EN    EN EN 
EN    EN  COMMISSION OF THE E UROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Brussels, 18.11.2008 
SEC(2008) 2876 
  
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 
 
accompanying the 
COMMUNICATION FROM THE CO MMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMI TTEE OF THE REGIONS 
 
on implementing European Community Environmental Law 
  
PREVENTING BREACHES OF AND ADDRESSING SPECIFIC 
CHALLENGES IN IMPLEMENTI NG EC ENVIRONMENTAL LAW  
{COM(2008) 773 final} 
{SEC(2008) 2851} {SEC(2008) 2852} 
EN 2   EN PREVENTING  BREACHES  OF AND  ADDRESSING  SPECIFIC  
CHALLENGES  IN IMPLEMENTING  EC ENVIRONMENTAL  LAW 
This document has two parts. The first descri bes some of the general means and methods 
whereby the Commission tries to  avoid breaches of EC environmental law arising. The 
second looks at the different environmental sectors,  describing specific challenges that need to 
be addressed. 
1. P REVENTION OF BREACHES  
The Commission seeks to prevent breaches of environmental law throughout the legislative 
life cycle — that is, through all the stages of  legislation from c onception and design to 
adoption, follow-up, review and revision.  
1.1 Preparing EC legislation 
The Commission designs its new environmental policy instruments to meet environmental 
goals in ways that aim to avoid unnecessary admi nistrative burdens and costs. It also reviews 
existing policies to significan tly improve their implementation in the light of experience; 
legislation on industrial emissions  has recently been reviewed, and a review of legislation on 
waste electronic and electrical eq uipment and restrictions on hazardous substances will be 
finished before the end of 2008. 
The drive for greater efficiency is reflected in  the seven thematic stra tegies published in 2005 
and 2006 in key environmental policy areas1. It is also reflected in th e use of in-depth internal 
impact assessments2 of potential policy options. The Co mmission carries out wide, detailed 
consultation, including over the internet, and welcomes the views of Member State 
authorities, expert bodies and intere sted parties. For example, IMPEL3 has provided input 
from the perspective of enforcement authorit ies for proposals on environmental inspections 
and integrated pollution prev ention and control (IPPC).  
As regards the types of proposed future lega l act, the Commission does not exclude greater 
reliance on regulations, th e regulation known as REACH4 being an example. However, 
because of the need to take account of lo cal and regional environmental conditions and 
administrative arrangements, the directive is lik ely to remain an important instrument. This 
                                                 
1 See 2005 working paper “Better Regulation and the Thematic Strategies for the Environment”, 
COM(2005) 466 final. 
2 Impact assessment of Commission policy and legislative proposals is not to be confused with project 
and plan environmental impact assessments under Community environmental impact assessment 
legislation, i.e. Directive 85/337/EEC and Directive 2001/42/EC. 
3 European Union network for the implementation and enforcement of environmental law. This network 
of national inspectors was formed in 1992.For more information see  
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/impel/index.htm .  
4 Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Pa rliament and of the Coun cil of 18 December 2006 
concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Ch emicals (REACH), 
establishing a European Chemicals Agency, amending Directive 1999/45/EC and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/93 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1488/94 as well as Council 
Directive 76/769/EEC and Commission Directives 91/155/EEC, 93/67/EEC, 93/105/EC and 
2000/21/EC, OJ L 396, 30.12.2006. 
EN 3   EN means that, in many cases, choices made at Me mber State level will largely determine cost-
effectiveness and ease of implementation. Use of impact assessment systems can help 
Member States make the best choices.  
In general, the Commission will,  through dialogue with interest ed parties, seek to reduce 
bureaucracy and complexity when revisi ng existing or drafting new legislation. 
1.2 Checking and ensuring the quality of nati onal and regional implementing legislation 
This is an important challenge because of the high number of environmental directives 
already in force, the likelihood th at directives will continue to be used in the future, and the 
tendency for the required national le gislation to be often a regiona l responsibility, leading to a 
high number of national implementing measures. It  should also not be forgotten that, when 
regulations are used instead of directives, Member  States will often still need to take certain 
measures, such as repealing existing incompatible national law. 
Given the extensive patchwork of national legisla tion in the field of the environment, 
correlation tables5 are a crucial means for seeing whether and how EU-derived rules are put in 
place by Member States. Commissi on efforts are therefore devoted  to ensuring that they are 
systematically supplied.  
A major effort has been underway for some year s to ensure good quality  national and regional 
legislation. The effort involves systematica lly checking conformity, relying on outsourced 
studies in a first phase of examination where appropriate. Studies have  already been obtained 
for most of the prin cipal parts of the acquis and follow-up action has begun for key waste, 
nature conservation and water directives. A risk -based approach is being applied — i.e. the 
Commission identifies and puts pa rticular emphasis on those non-conformity problems likely 
substantially to might harm or impede pr actical compliance, as where non-conformity 
significantly narrows a directive’s intended scope of application.  
1.3 Checking and supporting how tasks and obli gations are met at national and regional 
level 
The Commission recognises the valu e of using a range of tools to help ensure that tasks set by 
environmental directives are successfully comp leted. The environment directorate-general has 
set up internal task forces for nature conser vation, water, air, clim ate change, waste and 
impact assessment to ensure the coherent and co -ordinated use of the tools available. This 
initiative has helped ensure that preventive and enforcement actions are more closely linked 
and take greater account of broa der policy considerations. It ha s also helped the environment 
directorate-general to be more proactive.  
1.3.1 Obtaining good information on how required results are being pursued and achieved  
Reliable information and data are crucial to a ssessing whether implementation is satisfactory. 
The Commission does not currently have a formal inspectorate to assess implementation first-
hand and is reliant on the information that Me mber States make available, often through 
periodic reports. The Commission is committed to ensuring better information flow and in February 2008 presented a communication “Tow ards a Shared Environmental Information 
                                                
 
5 i.e. Tables showing the match between the provisions of directives and the corresponding national 
provisions. 
EN 4   EN System (SEIS)”6 which aims at improving the quality of environmental data and information, 
and its management, use and dissemination across the EU. Better data and easier access to it 
can help prevent infringements by allowing pr oblems to be identified more quickly and 
remedial action taken sooner. 
Member State reports are supplemented by information received from the European 
Environment Agency, interested parties and implementation networks such as IMPEL and 
GreenForce7. The Commission seeks to make the best use of these sources and, where 
appropriate, commissions t echnical studies to look into particularly important implementation 
topics. For example, it has obtained studies on th e effectiveness of Member State controls on 
the landfilling of waste and on how  certain Member States have fulfilled duties to designate 
sensitive water bodies sufferi ng from urban waste-water and agricultural pollution.  
1.3.2 Performance scoreboards  
Performance scoreboards involve showing the rela tive levels of compliance or performance of 
Member States at a given point in time by re ference to a common performance indicator.  
The Commission has made use of such scoreboa rds for a number of pieces of environmental 
legislation , notably to present progress in implementing designation requirements under the 
Wild Birds and Habitats Directives and in fulfilling various requi rements of the Water 
Framework Directive. The scoreboards assist Member States by allowing them to compare 
how well they are doing by refere nce to other Member States. 
1.3.3 Community financial assistance  
Community funds underpin the goals set by EC environmenta l law. Major environmental 
infrastructure such as urban waste-water colle cting systems and treatment plants is supported 
by the Cohesion Fund, the Structural Funds and European Investment Bank loans. The coverage of these funds includes transport, environment, regional, economic and social 
development. The LIFE Fund, which is exclusivel y devoted to environmental projects, assists 
interventions that fall outside the scope of  the main funding instruments, for example 
innovative approaches to conserving habitats  and species. The European Agricultural Fund 
for Rural Development co-finances, amongst other things, measures targeted towards 
encouraging the provision of environmental se rvices on a voluntary basis (agri-environmental 
measures) and towards compliance with com pulsory environmental requirements (for 
example, under the Habitats Di rective and the Water Framew ork Directive). The Regional 
Development and Cohesion Funds make e xplicit reference to clean transport 
At the same time, Community funding is subjec t to rules requiring compliance with EC law, 
including environmental obligations. Plans, programmes and projects co-financed by the 
Community which are likely to have significan t environmental effects should be assessed in 
accordance to the SEA Directive
8 and the EIA Directive9. The SEA Directive has been 
applied to most of the draf t Operational Programmes (O Ps) (2007-2013) prior to their 
                                                 
6 COM(2008)46 final. 
7 The European Union network of Member States’ prac titioners in both nature conservation and forestry. 
For more information see http://ec.europa.eu/environment/greenforce/index_en.htm.  
8 Directive 2001/42/EC of the European  Parliament and of the Council on  the assessment of the effects of 
certain plans and programmes on the environment, OJ L 197, 21.7.2001, p. 30 . 
9 Council Directive 85/337/EEC on the assessment of the effects of certain pub lic and private projects on 
the environment, OJ L 175, 5.7.1985, p. 40 . 
EN 5   EN adoption by the Commission. This helps secure co mpliance upstream and eases the process of 
Community co-financing.  
Funding of non-compliant projects is suspen ded where there is an open infringement 
procedure, and any violation of cross-complian ce rules linking direct payments to farmers 
under the Common Agricultural Policy to respec t for certain key environmental directives 
results in a reduction or cancellation of direct  payments. Waste management infrastructure 
may only be funded by the Cohesion Fund and Stru ctural Funds if it is covered by a waste 
management plan under Community waste legislation.  
The ENEA network10 provides ongoing input to the integration of  the environment and 
sustainable development policies within the regional policy programmes of Member States 
and the candidate countries. The overall ne twork activities ensure  incorporation of good 
practice as regard compliance of th e co-financed projects with the acquis.   
1.3.4 Pre-accession support activities 
As part of its enlargement policy, the Commissi on runs a broad range of  practical measures 
supporting transposition a nd implementation of the acquis by candidate and potential 
candidate countries. Within accession negotiations , opening and closing benchmarks are set to 
guide the acquis alignment and implementation. In addition, the Commission holds 
explanatory meetings and workshops on new or more complex parts of the acquis (for 
example, REACH or the Water Framework Dir ective) and provides technical assistance for 
drafting legislation. Across th e board, EU co-financed new i nvestments in the candidate 
countries are conditional on compliance with relevant provisions of the acquis, including the 
Environmental Impact Assessment Directiv e, the Strategic Environmental Assessment 
Directive and the Wild Birds and Habitats Directives. The Commission encourages the 
countries concerned to ratify and implement inte rnational conventions at  an early stage, in 
particular the Aarhus11 and Espoo12 Conventions, and the Kyoto Protocol. The inspection 
services of the candidate a nd potential candidate  countries cooperate  within IMPEL and 
ECENA13. The Commission regularly consults th e representatives of non-governmental 
organisations (annual NGO forum) and follows up issues highlighted by civil society. The 
overall progress made, including in the field of the environment, is assessed in annual 
progress reports and priorities  for action are identified in  the accession and European 
partnerships. 
1.3.5 Commission guidance documents and other su pport for Member Stat es and interested 
partie s 
Member States and interested parties can be  assisted by guidance documents explaining the 
implications of key environmental legislati on or recommendations on advisable actions and 
                                                 
