Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2002:764
Date: 2002-12-12
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Environment
Procedure: Action for failure to fulfil obligations - successful
Origin: Italy

Summary of the Judgment 
Environment — Conservation of wild birds — Directive 79/409 — Classification of 
special protection areas — Obligation of the Member States — Criteria for assessment 
(Council Directive 79/409, Art. 4(1) and (2)) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-378/01 
Article 4(1) and (2) of Directive 79/409 on 
the conservation of wild birds require the 
Member States to classify as special pro­
tection areas the territories meeting the 
ornithological criteria specified by those 
provisions. Neither the economic nor the 
recreational requirements mentioned in 
Article 2 of the directive may be taken into 
account when selecting special protection 
areas and defining their boundaries. 
In order to assess whether a Member State 
has classified a sufficient number and area 
of territories as special protection areas for 
the purposes of Article 4(1) and (2) of that 
directive, the Court may, in the absence of 
any evidence to the contrary, use the 
Inventory of Important Bird Areas in the 
European Community, published in 1989, 
as a basis for reference, although it is not 
legally binding on the Member State con­
cerned. 
(see paras 14-15, 18) 
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