Brussels, 27/09/2012 (Agence Europe) - Sweden and Greece are two member states which, despite being called to order several times, are still not in compliance with EU environmental legislation relating to the management of waste. They have therefore been taken before the EU Court of Justice, the European Commission announced on Thursday 27 September. The decisions on these two countries were taken at a recommendation by Janez Potocnik, European Environment Commissioner, and are part of the monthly batch of infringement proceedings.
Greece is in the dock over a landfill site in a protected area of the island of Zakynthos. The landfill is in breach of Directive 99/31/EC on waste disposal and constitutes a serious threat to human health, the environment and, in particular, to nesting Caretta caretta loggerhead turtles, an endangered species classified as “facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future”.
The pollution caused by leaks into the local environment and the proliferation of plastic bags attracts seagulls that prey on the turtles' offspring.
“As we move towards a recycling society, land-filling should be a last resort. And when land-filling is used, it can't be at the expense of human health or the environment”, the commissioner states in a press release. Despite a reasoned opinion sent to the Greek authorities in January this year, the landfill site is still working, with no replacement site yet being designated for the facility. Furthermore, the permit for the existing landfills was recently renewed in breach of EU environmental legislation, and plans for a proposed transitional period, during which waste would have been sent to mobile units rather than the existing landfill, have been abandoned.
Under Directive 99/31/EC, which aims to prevent or at least reduce as far as possible the adverse effects on the environment from land-filling of waste, “existing” landfills must meet certain conditions in order to continue to operate.
Sweden has been taken before the Court for failing to properly transpose Directive 2002/96/EC, applicable since 2003 to waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The directive aims to prevent the risks for human health and for the environment linked to dangerous substances contained in WEEE, and to increase recycling and/or the re-use of products and materials. The infringement in this case above all relates to Annex III of the legislative text which establishes the technical requirements for the sites where WEEE are stored or processed. In response to a reasoned opinion on the matter sent to the Swedish authorities in June 2009, those authorities had announced that they would amend the national legislation and that the amended legislation would take effect as of 1 January 2010. However, the Commission has still not been notified of the amended legislation. (AN/transl.jl)