10 The European Network of Environmental Authorities (ENEA) for the Cohesion Policy was set up in September 
2004, following the seminars on environment and Structur al Funds held at Santande r (Spanish Network, March 
2003), Brussels (DG-Env, December 2003) and Szentendre (REC, May 2004).  
11 Convention on Access to Information, Public Particip ation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in 
Environmental Matters. 
12 Convention on environmental impact assessment in a transboundary context. 
13 The Environmental Compliance an d Enforcement Network for Accession. This was established by 
high-level officials from the environment ministries of South Eastern Europe (SEE) in Sofia, Bulgaria 
in March 2005. 
EN 6   EN approaches14. The practical arrangements for preparing such documents can be refined to 
ensure that, where possible, preparatory work i nvolves a broader base of expertise drawn from 
Member States, sectoral interest  groups and interest groups with  a cross-cutting interest such 
as those representing regional and local governme nt. An environmental compliance assistance 
programme (ECAP)15 has been prepared to help improve the environmental performance of 
small and medium-sized enterprises (SMES), which account for a large share of industrial 
pollution.  
1.3.6 Dialogue with authorities, in stitutions and interested par ties with key roles in 
implementation, legal re view and enforcement 
Apart from being involved in gu idance preparation, exte rnal experts can play  a valuable role 
in the collaborative stages of implementation that follow the adoptio n of legislation. For 
example, the European Habitats Forum, made  up of both nature conservation and landowner 
representative groups, has been constructively i nvolved in the process of  ensuring that there 
are satisfactory Member State contributions to the ambitious Natura 2000 network of key 
nature sites. An array of interested parties is helping to ensure the effective implementation of 
the Water Framework Directive.  
By promoting a common understanding of probl ems and securing appr opriate and timely 
solutions, regular dialogue with those having an  official or professional involvement in the 
legal aspects of implementation and enforcem ent offers a means of avoiding or reducing 
infringements. “Package” meetings are held with  officials in the national capitals with a view 
to achieving early resolution of compliance pr oblems. Where appropriate, these meetings are 
supplemented with training or awareness-rais ing seminars focused on particular problem 
areas. Regular dialogue and exchanges of ex periences take place with Member State 
environmental inspectors within IMPEL and Green force on such issues as waste shipments. 
The Commission is promoting effective inspection systems in the Member States in the context of a recommendation on inspections
16.The Commission will also co-operate with 
bodies such as NEEL17 which can promote greater awar eness of EC environmental law 
amongst legal practitioners working in Member State public administrations.   
2. SPECIFIC CHALLENGES IN IMPLEMENTING EC ENVIRONMENTAL LAW  
                                                 
14 By way of example, the Commission has produced twenty-four guidance documents on key aspects of 
the Water Framework Directive, 2000/60/EC; six guidance documents on the Seveso II or Major-
Accident Hazard Directive, 96/82/EC; several guidance documents on the Wild Birds and Habitats Directives, 79/409/EEC and 92/43/EEC, and a recommendation aimed at increasing co-operation and 
effective enforcement of EC wildlife trade regulati ons. There have also been several communications 
and decisions establishing guidan ce and guidelines on the emission tr ading scheme. In the field of 
waste, guidance documents have been prepared on the Waste Electronic and Electronic Equipment 
(WEEE) Directive, 2002/96/EC, th e Batteries Directive, 2006/66/EC  and the End of Life Vehicle 
(ELV) Directive, 2000/53/EC. 
15 See Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European 
Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, Small, clean and competitive, A 
programme to help small and medium-sized enterprises comply with environmental legislation, 
COM(2007) 379 final. 
16 European Parliament and Council Recommendation 2001/331/EC providing for minimum criteria for 
environmental inspections in the Member States, OJL, 27/4/2001. See also Communication from the 
Commission on the review of Recommendation 2001/331/EC, COM(2007)707 final. 
17 Network of European Environmental Lawyers. 
EN 7   EN This section of the document l ooks at implementation in the diffe rent sectors that make up EC 
environmental law. For each sector, the main pieces of legislation are set out, the current 
position on implementation is evaluated, furthe r challenges are described and there is a 
presentation of the main priorities in  terms of Commission enforcement action.  
2.1 Nature Conservation 
2.1.1 Legislative Framework   
The most important pieces of nature conser vation legislation are the Birds Directive, 
79/409/EEC18 and Habitats Directive, 92/43/EEC19. The former sets out measures for the 
protection, management and control of all species  of naturally occurring European wild birds, 
as well as introducing rules to protect their habitats. The latter protects natural habitats and 
wild flora and fauna throughout the European Union and establishes a European ecological 
network known as “Natura 2000”. 
2.1.2 State of Law  
Nature conservation legislation constitutes a fa irly stable part of the EC environmental acquis . 
Developments in this sector mainly concern the annexes to the Birds and Habitats Directives that have been adapted on a number of occasi ons in response to scientific and technical 
progress and to the successive enlargements of the European Union. The most recent 
adaptation is in response to th e accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the European Union on 
1 January 2007.  
2.1.3 Evaluation of the current positio n in terms of implementation  
Despite the small number of legal instruments in  this field, nature conservation legislation 
accounts for between a fifth and a quarter of environmental infr ingements, i.e. the highest 
number of open environmental cas es. The high number of cases in the nature sector is due 
mainly to the extent of the network, which now  includes around 25 000 site s: there are Natura 
2000 sites in the vicinity of every EU citizen. This is positive in as much as it brings the EU 
close to its citizens but it also means that th e Commission receives a lot of complaints about 
threats to these sites. Although the demand  from citizens, specialised and active NGOs and 
the European Parliament is high, the complain t and legal enforcement mechanisms for nature 
conservation in the Member States are often weak  or inappropriate. The effectiveness of the 
Commission’s infringement proc edure and the active role played by the Commission in the 
implementation of the nature directives contribute to the high numbers of cases. 
In order to rationalise the handling of this high number of cases and ensure the effective 
implementation of the nature directives, the Commission has taken several initiatives, which can be divided into three categories: 
• Focus on the main implementation priorities : the core obligations of the directives 
have been addressed (i.e. correct and comp lete transposition and establishment of 
                                                
 
18 Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds  OJ L 103, 25.4.1979, 
p. 1-18.  
19 Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna 
and flora OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7–50.  
EN 8   EN the Natura 2000 network), while systemic  problems of bad implementation have 
been tackled (e.g. hunting derogations). 
• Proactive cooperation with Member States : this includes the drafting of 
interpretative guidance documents for the ma in provisions of the nature directives; 
the development of targeted guidance for economic sectors such as the port sector 
and the non-energy extractive industry, which have particular challenges in 
relation to the legislation; training of th e competent authoritie s; regular contacts 
with the national, regional and local authorities, and establishment of the 
“Greenforce Network” . 
• Improvements in the handling of complaints : specific methods were developed 
with the purpose of helping the complainan ts (i.e. ad hoc nature supplementary 
information form, which guides the complainants as regards the information 
needed to evaluate a complaint) and maki ng more effective use of complaints (i.e. 
grouping of complaints in order to focus on systemic breaches). 
Those measures have had a significant effect, as they resulted in the reduction of the 
implementation deficit. This is also confirme d by the number of open cases, which has been 
significantly reduced, despite th e accession of 10 new Member  States. At the end of 2003, 
589 open cases were related to th e nature conservation directiv es while, at the end of 2007, 
the number of open nature cases was 235. 
2.1.4 Further challenges in implementin g nature conservation legislation 
• Completing the establishment stage  of the Natura 2000 network. The terrestrial 
part of the Natura 2000 netw ork is either established or  close to establishment in 
accordance with the Birds and Habitats Dir ectives. Habitats and species coverage 
still needs to be extended in places, mainly  in the EU-12 Member States, and legal 
action will be pursued agains t Member States when necessary. The exercise is 
expected to be finalised in the short term. In the medium term, the Commission will tackle the issue of marine site s. Since the scientific knowledge and 
information available on the existence and distribution of marine habitat and species remains incomplete, the Member States are expected to submit their 
proposals by end 2008, based on existing kno wledge. In order to facilitate the 
process, a guidance document has already been prepared by the Commissionservices.  
• Ensuring a systematically correct a pproach to Natura 2000 site protection.  To 
enable the Natura 2000 network to achieve its goal of conserving key elements of 
Europe’s biodiversity, there needs to be  proper scrutiny and minimisation of, the 
impacts of potentially damaging plans a nd projects in line with ECJ case-law. 
Ensuring application of best scientific  knowledge, examination of alternatives 
and, where appropriate, provision of co mpensatory habitats are all major 
challenges. In this regard, the Commi ssion services issued a guidance document 
on Article 6(4) of the Habitats Directiv e, a key provision for the implementation 
of the Nature Directives. In addition, the Commission intends to promote best practice within specific economic sectors,  such as European ports, wind energy 
EN 9   EN and non-extractive industries. Mention may also be made of the value of broad-
based analysis and follow-up of  problematical implementation20. 
• Ensuring overall positive management of Natura 2000 network.  Apart from 
vetting potentially damaging plans and proj ects, Member States need to set up 
effective management systems for Natu ra 2000, supporting huma n activities such 
as conservation-sensitive farming that ar e beneficial to conservation objectives 
while also meeting socio-economic needs.  
2.1.5 Prioritisation of Commission’s legal enforcement work   
In the coming years, the Commission will continue to pursue its legal enforcement action to 
help meet the main objectives of the nature c onservation legislation. To this effect, high 
priority will continue to be given to pursuing infringement cases concerning significant non-
conformity of national implementing legislation with the Birds and the Habitats Directives, 
insufficient site designations (m ainly in the EU-12 Member States) and the lack of adequate 
legal protection and management regimes for the Natura 2000 sites. Focus will also be on 
addressing breaches concerning bi g infrastructure projects or interventions involving EU 
funding that have significant adverse impacts on Natura 2000 sites. In  this context, the 
Commission will take into account co nsiderations such as irrevers ible ecological damage and, 
where appropriate, seek interim measures  from the European Court of Justice21. Infringements 
concerning unsustainable hunting practices in some  Member States will also be followed up 
closely. In order to better handle individual co mplaints pointing to widespread problems of 
bad implementation, the establishe d practice of launching horizont al infringement cases will 
continue to be followed.  
2.2 Waste Management 
2.2.1 Legislative Framework  
The basic requirements for Member States regarding the management of waste and a 
definition of the term ‘waste’ are set out in Directive 2006/12/EC of the European Parliament 
and of the Council of 5 April 2006 on waste (the Waste Framework Directive22): More 
specifically, this Directive requires Member States to create and maintain an adequate network of waste disposal installations to enable the Community as a whole and the Member States individually to become self-sufficient in waste disposal. In order to achieve this 
objective, waste management plans have to be drawn up. It also established the waste 
hierarchy. This means that, ideally, waste shoul d be prevented and what cannot be prevented 
should be re-used, recycled and recovered as much as feasible, with  landfill being used as 
little as possible. The general framework direc tive is complemented by specific legislation to 
address particular environm ental threats associated with waste. These include: 
                                                
