Brussels, 12/01/2001 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has decided to continue infringement proceedings against Sweden and France, two Member States which persist in not complying with the European directive on the protection of natural habitats, as well as wild fauna and flora (Directive 92/43/EEC, so-called "Habitats" directive). Here are the details:
Sweden is to be hauled before the Court of Justice (third stage in the proceedings) for failing in its obligation to remedy the shortcomings in its national legislation, which does not provide the required guarantees of protecting natural sites covered in the framework of the Natural 2000 network and does not satisfy the directive concerning the ban on direct threats to certain protected species. Measures announced by Sweden to correct the situation not yet having been formally notified to the Commission, the latter has decided to take the next step in the infringement proceedings.
France is to receive a reasoned opinion (second stage in the proceedings) for still not having remedied the inadequacies noted in the transposition of the said directive into national law, inadequacies that warranted a letter of warning in April. Sure, France has announced the adoption, mid-2001, of tighter legislation for projects that may affect certain protected sites of the Natura 2000 network, but the deadline set for Member States for fully transposing the directive was June 1994. Given this delay, the Commission has decided to step up the pressure on France.