Thu. Sep 19th, 2024

EU environmental infringements procedures in January

Jan 27, 2023 ,

Brussels, 26 January 2023

Overview by policy area

In its regular package of infringement decisions, the European Commission pursues legal action against Member States for failing to comply with their obligations under EU law. These decisions, covering various sectors and EU policy areas, aim to ensure the proper application of EU law for the benefit of citizens and businesses.

The key decisions taken by the Commission are presented below and grouped by policy area. The Commission is also closing 221 cases in which the issues with the Member States concerned have been solved without the Commission needing to pursue the procedure further.

For more information on the EU infringement procedure, see the fullQ&A. For more detail on all decisions taken, consult theinfringement decisions’ register.

Letters of formal notice

Clean air: EU Commission calls on 14 Member States to reduce emissions of several air pollutants

The Commission is calling on 14 Member States to respect their reduction commitments for several air pollutants as required by Directive 2016/2284 on the reduction of national emissions of certain atmospheric pollutants (the ‘National Emission Ceilings’ or ‘NEC Directive’):

The NEC Directive sets national emission reduction commitments for several pollutants to be attained by each Member State each year between 2020 and 2029, and more ambitious reductions for 2030 onwards. Member States are required to establish national air pollution control programmes (NAPCPs) to show how these reduction commitments will be met. The European Green Deal, with its zero pollution ambition, puts emphasis on cutting air pollution, which is among the key factors negatively affecting human health. The Commission analysed the national emission inventories of several pollutants submitted by Member States in 2022 (reflecting emissions from 2020). The 14 Member States mentioned above have failed to meet their commitments for one or several pollutants targeted by the NEC Directive. Moreover, since the measures set out in the NAPCP of most of these Member States have not ensured reaching the emission reduction commitment for one or several pollutants, these measures are not sufficient to limit the annual human-caused emissions as required by the Directive. Ammonia (stemming from the agricultural sector) is the pollutant for which most of these Member States do not comply with their obligations. The Commission is therefore sending letters of formal notice to these 14 Member States, which now have two months to respond and address the shortcomings raised by the Commission. In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion.

Air quality: Commission calls on ESTONIA to correctly transpose EU air quality rules

The Commission is calling on Estonia (INFR(2022)2134) to bring its national legislation fully in line with EU laws on air quality (Directive 2004/107/EC) relating to arsenic, cadmium, mercury, nickel and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air and Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe, as amended by Directive 2015/1480). The European Green Deal, with its zero pollution ambition, puts emphasis on cutting air pollution, which is among key threats to health. Full implementation of the air quality standards set out in EU legislation is essential both for human health and for the natural environment. The directives in question lay down measures to define and establish objectives for air quality. These include assessing the ambient air quality in Member States, obtaining information on ambient air quality, ensuring that the information on ambient air quality is made available to the public, maintaining and improving air quality, as well as promoting increased cooperation between the Member States in reducing air pollution. Estonia has not correctly transposed certain requirements of these directives, for instance those related to sampling points, quality assurance and quality control systems and documentation of the site selection. The Commission is therefore sending a letter of formal notice to Estonia, which now has two months to respond and address the shortcomings raised by the Commission. In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion.

Nature: Commission calls on ESTONIA to effectively manage its Natura 2000 sites

The Commission is calling on Estonia (INFR(2022)2002) to take measures to manage its Natura 2000 sites to respect obligations under the Habitats Directive (Directive 92/43/EEC). Under the Habitats Directive, Member States must set specific conservation objectives and measures for habitats and species present in special areas of conservation (SAC) to maintain or restore them to favourable conservation status at national biogeographical level. These are key requirements to protect biodiversity across the EU. The European Green Deal and the European Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 both stress the importance for the EU to stop its biodiversity loss by preserving our natural sites and restoring damaged ecosystems. In 2016, the Commission launched a dialogue with all Member States, including Estonia, to address the remaining gaps in SAC designation and management. Estonia has designated all sites as SACs, but the conservation objectives do not always fulfil the legal requirements of the Habitats Directive as they are not sufficiently detailed, measurable and reportable. As a consequence, conservation measures that must be established with the view to attaining the conservation objectives set for each Natura 2000 site are also inadequate. The Commission is therefore sending a letter of formal notice to Estonia, which has two months to respond and address the shortcomings raised by the Commission. In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion.

EU Ecolabel: Commission calls on GREECE to allow Greek companies to obtain EU Ecolabel and ensure market surveillance

The Commission is calling on Greece (INFR(2022)2110) to correctly apply the EU Ecolabel Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 66/2010). The Regulation establishes a voluntary ecolabel award scheme to promote products with a lower environmental impact and to give customers accurate, non-deceptive, science-based information on the environmental impact of products. The Regulation obliges each participating Member State to establish a competent body that grants the right to use the EU Ecolabel on products complying with EU Ecolabel criteria. The Greek competent body has not been operational since 2020 and therefore cannot process any applications made by businesses. This means that Greek companies cannot obtain ecolabels for their products before exporting them to other Member States, leading to unfair competition with other European companies. Moreover, this also means that there is no market surveillance on the Greek EU Ecolabel products already on the market. Although the Greek authorities have acknowledged the issue, it has not yet been resolved. The Commission is therefore sending a letter of formal notice to Greece, which has two months to respond and address the shortcomings raised by the Commission. In the absence of a satisfactory response, the Commission may decide to issue a reasoned opinion.