 
20 Case C-418/04, Commission v Ireland, the subject of decision of 13 December 2007,  illustrates how, by 
examining and analysing site protection problems  across a whole economic sector, in this case 
aquaculture, a non-governmental organisation can la y the basis for a more effective and significant 
Commission intervention than if it had limited its examination to isolated cases in that sector. 
21 In the last two years the Commission has three times sought interim measures in nature protection 
cases. In cases C-503/06, Commission v. Italy  and C-76/08, Commission v. Malta , the Court ordered the 
Member States to halt illegal hunting activities on 19 December 2007 and 24 April 2008 respectively. 
In case C-193/07, Commission v. Poland , the Commission sought interim measures from the ECJ to 
prevent a Polish motorway project causing serious habitat damage: the request was dropped when 
Poland agreed to halt the relevant works pending an ECJ judgment. 
22 OJ L 114, 27.4.2006, p. 9–21.  
EN 10   EN • Harmonised rules on waste management practi ces, including strict emission limits and 
operating requirements for the incineration23 and landfill of waste. Council Directive 
1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 on the landfill of waste (the Landfill Directive24) establishes 
a set of detailed, technical rules landfills must comply with. The objective is to prevent or minimise the negative effects that landfills can have, such as pollution of water, soil and air, and also gas emissions, notably emissions  of methane, which is a powerful greenhouse 
gas. The Landfill Directive also helps to promote the recovery and recycling of waste, in particular by banning whole used tyres from landfills and by requiring waste to be treated prior to landfilling. Best available technique s were chosen as the benchmark for the 
management of hazardous waste
25; 
• Harmonised rules on the shipment of waste, bot h inside the EU and to third countries, set 
by the Waste Shipment Regulation. This Regula tion sets out rules for the trans-frontier 
movement of waste to ensure that waste is  handled in an environmentally sound manner 
throughout the shipment process, including r ecovery or disposal in the country of 
destination. 
Product specific recycling legislation, setting targets for the collection and recycling and 
introducing producer responsibility principles for specific waste streamsfrom consumer goods 
(including packaging waste26, end of life vehicles27 and waste electrical and electronic 
equipment28) Examples of recently adopted legislat ive measures in the sector of waste 
management include Directive 2006/21/EC on the management of waste from extractive 
industries and amending Directive 2004/35/EC29 (transposition deadline: 1 May 2008) and 
Directive 2006/66/EC on batteries and accumulato rs and waste batteries and accumulators and 
repealing Directive 91/157/EEC30 (transposition deadlin e: 26 September 2008).  
2.2.2 State of Law 
EU waste management legislation is characteri sed by several consolidated legal instruments 
as well as important new pieces of legislat ion. The waste management legislation is 
underpinned by the Thematic Strategy on the Waste Prevention and Recycling31. It sets as 
long term objective for the EU to become a recy cling society, that seeks to avoid waste and 
                                                 
23 Directive 2000/76/EC of the Eu ropean Parliament and of the Council of 4 December 2000 on the 
incineration of waste (OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 91–111).  
24 OJ L 182, 16.7.1999, p. 1–19.  
25 Council Directive 91/689/EEC of  12 December 1991 on hazardous wast e (OJ L 377, 31.12.1991, p. 20-
27). 
26 European Parliament and Coun cil Directive 94/62/EC of 20  December 1994 on packaging and 
packaging waste ( OJ L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 10–23).  
27 Directive 2000/53/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on end-of-
life vehicles ( OJ L 269, 21.10.2000, p. 34–43).  
28 Directive 2002/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on the 
restriction of the use of certain hazardous subs tances in electrical a nd electronic equipment (( OJ L 37, 
13.2.2003, p. 19–23), and Directive 2002/96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 
January 2003 on waste electri cal and electronic equipment ( OJ L 37, 13.2.2003, p. 24–39).  
29 This Directive introduces measures to prevent or minimise any adverse effects on the environment and 
resultant risks to health resulting from the management of waste from the extractive industries, such as 
tailings and displaced material ( OJ L 102 of 11.04.2006 ). 
30 This Directive prohibits the placi ng on the market of most batteri es and accumulators with a certain 
mercury or cadmium content and establishes rules for the collection, recycling, treatment and disposal 
of batteries and accumulators. ( OJ L 266 of 26.9.2006).  
31 COM(2005)666. 
EN 11   EN uses waste as a resource. Following the Them atic Strategy, the Waste Framework Directive 
has been modernised, introducing a new approach  to waste management that encourages the 
prevention of waste. The revised Directive clar ifies that the waste hierarchy should not be 
seen as a hard-and-fast rule but that deviati ons from the hierarchy ar e possible based on a life-
cycle analysis of environmental impacts. The revised Directive also sets energy-efficiency 
criteria on the basis of which waste incineration  can be considered as a recovery operation to 
promote resource efficiency, thus reducing the c onsumption of fossil fuels. It also sets new 
recycling targets: By 2020, Member States must  recycle 50% of their household and similar 
waste and 70% of their construction and demolition waste.  
2.2.3 Evaluation of the current posit ion in terms of implementation 
The overall situation of waste management has to be seen as critical. By far the biggest 
challenge concerns the implementation of the Waste Framework Directive, the Landfill Directive and the Waste Shipment Regulation.  The lack of adequate waste management 
infrastructure, the persistently high number of illegal landfills in a significant number of Member States and the significant number of illegal shipments of waste, notably electronic waste and end-of-life vehicles, threaten human health and the environment. The chronic waste 
crisis affecting Naples and the rest of the Campania region in Italy is a striking example. In 
Member States where this phenomenon exists, effort s, particularly in terms of investment in 
waste infrastructure, will have to be steppe d up considerably. Implementation of separate 
waste collection, notably for packaging waste a nd biodegradable waste, as well as effective 
pre-treatment of waste before disposal are a prerequisite fo r boosting recycling and reducing 
the rate of landfilling, in particular in the EU- 12 Member States, where this still oscillates 
around 90%. Specific aspects of landfilling have received higher attention under the present 
climate change discussion. Insufficient methane collection from landfills and alternative waste management options addressed under the label “waste to energy” will fuel the discussion 
about improving waste management in the near future. 
2.2.4 Further challenges in implemen ting waste management legislation 
• Ensuring an adequate network of safe and legal waste disposal and recovery 
facilities.  Matching the capacity of waste infr astructure to the volume of waste 
generated is fundamental to good waste management. Waste management plans 
can help ensure the necessary capaci ty, but only if they are effectively 
implemented. 
• Reducing and managing certain waste streams.  The achievement of certain EC 
waste reduction and management goals such  as the diversion of biodegradable 
waste from landfills and the collection a nd handling of end-of-life vehicles and 
waste electrical and electronic equipm ent (WEEE) also depends on adequate 
forward planning and development of orga nisational arrangements and recovery 
facilities.  
• Combating the illegal waste trade and illegal waste disposal.  Tackling the use of 
thousands of illegal landfills in several Member States requires strategic action on 
several fronts to comply with the Waste Framework Directive and the Landfill Directive: investments in legal facilities, better systems of national detection, enforcement and deterrence and adequate site clean-up. Ade quate controls on 
transfrontier waste shipments are also essential. The Commission has taken 
EN 12   EN horizontal legal action for lack of controls on illegal landfills, and there have been 
several important ECJ rulings. 
2.2.5 Prioritisation of Commission’s legal enforcement work   
In the coming years, the Commission will pursue its  legal enforcement action to help meet the 
objectives of waste management legislation, i.e. to reduce the negative impact on the 
environment and human health that is cau sed by waste throughout its life-span, from 
production to disposal, via recycling.  
To this end, high priority will continue to be given to “ horizontalising”  infringement action, 
i.e. tackling widespread problems of bad impl ementation at a more strategic level. This 
approach allows the Commission to address the lack of adequate waste management capacity 
and infrastructure and the presence of illegal landfills in a far higher number of places than would have been possible if it had only focused on individual failures and to ensure consistency and coherence in the actions taken.. 
In addition, since the complete ness and correctness of implem enting legislation within the 
Member States are important determinants  of good implementati on in practice, the 
Commission will continue to systematica lly pursue infringements concerning the non-
compliant transposition of the most important pieces of waste management legislation (for 
example, the Landfill Directive, the WEEE Directive, and the End- of–life vehicles Directive) 
likely to affect the attainment of the legislative objectives..  
As for other new proposals for directives, to en sure timely and correct transposition of new 
waste management directives, primarily the ne w Waste Framework Directive, the responsible 
units within DG Environment will prepare ri sk-based implementation action plans.  
By way of preventive action, the Commission w ill continue to carry out awareness-raising 
campaigns and information exchange in most Member States. Particular emphasis will be placed on two implementation gaps, illegal a nd mismanaged landfills and illegal waste 
shipments, and waste management plans and prev ention programmes. It is hoped that this will 
increase understanding of Community legal re quirements, identify bottlenecks and promote 
best practice. 
Furthermore, bilateral and multilateral meetin gs will take place with Member States and 
stakeholders.  
2.3 Environmental Impact Assessment & Strategic Environmental Assessment 
2.3.1 Legislative Framework 
The most important pieces of legislation in this sector are the Environmental Impact 
Assessment Directive and the Strategic En vironmental Assessment Directive. Council 
Directive 85/337/EEC on the assess ment of the effects of certai n public and private projects 
on the environment as amended by Directives  97/11/EC and 2003/35/EC (the Environmental 
Impact Assessment or EIA Directive)
32 obliges Member States to carry out environmental 
impact assessments before certain types of public  and private projects wh ich are likely to have 
a significant impact on the environment are auth orised. Directive 2001/42/ EC of the European 
                                                 
