Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:1998:9
Date: 1998-01-15
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Environment
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Germany

Summary of the Judgment
1. Environment — Freedom of access to information —Directive 90/313 — 'Information relat­
ing to the environment' — Definition— Statement of views put forward by the administra­
tion — Whether included —Condition
(Council Directive 90/313, Art. 2(a))
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SUMMARY — CASE C-321/96
2. Environment — Freedom of access to information — Directive 90/313 — Derogation in
Article 3(2), third indent — Scope — 'Preliminary investigation proceedings' — Definition —
Administrative procedure preparing the way for an administrative measure — Condition
(Council Directive 90/313, Art. 3(2), third indent)
1. The wording of Article 2(a) of Directive
90/313 on the freedom of access to infor­
mation on the environment makes it clear
that the Community legislature intended
to make the concept of information relat­
ing to the environment a broad one,
embracing both information and activities
relating to the state of the various envi­
ronmental sectors referred to therein, the
'administrative measures' cited by way of
example being merely an illustration of
the 'activities' or 'measures' covered by
the directive.
In order to constitute information relat­
ing to the environment for those pur­
poses, therefore, it is sufficient for a state­
ment of views put forward by the
administration to be an act capable of
adversely affecting or protecting the state
of one of the sectors of the environment
covered by the directive. That is the case
where a statement of views put forward
by a countryside protection authority in
development consent proceedings if that
statement is capable of influencing the
outcome of those proceedings as regards
interests pertaining to the protection of
the environment.
2. The third indent of Article 3(2) of Direc­
tive 90/313, which contains a derogation
from the general rules on access to infor­
mation on the environment as regards
matters which are the subject of legal
proceedings, inquiries or 'preliminary
investigation proceedings', covers exclus­
ively proceedings of a judicial or quasi-
judicial nature, or at least proceedings
which will inevitably lead to the imposi­
tion of a penalty if the offence (adminis­
trative or criminal) is established.
As regards 'preliminary investigation pro­
ceedings', in particular, that term must be
taken to refer to the stage immediately
prior to the judicial proceedings or the
inquiry, so that it will cover an adminis­
trative procedure such as that referred to
by the German law transposing the direc­
tive, which merely prepares the way for
an administrative measure, only if it
immediately precedes a contentious or
quasi-contentious procedure and arises
from the need to obtain proof or to
investigate a matter prior to the opening
of the actual procedure.
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