  In deciding whether the State had met the requirements of Article 8, the Court found that because the cemetery was built and used in breach of the applicable domestic regulations, "the interference with the applicant's right to respect for his home and private and family life was not 'in accordance with the law' within the meaning of Article 8 of the Convention."