32 OJ L 175, 5.7.1985, p. 40.  
EN 13   EN Parliament and of the Council on the assess ment of the effects of certain plans and 
programmes on the environment (the Strategic Environmental Assessment or SEA Directive)
33 seeks to ensure that the environmental consequences of certain public plans and 
programmes that are likely to have significan t environmental effects are identified and 
assessed while they are being prepar ed and before they are approved. 
2.3.2 State of Law  
The application and effectiv eness of environmental impact  assessment legislation, in 
particular the EIA Directive, has been subject to  regular reviews in the past. On the basis of 
such reviews, the EIA Directive was subs equently amended in 1997. Directive 97/11/EC34 
widened the scope of the EIA Directive by incr easing the types of proj ect covered, and the 
number of projects requiring mandatory enviro nmental impact assessment (Annex I). It also 
strengthened the procedural basis of the EI A Directive by providi ng for new screening 
arrangements, including new screening criteria (at Annex III) for Annex II projects, and providing minimum information requirements. Fo llowing this first amendment, the Directive 
was later modified in 2003 by Directive 2003/35/EC
35, seeking to align the provisions on 
public participation with the Aarhus Conventio n on public participatio n in decision-making 
and access to justice in environmental matters. Depending on the results of  future reports on 
their application, further amendments and chan ges to both the EIA and the SEA Directive 
cannot be excluded.  
2.3.3 Evaluation of the current positio n in terms of implementation 
The EIA Directive has been the subject of several cases brought before the European Court of 
Justice, and the case-law of th e Court has contribute d to a better unders tanding of certain 
provisions of the Directive. In the interests of better implementation of the EIA and the SEA 
Directive, the Commission services have deve loped in recent years a number of guidance 
documents on particularly important aspects of both directives36.  
Although the Environmental Impact  Assessment sector continues to generate a high number 
of complaints, its contribution to  the overall number of open cas es has decreased, so that at 
the end of 2007 this sector ranked only fifth in terms of the number of infringements. Most 
open cases in the sector still relate to the EIA Directive, but cases relating to the SEA 
Directive are on the increase. The deadline for transposing the latter directive was 21 July 
2004, but significant delays in transposition ha ve occurred in many Member States, which 
means that experience of the actua l application of the directive is still somewhat limited. In 
addition, the conformity of Member States' legisl ation cannot yet be cons idered to have been 
secured. Given the similar nature of  the obligations in the two inst ruments, it is to be expected 
that problems in the correct a pplication of the SEA Directiv e will be similar to those 
encountered in applying the EI A Directive. In terms of enfo rcement, early signs are that 
decisions as to whether smaller plans and pr ogrammes or modifications  require an SEA (so-
called “screening” decisions) co uld pose problems of bad applic ation. However, forthcoming 
                                                 
33 OJ L 197, 21.7.2001, p. 30.  
34 OJ L 73, 14.03.1997.  
35 OJ L 56, 25.06.2003.  
36 Examples for the EIA Directive include guidance documents on screening, scoping, assessment of 
indirect and cumulative impacts, or most recently , on the interpretation of the different project 
categories. 
EN 14   EN reports on the application of both the EIA and th e SEA Directives will clarify this and form 
the basis for future Commission’s action in the sector. 
Article 2(3) of the EIA Directive allows Me mber States to exempt specific projects in 
exceptional circumstances (e.g. for unforeseen civ il emergencies; threats to human health and 
the environment; security risks) from the provisi ons of the Directive in whole or in part, and 
to notify the Commission. This provision has been used by Italy three times in 2006 and twice 
so far in 2008.  
In 2006, two notifications concerne d the building of port infrastruc ture in Sicily: one in the 
Eolie islands after damage by a tsunami and th e other in Lampedusa due to the lack of 
facilities to receive a high num ber of immigrants. The thir d 2006 notification was for the 
temporary use of an existing waste disposal facili ty for special waste in Lecce in Puglia due to 
the waste emergency in the region at the time. In 2008, both notifications concerned new landfills in Campania needed due to the waste emergency there.  
2.3.4 Further challenges in implementing Envi ronmental Impact Assessment legislation  
• Ensuring that citizens and NGOs can seek reviews at Member States level. Every year, 
thousands of projects are pr oposed across the Community. A ke y challenge arises from the 
fact that, when citizens are aggrieved or concerned about proposed new infrastructure, 
industrial and other projects, they look to environmental impact assessment provisions 
contained in the EIA Directive when form ulating their objections  and concerns. The 
provisions are therefore frequently invoked in relation to controversies about proposed new 
development and in relation to complaints and petitions. In line with the Aarhus 
Convention, the last revision of the EIA Directive in 2003 s eeks to give citizens and NGOs 
a right of review of decisions that concer n rights of public participation. Making this 
effective is a way of better addressing nationa lly the many EIA concerns that are expressed 
by citizens about individual projects across the Community.  
• Developing capabilities in Member States to ensure effective implementation of the EIA 
and SEA Directives. For the effective application of the EIA and SEA Directives, capacity 
building must be strongly encouraged within institutions having critical responsibilities in 
planning and environmental decision-making, notably through target ed campaigns for the 
recruitment and training of EIA and SEA expe rts. In this contex t, training programmes 
offered and guidance documents prepared by the Commission are contributing to the capacity building efforts of the Member States. 
• Taking into account the horiz ontal character of the EIA and SEA Directives, there are 
possible overlaps between these two Directives and certain other EC environmental legislation and policies. This may require co-ordinated or joint procedures to avoid 
duplication of assessment. Overlaps may o ccur between the EIA and SEA Directives 
themselves, as well as with the Water Fr amework Directive (Directive 2000/60/EC), the 
Nitrates Directive (91/676/EC), the Waste Framework Directive (D irective 2006/12/EC), 
the Air Quality Directive (2008/50/EC) an d the Habitats Directive (92/43/EC). 
Furthermore, the SEA Directive also applies to plans and programmes co-financed by the EC, and the environmental asse ssment is carried out in conformity with the specific 
provisions in relevant Community legislation. 
EN 15   EN 2.3.5 Prioritisation of Commission’s legal enforcement work  
High priority will continue to be given to legal action addressing non-conformity of 
transposing measures for the EIA Directive likely to affect the attainment of the legislative 
objectives. These cases now mainly concern the EU-12 Member States. Similarly, the 
Commission will continue to pursue infringement procedures against Member States that have 
failed to correctly and/or completely transpos e the SEA Directive. Since these directives 
contain mainly procedural requirements which figure in many complaints and petitions, the 
Commission will continue to seek improved national legislation to implement these 
requirements. By doing so, the Commission seeks to avoid at least some procedural problems 
at the level of indivi dual plans and projects. 
In addition to the emphasis on pursuing non-conf ormity cases and work aimed at improving 
national legislation which implements the procedural requirements of the environmental impact assessment legislation, the following types of bad implementation cases will be followed up more closely by the Commission: 
• breaches concerning big infrastructure pr ojects or interventions involving EU 
funding; 
• breaches linked to bad transposition of certain provisions of the environmental 
impact assessment legislation likely to a ffect the attainment of the legislative 
objectives; 
• breaches that reveal interpretation problem s concerning certain provisions of the 
environmental impact assessment legisl ation which could have a significant 
influence on the impact of the legislati on that would justify seeking clarification 
from the Court of Justice. 
Apart from the above cases where the Comm ission legal enforcement action might be 
indispensable, individual breaches of certain provisions of the environmental impact assessment legislation should primarily be addr essed through the existi ng review mechanisms 
at Member State level.  
2.4 Protecting Water Resources 
2.4.1 Legislative Framework 
The most important piece of legislation in this area is the Water Framework Directive
37, 
which establishes a strategic framework for th e protection of all water bodies, i.e. rivers, 
lakes, coastal waters and groundwater, in the European Union. The Urban Waste Water 
Treatment Directive38 is another key instrument for reduc ing water pollution: it addresses the 
waste water discharges of cities and towns. Complementing it is the Nitrates Directive39, 
designed to protect the Community’s waters agains t nitrates from agricultural sources, one of 
the chief causes of diffuse pollution. Aimed at ensuring that drinking water is kept free of 
                                                 
37 Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a 
framework for Community action in the field of water policy ( OJ L 327, 22.12.2000, p. 1–73).  
38 Council 91/271/EEC concerning urban waste water treatment  (OJ L 135, 30.5.1991, p. 40–52).  
39 Council Directive 91/676/EEC of 12 December 1991 concerning the protection of waters against 
pollution caused by nitrates from agricultural sources ( OJ L 375, 31.12.1991).  
EN 16   EN contamination, the Drinking Water Directive40 is important for public health. Besides the 
above-mentioned key directives, European water legislation also cove rs specific uses of 
water, including rules for the monitoring, a ssessment and management of the quality of 
bathing water41. Moreover, various pieces of legisl ation cover rules for preventing and 
reducing the discharges of substances into water bodies42. 
2.4.2 State of Law 
European water legislation consists of a nu mber of fairly stable, consolidated legal 
instruments, but there are also important new developments in this domain. Examples of 
recently adopted measures include a new Bathing Water Directive43, a new Groundwater 
Directive44, which supports the Water Framework Di rective, and a directive on flood risks45. 
The new Marine Strategy Framework Directive46, which extends the application of the 
principles of the Water Framework Directive to  European seas, has recently been adopted. In 
addition, a proposal for a directive rela ting to priority hazardous substances47 which also 
supports the Water Framework Directive is  currently in the adoption pipeline.  
2.4. 3 Evaluation of the current posit ion in terms of implementation 
                                                 