Reasoned opinions

Nature protection: Commission calls on ROMANIA to complete its Natura 2000 network

The Commission is calling on Romania (INFR(2019)2138) to ensure adequate protection for habitats and species of EU interest by designating Natura 2000 sites, as required under the Habitats Directive (Directive 92/43/EEC). Member States committed to develop a coherent European  Natura 2000 network. The Habitats Directive requires Member States to propose adequate sites of Community importance (SCIs) to the Commission and obliges EU countries to protect and restore to favourable conservation status habitats that play a vital role for biodiversity. The European Green Deal and the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 also both indicate that it is crucial for the EU to stop biodiversity loss. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Romania in July 2019 over its failure to ensure adequate protection for habitats and species of EU interest by designating Natura 2000 sites. Romania has not yet proposed all the sites it should have, and those proposed do not adequately cover the various habitat types and species that need protection. Therefore, the Commission has decided to issue a reasoned opinion to Romania, which now has two months to respond and take the necessary measures. Otherwise, the Commission may decide to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Nature protection: Commission calls on CROATIA to correctly implement the Habitats Directive in relation to wind energy projects

The Commission is calling on Croatia (INFR(2020)2204) to properly apply the Habitats Directive (Directive 92/43/EEC) concerning authorisation of wind farm projects affecting Natura 2000 sites. The Habitats Directive requires that projects likely to have significant effects on Natura 2000 sites, either individually or in combination with other plans or projects, can be authorised only after having ascertained that the integrity of the sites concerned will not be adversely affected. Croatia failed to correctly apply the Habitats Directive when authorising changes to certain wind farm projects. In particular, the changes to such projects were authorised without ensuring that they would not negatively affect the integrity of the sites. The European Green Deal and the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 indicate that it is crucial for the EU to stop biodiversity loss by protecting and restoring it. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Croatia in May 2020. Despite some progress, the Croatian authorities have not fully addressed all grievances and refused to take any measures to remedy to the problems identified. Therefore, the Commission has decided to issue a reasoned opinion to Croatia, which now has two months to respond and take the necessary measures. Otherwise, the Commission may decide to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Access to environmental information: Commission calls on FRANCE to improve citizens’ access to environmental information 

The Commission is calling on France (INFR(2020)4014) to comply with Directive 2003/4 on public access to environmental information. The Directive aims to increase public access to environmental information and the dissemination of such information contributing to a greater awareness of environmental matters, a more effective participation by the public in environmental decision-making and, eventually, to a better environment. The Directive provides that an applicant who considers that a request for information has been ignored, or wrongfully refused, may ask an independent and impartial body to review the case in an expeditious manner. In France, such a procedure exists but the deadline of one month given to the independent body to provide its opinion has been repeatedly exceeded. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to France in May 2020. Although France took some measures to reduce the delays, the breach still persists. In 2021, the French independent body (la Commission d’accès aux documents administratifs – CADA) continued to exceed the legal delay to deliver its opinion in the vast majority of cases. The average time for delivering the opinion was around 2 months. Therefore, the Commission has decided to issue a reasoned opinion to France, which now has two months to reply and take the necessary measures. Otherwise, the Commission may decide to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Additional reasoned opinions 

Nature protection: Commission calls on FRANCE to stop illegal bird hunting and capture methods

The Commission is calling on France (INFR(2019)2151) to stop hunting methods that are prohibited by the Birds Directive (Directive 2009/147/EC). The latter aims to protect all wild bird species naturally occurring in the European Union. Among the 64 species that can be hunted, 20 are threatened of disappearing. France has authorised several methods for the capture of huntable birds, such as nets and cage traps for skylark and pigeons including the turtle dove, which are not selective and are forbidden by the Directive. Alternative methods to secure skylarks and pigeons for food consumption exist (gun hunting and breeding on farm). The use of glue for hunting thrushes is also still permitted in the French law, contrary to the Directive. Member States may derogate from certain provisions of the Directive but only under strict conditions that are not fulfilled in this case, especially because the skylarks captured are not in a good conservation status and in steep decline. Moreover, protected species such as ortolans and goldfinches are trapped and harmed. France has also declared its intention to reopen spring hunting of greylag goose which has been systematically authorised or tolerated in the past, violating the Directive. France has also not fully reported on derogations to the Commission as required by the Directive. These are key requirements to protect biodiversity across the EU as emphasised by the European Green Deal and the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to France in July 2019 followed by a reasoned opinion in July 2020. In March 2021, the Court of Justice developed the legal interpretation for the notion of selectivity and alternatives in its judgment in case C-900/19. The Commission has now added to its analysis on the non-selectivity of the above-mentioned hunting methods in the light of the criteria established by the Court. The Commission has therefore decided to send an additional reasoned opinion to France, which now has two months to respond and take the necessary measures. Otherwise, the Commission may decide to refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Referrals to the Court of Justice

