Brussels, 02/08/2001 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has decided to close the infringement proceedings started some time ago against Greece for an illegal dump located at the mouth of the Kouropitos river, in the region of Chania (Crete). In a decree delivered on 4 July 2000, the EU's Court of Justice had imposed on Greece a daily fine of 20,000 euros for not having complied with the decree that it had delivered in 1992 for non-compliance with Community legislation relating to waste in this area. The Court was therefore for the first time using the option conferred on it by article 228 of the treaty to impose economic sanctions on a Member State. The decision taken Monday by the Commission follows measures adopted by Greece to comply with the decree in question.
Following the decree delivered by the Court in July 2000, Greece transmitted to the Commission an updated waste management plan for the Chania. Later, it pointed out to the Commission that the site of Kouroupitos had not been used any more since 26 February 2001 and that it had been isolated to avoid illegal dumping operations. The creation of a site for provisional waste storage has enabled household waste not to be dumped in Kouroupitos while waiting for the permanent sites which are under construction. Experts have visited the site for the Commission have confirmed that Greece had taken the necessary measures to comply with the Court's decree. Greece has paid into the Commission's "own resources" account the total amount of the daily fine due up until 26 February 2001, the date on which the site of Kouroupitos was finally closed.
The site of Kouroupitos is closed and isolated, but major work must be carried out to bring it back into use. Greece will receive financial aid from the Cohesion fund for the construction of two permanent waste treatment plants in the region of Chania (one date stamping unit, a mechanical recycling unit and a dump) on condition that they prepare a rehabilitation study and carry out cleaning work on the Kouroupitos site at its own expense.