40 Council 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption ( OJ L 
330, 05.12.1998, p. 32-54).  
41 Council Directive 76/160/EEC of 8 December 1 975 concerning the quality of bathing water (OJ L 31, 
5.2.1976, p. 1–7).  
42 The following directives can be mentioned as ex amples of such legislation: Council Directive 
76/464/EEC of 4 May 1976 on pollution caused by certain dangerous substances discharged into the 
aquatic environment of the Community (OJ L 129, 18.5.1976); and Council Directive 80/68/EEC of 17 
December 1979 on the protection of  groundwater against pollution caused by certain dangerous 
substances (OJ L 20, 26.1.1980, p. 43–48).  
43 Directive 2006/7/EC of 15 February 2006 concerning the management of bathing water quality and 
repealing Directive 76/160/EEC (transposition deadline 24 March 2008) (OJ L 64 of 4.3.2006).  
Directive 76/160/EEC is repealed by this new Directive with effe ct from 31 December 2014. It is 
designed to ensure consistency with the Water Fram ework Directive and is also intended to simplify 
procedures in the light of scientific developments and improve participatory processes for the actors 
concerned and the information given to the public. 
44 Directive 2006/118/EC of 12 December 2006 on th e protection of groundwater against pollution and 
deterioration (transposition deadline 16 January 2009) ( OJ L 372, 27.12.2006 ). This Directive is 
designed to prevent and combat groundwater pollution.  Its provisions include: criteria for assessing the 
chemical status of groun dwater; criteria for identifying signifi cant and sustained upward trends in 
groundwater pollution levels, and for defining starting points for reversing these trends; and preventing 
and limiting indirect discharges (after percola tion through soil or subsoil) of pollutants into 
groundwater. 
45 Directive 2007/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2007 on the 
assessment and management of flood risks (transposition deadline 26 November 2009) ( OJ L 288, 
6.11.2007 ). This Directive aims to establish a common framework for assessing and reducing the risk 
that floods within the European Union pose to human health, the environment, property and economic 
activity. The purpose of this Directive is to manage and reduce the risk of floods, particularly along rivers and in coastal areas. It provides for assessment of the risk of flooding in river basins, the mapping 
of flood risks in all regions where there is a serious risk of flooding and the drawing up of flood risk 
management plans based on close cooperation between and the broad participation of Member States. 
46 Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 establishing a 
Framework for Community Action in the field of Marine Environmental Policy (Marine Strategy Framework Directive)( OJ L 164, 25.6.2008, p. 19–40 ). 
47 Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on environmental quality 
standards in the field of water policy and amending Directive 2000/60/EC (COM(2006)397). 
EN 17   EN The strong stakeholder processe s that have been put in pla ce, combined with Commission 
enforcement action, have helped to ensure a broad degree of compliance with the first 
implementation deadlines under the Water Fr amework Directive. These comprise the 
deadlines for transposing the directive into national law (December 2003), the setting up and 
notification of river basin dist ricts (June 2004), the analysis a nd notification of pressures on 
river basin districts (March 2005)  and the organisation and notific ation of monitoring (March 
2007). However, studies have identified probl ems with the quality of national implementing 
legislation, and the Commission f aces the challenge of securing from Member States clearer 
and more complete national implementing provisions.  
In the EU-15, i.e. those Member States that joined the EU in the period before 2004-2007, the 
implementation of the Urban Waste Water Treatme nt Directive presents a mixed picture. On 
the one hand, key infrastructure  is in place in several Me mber States and significant 
investments have been made elsewhere. This serves not only the immediate goals of the 
Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive but al so supports the achievement of wider water 
policy objectives, including thos e of the Water Framework Dir ective. On the other hand, in 
the EU-15, there are infrastructure deficits in  up to a quarter of the 8000 larger cities and 
settlements that were subj ect to 1998 and 2000 collection and treatment deadlines. The 
deficits are the subject of ongoing Commission in fringement procedures that have already 
resulted in several important ECJ rulings. These in turn are helping to secure the necessary 
implementation work in the Member States c oncerned, and a steady narrowing of the deficits 
is to be expected. However, several factors — such as slippage of ex pected infrastructure 
completion dates — make it difficult to forecast when full compliance will be achieved. 
2.4.4 Further challenges in implemen ting European water legislation 
• Making the Water Framework Directive fully operational.  Momentum must be maintained 
to ensure that critical upco ming deadlines are respected and that in the crucial period 2009-
2015, effective action is taken at the level of eac h European river basin district to prevent 
and reduce water pollution and avoid th e unsound use of water resources.  
• Implementing the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive : It is important to ensure 
effective implementation of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive in the EU-12 and 
continue to ensure effective implementation in the EU-15. For the EU-12, legal deadlines 
are later but it is clear that many cities  and settlements require upgrades and the 
Commission will need to follow progress cl osely. The Commission will also need to 
monitor closely compliance in the EU-15, for example to ensure that collecting systems 
and treatment match urban growth. 
2.4.5 Prioritisation of Commission ’s legal enforcement work 
Horizontal legal actions addressi ng systemic breaches, such as widespread contraventions of 
obligations for the development of environmen tal infrastructure under the Urban Waste Water 
Directive, will continue to be pursued as priori ties. This approach means that a single case can 
encompass significant numbers of non-compliant  cities and towns, bringing much more 
pressure to bear than would be possible th rough a policy of pursuing individual failures. 
An important focus of the Commission’s enforcem ent work as regards wa ter is to make sure 
that the various deadlines of th e Water Framework Directive are respected. To this effect, the 
Commission will continue to take concerted legal action to address missed deadlines in the upcoming crucial period 2009-2015. 
EN 18   EN The Commission will continue to  take infringement action agai nst Member States that have 
not correctly or completely transposed into their national legislation the provisions of the Water Framework Directive in ways likely to affect the attainment  of the legislative 
objectives. 
Similar action will be taken to secure from  Member States (mainly from EU-12 countries) 
clearer and more complete national impl ementing provisions for the Drinking Water 
Directive. 
As regards important new legal instruments, DG Environment will prepare risk-based 
implementation action plans for the Marine St rategy Directive and the new Groundwater 
Directive. This will involve forward planni ng of work to encourage correct and timely 
transposition. 
2.5 Air Quality 
2.5.1 Legislative Framework 
The new Directive 2008/50/EC of the Europ ean Parliament and of the Council of 21 
May 2008 on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe is the key legal instrument in this sector
48. This merges four directives49 and one Council decision50 
into a single air quality instrument. Other important legal instru ments contributing to 
ensuring adequate air quality are the tw o fuel quality directives, i.e. Directive 
98/70/EC relating to the quality of petrol and diesel fuels51 and Directive 1999/32/EC 
relating to a reduction in the sulphu r content of certain liquid fuels52. Furthermore, 
mention must also be made of the Noise Directive53 which  lays down a common 
approach to avoiding, preventing or reducing on a prioritised basis the harmful effects of exposure to environmental noise. 
2.5.2 State of Law 
This domain of EC environmental law is char acterised by important new developments. The 
most significant recent legal in strument is the new Air Quality Directive, 2008/50/EC, which 
entered into force on 11 J une 2008. It introduces new objec tives for fine particles PM
2.5 but 
does not change existing air qual ity standards. It does, however , under certain conditions give 
                                                 
48 OJ L 152, 11.6.2008, p. 1-44.  
49 The four directives merged into the new directiv e are: Council Directive 96 /62/EC of 27 September 
1996 on ambient air quality assessment and management ; Council Directive 1999/30/EC of 22 April 
1999 relating to limit values for sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter and lead in ambient air ; Directive 2000/69/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council 
relating to limit values for benzene and carbon monoxide in ambient air; and Directive 2002/3/EC of 
the European Parliament and of the Council relating to ozone in ambient air.  These acts will be repealed 
two years from the entry into force of the new Directive. 
50 Council Decision 97/101/EC  establishing a reciprocal exchange of information and data from networks 
and individual stations measuring ambien t air pollution within the Member States. 
51 Directive 98/70/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 1998 relating to the 
quality of petrol and diesel fuels and amending Council Directive 93/12/EEC ( OJ L 350, 28.12.1998, p. 
58–68).  
52 Council Directive 1999/32/EC of 26 April 1999 relating to a reduction int he sulphur content of certain 
liquid fuels and amending Directive 93/12/EEC ( OJ L 121, 11.5.1999, p. 13–18).  
53 Directive 2002/49/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 June 2002 relating to the 
assessment and management of environmental noise  (OJ L 189, 18.7.2002, p. 12–25).  
EN 19   EN Member States greater flexibility in meeting some  of these standards in areas where they have 
difficulty complying. Another impo rtant legal instrument that is  currently in the legislative 
procedure is the revision of the Fuel Quality Directive54. This will contribute to reducing air 
pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions from road and non-road fuel use and help to 
implement the Community strategies on air qual ity and on climate change. The main reasons 
for reviewing the Fuel Quality Directive stem  from evolving fuel and engine technology and 
the growth in biofuel use. 
2.5.3 Evaluation of the current posit ion in terms of implementation 
Available evidence points to serious problems in complying with air quality limit values in 
many European air quality zones. The Commissi on has been following closely the situation in 
all Member States and, so far, has ta ken the following action in this field: 
• Action on SO 2 levels: The Commission has alrea dy launched infringement 
procedures against several Member St ates that have shown widespread 
exceedances of sulphur-dioxide (SO 2) limit values that have been in force since 1 
January 2005.  
• Action on PM10 levels:  The binding limit values for particulate matter (PM10) 
have also been in force since 1 January 2005. It is clear from o fficial reports that 
most of the Member States have experien ced significant difficulties in achieving 
compliance with these limit values. For 2006, around 400 zones in 23 Member States were reported as being in non-complia nce. It is expected that Bulgaria and 
Romania, which were not under an obligati on to report for that year, are also 
facing serious compliance problems. In this context, it must be noted that PM10 compliance problems were recognised  well in advance by the Commission. 
Hence, it proposed a revision of the legisl ation aimed at mainta ining standards but 
allowing extra time and greater flexibility to address the most serious difficulties under certain conditions. The dilemma was ho w to treat the brea ches of existing 
Community law in the intervening period before the new directive was adopted. 
The Commission took the option of not initiating immediate legal action, and 
instead, required the Member States to implement the pollution-abatement 
measures necessary to improve the situati on. It warned Member States that this 
would be a condition for any time exte nsion for compliance under the new Air 
Quality Directive. 
• Action concerning non-communication of plans and programmes aimed at 
achieving compliance with other limit values : The Commission has pursued legal 
enforcement action against a number of Member States which had failed to 
communicate their plans and programme s for complying by the end of the 
transitional periods with the other li mit values set under EC air quality 
legislation
55.  
                                                 