Water: Commission decides to refer IRELAND to the Court of Justice for failing to correctly transpose the Water Framework Directive protecting waters from pollution

The Commission decided today to refer Ireland (INFR(2007)2238) to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to correctly transpose the Water Framework Directive (Directive 2000/60/EC) into national law. The Directive establishes a framework for protecting inland surface waters, transitional waters, coastal waters and groundwater by preventing their further deterioration, preventing pollution as well as protecting and enhancing water dependent ecosystems and water resources. It requires that all inland and coastal waters reach at least good status by 2027 at the latest. To achieve this, Member States are to establish river basin management plans and programmes with measures. This is an important aspect of the European Green Deal‘s zero pollution ambition, aiming for water pollution to be reduced to levels no longer considered harmful to human health and natural ecosystems. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Ireland in October 2007, followed by a reasoned opinion in November 2011. The Commission reassessed the case after Ireland adopted new amending legislation and sent an additional letter of formal notice to Ireland in January 2019, followed by an additional reasoned opinion in October 2020.  Despite some progress and the adoption of new legislation in June 2022, the Irish authorities have not yet fully addressed the grievances, more than 20 years since the entry into force of this directive. The Commission considers that efforts by the Irish authorities have to date been unsatisfactory and insufficient and is therefore referring Ireland to the Court of Justice of the European Union. More information is available in the press release.

Biodiversity: Commission decides to refer six Member States to the Court of Justice for failing to prevent invasive alien species damaging European nature 

The Commission decided today to refer six Member States to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to implement various provisions of Regulation 1143/2014 on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species (the ‘Invasive Alien Species’ or ‘IAS Regulation’).:

Invasive alien species are plants and animals which are accidentally or deliberately introduced to an area where they are not normally found. The IAS Regulation includes measures to be taken across the EU in relation to invasive alien species included on the Union list. The six Member States did not establish, implement and communicate to the Commission an action plan (or a set of action plans) to address the most important pathways of introduction and spread of invasive alien species of concern for the EU. The Commission therefore sent letters of formal notice to 18 Member States in June 2021 (Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Germany, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia), followed by reasoned opinions to 15 of these (Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Ireland, Greece, France, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia) in February 2022. Since then, 11 Member States have complied with their obligations and one of them will adopt the missing steps promptly. However, despite some progress, the remaining six Member States (Bulgaria, Ireland, Greece, Italy, Latvia and Portugal) have not fully addressed the grievances. The Commission considers that efforts by the authorities of these six Member States have to date been unsatisfactory and insufficient and is therefore referring them to the Court of Justice of the European Union. More information is available in the press release.

Waste: Commission decides to refer SLOVAKIA to the Court for failing to comply with EU rules on landfills 

The Commission decided today to refer Slovakia (INFR(2017)2035) to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to rehabilitate and close a certain number of landfills which have not complied with the procedures required under the Landfill Directive (Directive 1999/31/EC).  Under the Directive, only safe and controlled landfill activities should be carried out in Europe. It lays down standards to protect human health and the environment from the negative effects of treating and disposing of waste in landfills. It aims to prevent or reduce as far as possible negative effects, in particular on surface water, groundwater, soil, air and human health, of the landfilling of waste by introducing stringent technical requirements for waste and landfills. Fully applying EU rules on landfills is crucial to reap the benefits of the Circular Economy Action Plan, one of the main building blocks of the European Green Deal. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Slovakia in April 2017, followed by a reasoned opinion in March 2019. Since then, Slovakia has reconditioned and re-permitted a number of landfills and has closed several non-compliant ones. However, action is still needed for 21 landfills. The Commission considers that efforts by the Slovak authorities have to date been unsatisfactory and insufficient and has therefore decided to refer Slovakia to the Court of Justice of the European Union. More information is available in the press release.

Environmental impact assessment: Commission decides to refer PORTUGAL to the Court of Justice for failing to correctly transpose EU rules

The Commission decided today to refer Portugal (INFR(2019)2254) to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to correctly transpose the Directive on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (Directive 2011/92/EU). The Directive was amended in April 2014 (by Directive 2014/52/EU) to reduce the administrative burden and improve the level of environmental protection, while making business decisions on public and private investments more sound, predictable and sustainable. Portugal has not correctly reflected certain provisions of the amended Directive into national law. The Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Portugal in October 2019, followed by a reasoned opinion in November 2021. The Commission considers that efforts by the Portuguese authorities have to date been unsatisfactory and insufficient and is therefore referring Portugal to the Court of Justice of the European Union. More information is available in the press release.

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