Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2005:433
Date: 2005-07-07
Language of the case: Greek
Court formation: Second Chamber
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Environment;Approximation of laws;Pollution
Concepts: Environment
Procedure: Action for failure to fulfil obligations - successful
Origin: Greece

Summary of the Judgment 1. Environment — Air pollution — Industrial plants — Directive 84/360 — Concept of air pollution — Obligation on Member States to reduce emissions of certain substances not dependent on the general environmental situation of the region (Council Directive 84/360, Arts 1 and 2) 2. Environment — Air pollution — Industrial plants — Directive 84/360 — Obligation on Member States to take measures providing for adaptation of those plants in line with the best available technology — Lack of policies or strategies — Failure to fulfil obligations (Council Directive 84/360, Art. 13) 1. Article 1 of Directive 84/360 on the combating of air pollution from industrial plants seeks to prevent or reduce air pollution from industrial plants within the Community. For the purposes of Article 2(1) of the directive, ‘air pollution’ is constituted by the introduction into the atmosphere by man, directly or indirectly, of substances or energy having a harmful effect such as to imperil human health and to damage biological resources and ecosystems. Accordingly, inasmuch as it is undisputed that emissions of certain substances have harmful effects on human health and on biological resources and ecosystems, the obligation on Member States to adopt the measures necessary to reduce the emissions of those substances is not dependent on the general environmental situation of the region in which the industrial plant in question is located. (see paras 33-34) 2. A Member State which does not define the policies or strategies for progressively adapting in line with the best available technology the steam turbine units and the gas turbine units of an electricity power station fails to fulfil its obligations under Article 13 of Directive 84/360 on the combating of air pollution from industrial plants. Although Article 13 of Directive 84/360 does not expressly oblige Member States to adopt limit values for emissions from industrial plants, the adoption of limit values for emissions from such plants would none the less constitute an extremely useful measure in the context of the implementation of a policy or strategy for the purposes of Article 13. The reduction in the maximum amount of harmful substances contained in fuel may be regarded as a measure for adapting an industrial plant such as an electricity power station to the best available technology since such a reduction is capable of bringing about an appreciable lowering in the level of air pollution originating from such a plant. This however presupposes that the amount of harmful substances in the fuel concerned corresponds to the lowest content available on the market. The progressive replacement of the burners and the adoption of supervisory measures and monitoring of emissions are also capable of constituting measures for adapting a power station to the best available technology, provided however (in the case of the latter) that they go hand in hand with other actions having a direct impact on the emissions of the power station concerned. (see paras 35-36, 39, 47-48, operative part)