54 Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 98/70/EC 
as regards  the specification of petrol, diesel and gas-oil and introducing a mechanism to monitor and the 
introduction of a mechanism to monitor and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the use of road 
transport fuels and amending  Council Directive 1999/32/EC, as regard s the specification of fuel used by 
inland waterway vessels and repealing Directive 93/12/EEC (COM (2007) 18). 
55 In addition to sulphur dioxide and particulate matter for which binding limit values have been in force 
since 1 January 2005, EC legislation sets limit values that are not yet in force for the following 
EN 20   EN Actions concerning noise  Under the Noise Directive, Member States had to send to the 
Commission by 30 December 2007 information from th e strategic noise maps which had to be 
drawn up by 30 June 2007. Strategic noise maps  are required to be drawn up in order to 
monitor the extent of noise pollution,  to inform and consult the publ ic about noise exposure, 
its effects, and the measures considered nece ssary to address noise. The Commission prepared 
guidance and electron ic templates (so-called 'electronic reporting mechanisms') designed to 
support and assist the Member States in fulfilling their reporting requirements. The 
Commission, together with the European Enviro nmental Agency, is currently assessing the 
information received and carrying out a quality ch ecking of the noise maps. It is to be noted 
that there are still some Member States wh o have not yet submitted their report. The 
Commission has requested all Memb er States to provide information on the current state of 
play concerning their noise maps. 
2.5.4 Further challenges in implem enting Air Quality legislation 
• Ensuring compliance with  air quality limit values : Air pollution has long been 
recognised as posing a significant risk to human health and the environment. On 
the basis of past experience, it is lik ely that ensuring compliance with binding 
limit values will remain a difficult issue in  several Member States. In the coming 
period, it will be crucial to ensure th at measures aimed at bringing about 
compliance with limit values are systema tically put in place and implemented. 
• Implementing the mechanisms of the new Air Quality Directive — postponement 
of attainment deadlines : The new Air Quality Directive provides Member States 
with the possibility to obtain, under certain conditions, time extensions for compliance with certain limit values. Most of the Member States are expected to 
apply for such time extensions. Befo re granting its final agreement to 
postponement, the Commission will have to assess thoroughly if a number of 
conditions are fulfilled, in particular if Member States have implemented 
appropriate pollution-abatement measures.  
• Effective implementation of the Environmental Noise Directive.  The 
Commission efforts need to continue to ensure that the Noise Directive is fully 
and correctly implemented. 
2.5.5 Prioritisation of Commission ’s legal enforcement work 
In the coming years, the Commission will con tinue to monitor closely the situation with 
regard to compliance with air quality limit values  in all Member States. It will continue to 
follow its "horizontal" approach, which allows air pollution problems to be addressed in a far 
higher number of places than would be possible if it only focused on i ndividual cities or 
regions. 
As regards excessive SO
2, the Commission will continue to pursue the legal enforcement 
action it has already launched against severa l Member States. As for PM10, the Commission 
will assess closely whether time extension requests expected to be submitted by most of the Member States meet the relevant criteria. Infrin gement procedures are to be envisaged against 
                                                                                                                                                        
 
pollutants: nitrogen dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, lead, benzene, carbon monoxide, ozone, arsenic, 
cadmium, mercury and nickel. 
EN 21   EN Member States in breach of the limit values which do not apply for a time extension or do not 
meet the conditions for obtaining such extension.  
In addition, legal enforcement procedures will be pursued to ensure that Member States fulfil 
their reporting obligations under the air quality legislation. The Commission will continue its 
efforts to ensure that the Noise Directive is fu lly implemented. To this end, it will continue to 
carefully assess the information, i.e. the strate gic noise maps and action plans, submitted by 
the Member States under the directive and will launch legal action should it identify breaches 
in the application of this legislation. 
For newly adopted directives, implementation ac tion plans will be draw n up. This will involve 
forward planning of work to encourag e correct and timely transposition.  
2.6 Climate Change 
2.6.1 Legislative Framework 
The most important cross-cutting measures in this domain are the Emissions Trading 
Directive56 and Decisions 280/2004/EC57 and 2005/166/EC58. With the adoption of the 
Emissions Trading Directive, the EU has esta blished a scheme for greenhouse gas emission 
allowance trading within the Community (EU ETS).  This is a market-based instrument aimed 
at gradually reducing emissions in selected sectors. It shou ld help the Community and the 
Member States to meet their Kyoto Prot ocol commitments to reduce greenhouse gas 
emissions in a cost-efficient way. With  the adoption of Decisions 280/2004/EC and 
2005/166/EC, the EU established a mechanism fo r monitoring and reporting greenhouse gas 
emissions. This makes it possible to evaluate more accurately and more regularly the progress made in reducing emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate 
Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto Protocol.  
2.6.2 State of Law  
Climate change legislation is an ev olving part of EC environmental law.  The Commission has 
taken many climate-related initia tives since 1991, when it issued the first Community strategy 
to limit carbon dioxide (CO
2) emissions and improve energy efficiency. It became clear that 
action by both Member States and the European Community needed to be strengthened if the 
EU is to succeed in cutting its greenhouse gas emissions to 8% below 1990 levels by 2012, as 
required by the Kyoto Protocol. Decisions 280/ 2004/EC and 2005/166/EC make it easier to 
gauge the EU’s progress towa rds meeting this target.  
In June 2000 the Commission launched the European Climate Change Programme (ECCP) as 
the Commission’s main instrument for discussi ng and preparing the further development of 
                                                 
56 Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 2003 establishing a 
scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC (OJ L 275, 25.10.2003, p. 32–46).  
57 Decision 280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February 2004 concerning 
a mechanism for monitoring Community greenhouse gas emissions and for implementing the Kyoto 
Protocol (OJ L 49, 19.2.2004, p. 1–8).  
58 Commission Decision 2005/166/EC of 10 February 2005 laying down rules implementing Decision No 
280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning a mechanism for monitoring 
Community greenhouse gas emissions and for implementing the Kyoto Protocol (OJ L 55, 1.3.2005, p. 
57–91).  
EN 22   EN the EU’s climate policy.  Under the first ECCP, an extensiv e range of policy sectors were 
examined and several instruments with potentia l for reducing greenhouse gas emissions were 
adopted. One of the most important and innovativ e initiatives is the EU Emissions Trading 
Scheme, under Directive 2003/87/EC, wh ich covers carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions from 
some 10 500 installations in the en ergy and some industrial sectors. 
The second European Climate Change Program me (ECCP II) was launched in October 2005. 
It has several working groups preparing new legislative inst ruments in the following main 
fields: ECCP I review (transport,  energy supply, energy demand, non-CO 2 gases, agriculture), 
aviation, CO 2 and cars, carbon capture and storage,  adaptation and the EU ETS review. 
Examples of legislative proposals th at are currently under adoption are: 
• Revision of the Emissions Trading Directive59: The main objectives are (1) full 
exploitation of the potential of the EU  ETS to contribute to the EU’s overall 
greenhouse gas reduction commitments in an economically efficient manner; (2) 
refinement and improvement of the EU ETS  in the light of experience; and (3) 
contribution to transforming Europe into a low greenhouse-gas-emitting economy and creating the right in centives for forward-looki ng low carbon investment 
decisions by giving a clear, undistorte d and long-term carbon price signal. 
• Proposal to include aviation activities in the EU ETS
60: This directive provides 
for aviation to be brought into the EU ETS so as to limit the rapid growth in 
emissions of the sector. 
• Proposal on the geographical storage of carbon dioxide61: This directive 
establishes a legal framework for the geological storage of carbon dioxide, the 
purpose being permanent containment of CO 2 in such a way as to prevent or 
minimise negative effects on the environment and any resulting risk to human health. 
• Proposal to limit the CO
2 emissions from cars62: This regulation lays down 
harmonised rules to limit the average CO 2 emissions from new cars in the 
Community.  It thus seeks to fight climate change, reduce fuel costs and boost 
European competitiveness. 
                                                 
59 Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/87/EC 
so as to improve and extend the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading system of the Community 
(COM (2008) 16). 
60 Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/87/EC 
so as to include aviation activities in the scheme fo r greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within 
the Community (COM (2006) 818). 
61 Proposal for a Directive of the Eu ropean Parliament and of the Council on the geological storage of 
carbon dioxide and amending Council Directives 85/337/EEC, 96/61/EC, Directives 2000/60/EC, 
2001/80/EC, 2004/35/EC, 2006/12/EC and Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 (COM (2008) 18). 
62 Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council setting emission performance 
standards for new passenger cars as part of the Community’s integrated approach to reduce CO 2 
emissions from light-duty vehicles (COM (2007) 856). 
EN 23   EN 2.6.3  Evaluation of the current positio n in terms of implementation 
Under Decisions 280/2004/EC and 2005/166/EC , Member States must provide the 
Commission with annual reports on their actu al emissions of greenhouse gases and twice-
yearly reports on domestic climate change po licies and measures and emission projections. 
The Commission has been rigorously checking wh ether national reports were submitted on 
time and whether they were correct and complete . As a result of enforcement action, reporting 
has steadily and significantly improved in terms of timing and content. As far as the Emissions Trading Directive is concerned, following Commission enforcement action, all 
Member States have communicated thei r national implementing legislation.  
2.6.4 Further challenges in implementing Climate Change legislation 
• Implementing the EU ETS.  Launched in January 2005, the EU ETS is the world’s largest 
company-level ‘cap-and-trade’ system for tr ading in emissions of  carbon dioxide (CO
2) 
and has quickly become the main driving force behind the expansion of the emerging global carbon market. Putting this system  into effect should allow the EU to achieve its 
greenhouse gas emission reduction targets under the Kyoto Protoc ol in a particularly cost-
effective way.  
• Ensuring provision of climate-relevant data . Accurate, up-to-date information is an 
essential basis for fighting climate change. On e of the challenges for the Commission will 
therefore be to ensure that the reporting of national greenhouse gas emissions improves 
still further, so that all Memb er States communicate complete reports to deadline to ensure 
an effective follow-up to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol. 
2.6.5 Prioritisation of Commission ’s legal enforcement work 
The Commission has assessed the national allo cation plans (NAPs) of all the 27 Member 
States for the second trading period (2008-2012) of the EU ETS  and has adopted decisions 
based on the Emissions Trading Directive. It is currently checking to see whether the way Member States implement their NAPs, i.e. how they allocate the accepted total quantity of 
allowances to individual installations, is in conformity with its decisions. 
 
