Brussels, 25/02/2016 (Agence Europe) - In the avalanche of infringement procedures against member states announced on Thursday 25 February, Denmark Italy and Slovenia were sent reasoned opinions (second stage of the procedure) for persistent failure to comply with EU waste legislation.
The three countries which have each previously received a warning letter have now two months to comply with European law or face the prospect of being referred by the Commission to the Court of Justice of the EU.
The Commission enjoins Denmark to bring its legislation into full conformity with EU rules on the management of waste from extractive industries (Directive 2006/21/EC). This directive aims to prevent or reduce as far as possible any adverse effects on human health and the environment, brought about as a result of the management of waste from extractive industries. Member states had until 1 May 2008 to bring the measures necessary into force. However, despite two letters of formal warning (September 2011 and February 2015), Denmark has yet to resolve a number of shortcomings in its legislation which may lead to a lower level of protection for human health and the environment.
The Commission urges Italy to transpose into national law the new EU directive on waste batteries and accumulators (Directive 2013/56/EU), as was required by 1 July 2015. To date, the Commission has been notified of no transposition measure. The directive seeks to minimise the negative impact of waste batteries and accumulators on the environment, lays down rules on the marketing and labelling of batteries containing hazardous substances and requires member states to fix quantified collection and recycling targets for batteries and accumulators. Following a letter of formal notice on 23 September, Italy has informed the Commission of legislative provisions that were due to be adopted but no official confirmation of adoption has been received.
The Commission has asked Slovenia to draw up strategic waste management and waste prevention plans which are the cornerstone of any national policy on waste management, in line with Directive 2008/98/EC. Waste management plans were meant to be adopted by member states by 12 December 2013 and are a prerequisite for using EU funds. In 2013, Slovenia adopted a national programme for the management of municipal waste but a waste management plan covering all waste streams is still missing. Slovenia should also have adopted the waste prevention programme by 12 December 2013. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)