Brussels, 05/09/2008 (Agence Europe) - In Brussels on Thursday 4 September 2008, many MEPs queried the future of the draft directive on soil protection. The European Parliament has done its share by adopting an opinion in first reading on 14 November 2007 taking account of the differing opinions (see EUROPE No. 9543), and is now awaiting progress at the EU Council of Ministers.
On behalf of the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, Miroslav Ouzký (EPP-ED, Czech Republic) asked what progress the Council might have made since adoption in first reading of the European Parliament's opinion on the draft directive establishing a framework for soil protection. He asked when the Council would be able to adopt a common position and communicate it to the European Parliament
On behalf of the EU Council of Ministers, the French secretary of state for ecology, Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, said that in December 2007, under the Portuguese Presidency, member states had been unable to agree on the draft soil protection directive and announced that France wanted to get discussions going again. The minister said the EP's opinion would be a key element in the discussions, saying she was aware that the EP had had to strike a balance between people not wanting to infringe upon countries' legitimate powers over soil protection and people recommending harmonisation and ambitious EU rules. Kosciusko-Morizet summed up the situation by noting that the work was up and running again now but it was too early to say whether it would be possible to strike agreement at the Council and if so, when and on what basis. She wanted to be realistic, pointing out that in the best case scenario, it would not be possible to move to second reading until after the EP elections in 2009. She said she did not want to rush matters and would be taking the time needed to reach the strongest agreement possible on a highly complex issue.
When the Presidency of the Council tells us that matters should not be rushed, that means that the issue is going to be buried, said Françoise Grossetête (EPP-ED, France). On behalf of the EPP-ED Group, Cristina Gutiérrez-Cortines of Spain defended the current compromise reached by the EP in November 2007 with its flexible system. Inés Ayala Sender, on behalf of the PES, described the slow progress in debate at the Council as “unacceptable”, saying that everything possible should be done to reach agreement. She added that the EP would not accept the Council watering down the directive, adding that it must not be emptied of substance. On behalf of the ALDE Group, Dutch MEP Jan Mulder said that the EU did not need a soil protection directive because plenty of other directives covered soil protection, like the nitrates directive and the subterranean water directive. Friedrich Wilhelm Graefe zu Baringdorf (Greens/EFA, Germany) called for the soil protection directive to be accepted.
After the debate, Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet took the podium and said she wanted to remove any doubt that the French Presidency was not highly motivated by the directive and convinced of the need for an EU directive on soil protection. She added that the French Presidency was working on reaching agreement at the Council and was hoping to achieve this before the end of 2008. (L.C/transl.fl.)