Having secured the transposition of the Emissi ons Trading Directive, the Commission will 
now focus on assessing the correctness and completeness of the national implementing 
legislation in the Member States . Priority will be attached to  the pursuit, through infringement 
proceedings if necessary, of any shortcomings likel y to affect the attainme nt of the legislative 
objectives  
In the coming years, the Commission will contin ue to pursue legal enforcement action against 
Member States that fail to comply with their obligations under the climat e change legislation, 
including in relation to reporting and monito ring the Community’s gr eenhouse gas emissions 
and implementing the Kyoto Protocol.  
For the new directives, the Co mmission will draw up implementa tion action plans. This will 
involve forward planning of work to en courage correct and timely transposition. 
EN 24   EN 2.7 Industrial Installations 
2.7.1 Legislative Framework  
The most important piece of legislation relating to industrial emissions is Directive 96/61/EC 
concerning integrated pollution prevention and control (IPPC Di rective), which was codified 
by Directive 2008/1/EC63. It sets out common permit rule s for industrial installations. 
Operators of installations c overed by the IPPC Directive ar e required to obtain an 
authorisation (integra ted permit) from the authorities of the Member States. The Large 
Combustion Plant (or LCP) Directive64 aims to reduce emissions of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen 
oxides and dust from large combustion plants — i. e. plants whose rated thermal input is equal 
to or greater than 50 MW. The control of emissi ons from such plants plays an important role 
in the Community’s efforts to combat acidif ication, eutrophication a nd ground-level ozone as 
part of the overall strategy to  reduce air pollution. Further impor tant legislation relating to 
industrial emissions includes th e Waste Incinera tion Directive65 and the Solvents Directive66. 
The Seveso II or Major Accident Hazard Directive67 applies to establishments in which 
certain dangerous substances are present in su fficiently large quantities to create a major 
accident hazard. It contains obligations on both operators and Member State authorities to 
take measures aimed at preventing major accide nts and limiting their consequences. One of 
the key requirements is that emergency plan s must be drawn up for areas surrounding so-
called “upper tier” establishments  in order to properly protect  the public shoul d an emergency 
arise. 
2.7.2 State of Law 
Some EC environmental legislation in this dom ain has been subject to an important review 
recently. This development is marked by the pr oposal for a directive on industrial emissions68 
that the Commission adopted in December 2007. It  aims at simplifying the existing legal 
framework in the field of indus trial emissions. The proposal was adopted in the form of a 
recast of seven existing directives in the field (the IPPC Directive, the LCP Directive, the 
Waste Incineration Directive, Solvents Directiv e and three directives in relation to titanium 
dioxide 78/176/EEC69, 82/883/EEC70 and 92/112/EEC71). The result was a single text 
combining the substantive amendments to the directives and the original provisions which 
                                                 
63 OJ L 24, 29.01.2008, p. 8-29.  
64 Directive 2001/80/EC on the limitation of emissions of certain pollutants into the air from large 
combustion plants  OJ L 309, 27.11.2001, p. 1–21.  
65 Directive 2000/76/EC of the Eu ropean Parliament and of the Council of 4 December 2000 on the 
incineration of waste (OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 91–111).  
66 Council Directive 1999/13/EC of 11 March 1999 on the limitation of emissions of volatile organic 
compounds due to the use of organic solvents in certain activities and installations ( OJ L 85, 29.3.1999, 
p. 1).  
67 Council Directive 96/82/EC on the control of ma jor-accident hazards involvi ng dangerous substances  
OJ L 10, 14.1.1997, p. 13–33. 
68 COM(2007) 844. 
69 Council Directive 78/176/EEC of 20 February 1978 on waste from the titanium dioxide industry (OJ L 
54, 25.2.1978, p. 19).  
70 Council Directive 82/883/EEC of 3 December 1982 on procedures fo r the surveillance and monitoring 
of environments concerned by waste from the titanium dioxide industry ( OJ L378, 31.12.1982, p. 1).  
71 Council Directive 92/112/EEC of 15 December 1992 on procedures for harmonising the programmes 
for the reduction and eventual elimination of pollution caused by waste from the titanium dioxide 
industry ( OJ L 409, 31.12.1992, p. 11).  
EN 25   EN remain unchanged. The recast technique enables existing provisions to be simplified and 
streamlined: redundant provisions and unnecessary obligations can be repealed, while reporting and monitoring requirements are simp lified. This should help Member States to 
reduce unnecessary administrative burdens. 
A review of the Seveso II Directive, the pr ovisions of which have  remained essentially 
unchanged for over 10 years, is underway. 
2.7.3 Evaluation of the current posit ion in terms of implementation 
The IPPC Directive requires some 52 000 existi ng industrial installati ons to operate by 30 
October 2007 at the latest according to a permit is sued in accordance with  the IPPC Directive. 
The Commission has drawn the attention of Me mber States to this deadline on several 
occasions. However, there are indications that , for about 10 000 installations, the deadline for 
issuing the permits was missed. The Commissi on has subsequently launched infringement 
procedures against the Member States w ith the highest number of missing permits.  
The Commission has developed an action plan for the implementation of existing legislation 
on industrial emissions that formed pa rt of the Commission’s Communication ‘Towards an 
improved policy on industrial emissions ’
72. This set out key actions over the timeframe 2008-
2010. The details of each action are set out with in the Communication it self. The Commission 
will produce regular reports on the implementation of the action plan and will review the plan 
by the end of 2010, assessing how it fits in with the Commission’s proposal on the new Directive on industrial emissions. 
  
2.7.4 Further challenges in implementing industrial installa tions legislation 
• Lack of permits for existi ng industrial installations.  The Commission started to 
analyse how effectively Member States ha ve implemented the requirements of the 
IPPC Directive by reference to installation-specific case studies, in particular those related to the permits; and to identify where problems in implementation 
may have arisen. 
 
• Achieving uniform interpretation and implementation of BAT and BREFs.  The 
IPPC Directive does not set standards or thresholds for the prevention and control 
of emissions, or for other environmental as pects, but leaves th is responsibility to 
the Member States. Member States must ensure that IPPC permits include emission limit values or equivalent meas ures based on best available techniques 
(BAT). In determining what constitutes BAT, the competent authorities have to 
take into account the re ference documents on BAT (BREFs). BREFs are adopted 
by the European Commission based on an exchange of technical information 
between experts from industry, Member St ate authorities, research institutes and 
NGOs
73. It is particularly challenging to en sure that BREFs are interpreted and 
implemented uniformly in all Member States.  
                                                 
72 COM(2007) 843 final. 
73 This exchange of information is coordinated by the IPPC Bureau in Seville (http://eippcb.jrc.es/ ), which 
sets up a technical working group for each BREF. 
EN 26   EN • Controlling major specific sources of air pollutants.  Compliance with legislation 
aimed at limiting air pollutant emissions fr om specific sources, as for instance the 
Large Combustion Plants, the Waste In cineration and the National Emissions 
Ceiling Directives74, will also be essential. 
• Lack of emergency plans for Seveso “upper tier” installations.  Plans are required 
for about 8 000 installations in all. They  should have been in place since 2002 for 
the EU-15 Member States and 2004 for th e EU-10, but a considerable number of 
installations in many Member States  are still not covered. The Commission 
launched a "horizontal" lega l action in 2007, that is a si milar legal action against 
all Member States lacking emergency plans.  
2.7.5 Prioritisation of Commission ’s legal enforcement work 
The Commission will continue to pursue the in fringement procedures launched against 
Member States with the highest number of  missing IPPC permits. Legal action are also 
envisaged against Member States with fewer missing permits if no progress is forthcoming.  
The Commission will also take action against systematic breaches of the IPPC Directive, and 
will ensure that Member States fulfil their reporting obligations. Legal enforcement action 
over lack of provision of relevant data by cert ain Member States has already been launched 
recently under the LCP Directive.  
With regard to guidance concerning the Comm ission’s proposal on industrial emissions, work 
is likely to be undertaken after 2010 in the cont ext of the new Committee suggested within the 
proposal. The Commission has alrea dy begun preparations in this respect with a proposal to 
amend the remit of the existing IPPC Expert s Group (IEG) to consider wider industrial 
emissions legislation in the future under the title of Industrial Emissions Experts Group 
(IEEG). Transposition of the resulting direct ive will be confirmed, and the Commission will 
offer support to Member States in such transposition. The exact  form of such support has not 
been determined at this early stage in proceedings, although as indicated above, it is likely that the measures that presently exist in th e Commission’s Action Plan for implementation of 
the legislation on industrial emissions will cont inue into the implemen tation of the proposal. 
The Commission will continue to press for ex ternal emergency plans under the Seveso II 
Directive.  
2.8 Chemicals, Pesticides, Biocides and Biotechnology 
2.8.1 Legislative Framework 
The REACH Regulation (1907/2006)
75, which entered into fo rce on 1 June 2007, is the 
cornerstone of the EU’s new chemicals legislat ion. REACH, which is considerably more far-
                                                 
