Brussels, 30/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has decided to crank things up a gear in the two infringement procedures against Spain for two breaches of environmental legislation and the so-called “Habitats” (92/43/EEC) and Wild Birds (79/409/EEC) directives. The first case, being referred to the Court of Justice for a failure to properly assess the impact of a number of on-going and authorized open cast mines in Castille-Leon, inside a Natura 2000 site in Laciana valley, which is home to several critically endangered species including brown bear ( Ursus arctos) and capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus). The country has also infringed the Habitats and Wild Birds directive.
As the Commission is not satisfied by the quality of the environmental assessments that have been carried out to date, or by Spain's subsequent justifications the to reasoned opinion, the country is being referred to the Court of Justice.
In the second case, the Commission is also sending Spain a second written warning about 174 protected sites in the Canary Islands that have not yet been afforded adequate protection. Under Spanish law, the sites in question, which are parts of the Natura 2000 network, needed to be classified as Special Areas of Conservation by December 200. Spain claims that such processes are under way, but the Commission maintains that no final date has yet been guaranteed for the designation, and that the appropriate conservation measures are not yet in place. Under Spanish law, the sites in question, which are parts of the Natura 2000 network, needed to be classified as Special Areas of Conservation by December 2007. Spain claims that such processes are under way, but the Commission maintains that no final date has yet been guaranteed for the designation, and that the appropriate conservation measures are not yet in place. The Commission points out that a case was opened with a similar infringement case against Portugal for the Azores and Madeira, “where swift progress has been made”.