Brussels, 22/07/2004 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission decided on 20 July to initiate or pursue infringement proceedings against Spain for seven cases of failure to comply with European environment law.
The Commission mainly calls on Madrid to come into line with the 12 June 2003 ruling of the Court of Justice which condemns Spain over uncontrolled waste disposal sites in Torreblanca-Fuengirola (Malaga), Santalla del Bierzo (Leon), Ca na Putxa-Sa Roca (Ibiza), San Lorenzo de Tormes (Avila) and Campello (Alicante) considered to be illegal and in breach of the framework directive on waste. Although it recognises that the sites of San Lorenzo de Tormes and Campello had been correctly sealed and closed, the Commission considers there are problems regarding the three others where "more needs to be done to properly protect the environment and human health". The Commission also sent a last written warning (reasoned opinion) to Spain concerning three uncontrolled waste disposal sites in the province of Almeria: Nijar, Hoyo de Miguel and Cueva del Mojon. Either these sites do not hold any permits or they have permits that do not meet the requirements of the Waste Framework Directive and the Landfill Directive.
The Commission, moreover, sent a series of written warnings for the following breaches of EU environment law: - lack of wastewater treatment in Pontevedra-Poio-Marin and discharge of dangerous substances into the Pontevedra estuary (reasoned opinion); - lack of appropriate wastewater treatment in nearly 200 Spanish towns (formal letter of notice, the first written warning); - insufficient environmental impact assessment for the project to build an airport in the provinnce of Ciudad Real (Castilla-La Mancha), mainly concerning the protection of birds (reasoned opinion); - failure to transpose the directive establishing the greenhouse gas emission trading system (reasoned opinion); - failure to convey to the Commission on 31 March 2004 reports on the use of methyl bromide as a pesticide for commercial crops (letter of formal notice).