74 Directive 2001/81/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on national emission ceilings for 
certain atmospheric pollutants, (OJ L 309, 27.11.2001, p. 22–30). 
75 Regulation  (EC) No 1907/2006 of the Eu ropean Parliament and of th e Council of 18 December 2006 
concerning the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), 
establishing a European Chemicals Agency, amending Directive 1999/45/EC and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/93 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1488/94 as well as Council 
Directive 76/769/EEC and Commission Directives 91/155/EEC,  93/67/EEC, 93/105/EC and 
2000/21/EC. 
EN 27   EN reaching than previous legislation, deals with  the registration, evaluation, authorisation and 
restriction of chemicals. Registration means th e process by which information on the safety of 
chemicals will need to be submitted for regist ration in a central database, managed by ECHA. 
Evaluation includes a quality check of the regi stration dossiers and ex amination of testing 
proposals  and is done by ECHA; it also includes a more thorough examination of specific 
substances, where Member States play an important role. Substances of very high concern 
will require authorisation  for use and before being placed on the market. There is a procedure 
for the regulation of Community-wide condition s for the manufacture, placing on the market 
or use of certain substances where there is an unacceptable risk to health or the environment. 
Separate legislation currently continues to govern the classifi cation, packaging and labelling 
of dangerous substances and preparations. The main  provisions in this regard are contained in 
Directive 67/548/EEC76 (for substances) and Directive 1999/45/EC77 (for preparations). 
Directive 76/769/EEC, which concerns restric tions on the marketing and use of certain 
dangerous substances, will remain in force until 1 June 2009, when it will be repealed by the REACH Regulation. Two other pieces of legisl ation should be mentioned here. First, 
persistent organic pollutants (“POPs”) are governed by Regulation 850/2004. Second, basic 
provisions concerning the protecti on of laboratory animals used in experiments are contained 
in Directive 86/609/EEC. 
Directive 98/8/EC of the European Parliament  and of the Council concerning the placing of 
biocidal products on the market
78 (the Biocides Directive) concerns the authorisation and 
placing on the market of biocidal products in the Member States and the establishment at 
Community level of a list of active substances  which may be used in biocidal products. 
Council Directive 90/219/EEC79 lays down common measures for the contained use of 
genetically modified micro-organisms for th e purpose of protecting human health and the 
environment. Directive 2001/18/EC of the Eur opean Parliament and of the Council on the 
deliberate release into the environment of ge netically modified organisms and repealing 
Council Directive 90/220/EEC80 establishes a common methodol ogy for risk assessment and 
a safety mechanism. It also introduces ma ndatory public consultation and GMO labelling.  
2.8.2 State of Law 
This sector of EC environmental law is char acterised by substantial new developments, in 
particular in the chemicals and pesticides sectors.  
• Firstly, REACH entered into force on 1 June 2007. This included the establishment of the 
European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and the preparation of IT-systems to hold the new 
database. Registration of chemicals manufactur ed or imported in quantities of 1 tonne or 
more per year started on 1 June 2008. Between 1 June and 1 December 2008 manufacturers will have the possibility to pre-register their phase-in substances. Pre-
registration, as its name suggests, precedes  full registration and provides for extended 
deadlines. Depending on the volumes and the hazardous properties of substances, these 
extended deadlines are 2010, 2013 or 2018. If a co mpany fails to pre-register, from 1 
                                                
 
76 OJ L 196, 16.08.1967, p. 1. 
77 OJ L 200, 30.07.1999, p. 1. 
78 OJ L 123, 24.4.1998, p. 1–63.  
79 OJ L 117, 8.5.1990, p. 1–14.  
80 OJ L 106, 17.4.2001, p. 1–39.  
EN 28   EN December 2008 it can no longer place its phase-i n substances on the market until it has 
completed registration.  
• Furthermore, the Commission’s Proposal for a new Regulation dealing with the 
classification, labelling and packag ing of substances and mixtures81 has almost completed 
the legislative procedure for adoption by the European Parliament and Council. This new 
proposal incorporates the UN GHS (United Nations Globally Harmonised System) into 
Community law and replaces, to a large extent , the existing legislation on classification, 
labelling and packaging. 
• Secondly, as regards pesticides, the Commission adopted in June 2006 the Thematic 
Strategy on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides  together with a proposal for a framework 
directive on the sustainable use of pesticides82 and a proposal for a regulation on the 
placing of plant protection products on the ma rket, revising Directive 91/414/EEC. The 
aim of the Thematic Strategy is to fill the curr ent legislative gap rega rding the use-phase of 
pesticides83 at EU level by setting minimum rules for the use of pesticides in the 
Community, so as to reduce risks to human h ealth and the environment from the use of 
pesticides. For the time bei ng, the Commission has proposed to  restrict the scope of the 
framework directive to plant protection products. The inten tion is, however, to include 
biocides within the scope as soon as possible.  
2.8.3 Evaluation of the current posit ion in terms of implementation 
As the REACH Regulation entered into force on 1 June 2007 and its main obligations started 
applying on 1 June 2008, there is not yet sufficien t information concerning its implementation 
in Member States. In order to ensure complian ce, Member States should put in place effective 
monitoring and control measures. Every five years Member States must submit a report to the 
Commission on the operation of the Regulation in their respective territories, including 
sections on evaluation and enforcement. Penalt ies for non-compliance must be notified to the 
Commission by 1 December 2008. 
The Biocides Directive stipulates that Member States have to take the necessary steps to 
monitor their market and make sure it complies with the requi rements of the directive. The 
first reporting covering the period of May 2000 to November 2003 provided a lot of useful 
information and revealed a few points of c oncern. The second composite report prepared by 
the Commission in April 2008, covering the period December 2003 to November 2006, has found that Member States have made signific ant progress in implementing and enforcing the 
directive’s provisions by taking the appropriate measures. In th is regard, mention must be 
made of a number of guidance documents pr epared by the Commission to help ensure 
effective implementation of the Biocides Directive.  
Concerning the biotechnology sector, studies obt ained by the Commissi on revealed a number 
of shortcomings in the national implementi ng legislation for Dir ective 90/219/EEC as 
amended by Directive 98/81/EC (contained use of GMOs) in several Member States. Since 
the completeness and correctness of implementing legislation within the Member States are 
                                                
 
81 COM (2007) 0611. 
82 Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament  and of the Council establishing a framework for 
Community action to achieve a sustainabl e use of pesticides (COM (2006) 373). 
83 The current legislative framework mainly concentrates on the beginning and the end of life stages of 
pesticides. 
EN 29   EN important determinants of good implementatio n in practice, the Commission has launched 
legal enforcement action against several (mai nly EU-15) Member States that have not 
properly transposed this directive.  
2.8.4 Further challenges in implementing legi slation relating to the Chemicals and 
Biocides sector 
• Effective implementation of REACH.  The Chemicals Agency will play a key role 
in the effective implementation of REACH. It will coordinate, over a period of 11 
years, the registration of some 30 000 chemical substances in use today. To 
exchange information on enforcement, the Forum for Exchange of Information on Enforcementcomposed of members nominat ed by the Member States, was set up 
within ECHA. The Forum coordinates a network of Member State authorities 
responsible for enforcement of the Regul ation. Its main tasks include: proposing, 
coordinating and evaluating harmonise d enforcement projects and joint 
inspections; identifying enforcement strate gies and best practice in enforcement; 
and examining proposals for restrictions w ith a view to advising on enforceability.  
• Delays in transposition of a large number of directives in the Biocides sector.  The 
Biocides Directive provides for the ev aluation and inclusio n in a Community 
positive list (its Annex I, IA or IB) of active substances used in biocidal products 
that are found acceptable for a specific use (product-type) from the point of view 
of health and the environment. Member States that did not make a dynamic reference to Annex I, IA or IB to the Biocides Directive have to transpose the 
directives amending its annexes by adding the newly approved active substances. 
This takes a lot of time, in particular considering that there are hundreds of active 
substances currently scheduled for evalua tion. The planned change of the Biocides 
Directive into a Regulation should solve this problem as transposition will no longer be necessary – though it should not be  forgotten that Member States may 
also need to take legislative action in this event, for example repeal existing 
incompatible national legislation.  
2.8.5 Prioritisation of Commission ’s legal enforcement work 
Legal enforcement action in these fields does not  constitute a significant workload for the 
Commission. In the coming years, the main priori ties in terms of enforcement work can be 
summarised as follows: 
• The Commission will continue to work  to enhance good cooperation, coordination 
and exchange of information with the Me mber States and the European Chemicals 
Agency regarding enforcement so that the system established by the REACH Regulation can operate effectively. The Commission will work closely with the 
Forum for Exchange of Information on Enforcement in this regard. 
• The Commission will continue to pursue infringement procedures concerning the 
non-communication of the national implem enting measures for recently adopted 
directives that update the relevant an nexes to the Biocides Directive.  
• Work will also be done on ensuring that the directive on contained use of GMOs 
is correctly transposed in all Member States. To this end, the Commission will 
EN 30   EN extend its legal action to cover all Member  States that have failed to properly 
transpose this directive.  
After the adoption of the new framework direc tive on the sustainable use of pesticides, the 
Commission will carefully monitor its transp osition into the Member States’ national 
legislation on the basis of a risk-based impl ementation action plan. This will involve forward 
planning of work to encourage co rrect and timely transposition. 
2.9 Governance and Environmental Liability 
2.9.1 Legislative framework 
Directive 2003/4/EC of the Eu ropean Parliament and of the Council on public access to 
environmental information and rep ealing Council Directive 90/313/EEC84 (Access to 
Environmental Information Directive) aims to ensure that environmental information is available to the public upon request and actively disseminated through computer 
telecommunication or electr onic technology. Directive 2004/ 35/EC of the European 
Parliament and of the Council on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and 
remedying of environmental damage (Environmental Liab ility Directive)
85 establishes a 
framework for environmental liability based on th e "polluter pays" principle, with a view to 
preventing and remedying environmental damage. 
2.9.2 State of law 
The Access to Environmental Information Di rective and the Environmental Liability 
Directive are both recent instruments. The former  was adopted in order to fully comply with 
the Aarhus Convention. While modifications ca nnot be excluded in the future, there are no 
current plans to change them. 
2.9.3 Evaluation of the current posit ion in terms of implementation 
The Commission has pursued the failure to transpose the Access to Environmental 
Information Directive, obtaining two ECJ rulings in 2007 (Case C-391/06, Commission v 
Ireland, decision of 3 May 2007 and Case C-340/06, Commission v Austria, decision of 5 July 
2007). 
By the end of 2007, a total of eleven Member  States had notified complete transposing 
measures for the Environmental Liability Di rective: Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, 
Germany, Romania, Slovakia, Swed en, Spain, Estonia and Cyprus. 
2.9.4. Further challenges in implementing legislation 
Commission efforts need to cont inue to ensure that the Envi ronmental Liability Directive 
(ELD) is correctly transposed. Apart from the application of the significance criteria (Annex 
I) and the application of the appropriate measur es to ensure the reme dying of environmental 
damage ('primary', 'complementary' and 'compens atory' remediation according to Annex II), 
the proper functioning of financ ial security instruments will be significant for successful 
implementation of the ELD in the Member St ates. Based on various information sources 
                                                 
84 OJ L 41, 14.2.2003, p. 26–32  
85 OJ L 143, 30.4.2004, p. 56–75  
EN 31   EN (studies commissioned by the Commission, informa tion drawn from nati onal experts as well 
as from stakeholders such as the financial sector, industry and NGOs etc.), the Commission 
will have to present a report before 30 April 20 10 on the effectiveness of the ELD in terms of 
actual remediation of environmental damages a nd on the availability at reasonable costs and 
on conditions of insurance and other types of financial security fort the activities covered by the scope of strict liability of the ELD. 
2.9.5 Prioritisation of Commission 's legal enforcement work  
The Commission will continue its efforts to ensure that the E nvironmental Liability Directive 
is completely and correctly transposed in all Member States.