WRITTEN QUESTION E-2257/02

by María Sornosa Martínez (PSE) to the Commission

(24 July 2002)

Subject: Increase in illegal irrigation and further deterioration of the River Segura

The Commission will be only too aware of the serious environmental situation in the Segura River area as it was not by accident that the experts it sent there classed the Segura the most polluted river in Europe.

However, in parallel with the lengthy infringement proceedings the Commission has opened against Spain for this reason, the state of the river has deteriorated still further and illegal irrigation has increased throughout the area, in such a way that:

- the extensive ploughing-up of land and the conversion of woodlands into irrigated land has continued, with this also causing an increase in the number of illegal wells (there are calculated to be more than 15 000 unregulated wells) and the overexploitation of all the aquifers;

- farmers of irrigated land in the affected areas are being forced to use highly contaminated water on their crops (faecal waters and industrial waters), which is poisoning traditional market gardens and their produce;

- food canning and leather industries have continued to illegally discharge waste, with the water purifiers that have been installed being insufficient to guarantee water quality and sustain the ecological flow of the Segura;

- the contamination of the river has continued, putting protected areas at serious risk;

- nothing has changed with regard to the violation of the Framework Directives on water, nitrates and habitats first reported over three years ago.

All this is the result of the permissiveness of the competent authorities which, on the one hand, have proved themselves ineffectual in halting the deterioration of the river, and on the other hand are managing the situation in a way that encourages the ploughing-up of land and the creation of new illegal irrigated areas.

In the light of all the information provided in previous questions, which the Commission's experts were able to verify in situ, and of the fresh information in the Commission's possession (in particular that contained in the CD produced by the organisations Pro-Río and Ecologistas en Acción):

- What stage has been reached in the infringement proceedings against Spain for contamination of the Segura river?

- Does the Commission feel that the water purification measures that have been implemented by the Spanish authorities with European Community funding are sufficient?

- What urgent measures will the Commission take to halt the ploughing-up of land, illegal irrigation, uncontrolled waste discharges and all the other misdeeds that are causing the Segura to deteriorate still further?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(16 October 2002)

As a result of the infringement proceedings the Commission instituted against Spain under Article 226 of the EC Treaty, the Court of Justice of the European Communities condemned Spain(1) for not having established programmes to reduce pollution of the water caused by certain dangerous substances contained in List II of the Annex to Council Directive 76/464/EEC of 4 May 1976 on pollution caused by certain dangerous substances discharged into the aquatic environment of the Community(2), contrary to the requirements of Article 7 of the Directive.

As part of the handling of this case, a letter of formal notice was subsequently sent to Spain on the basis of Article 228 of the EC Treaty. The Spanish authorities communicated the various provisions and measures taken to meet the requirements of the Directive. The Commission is currently examining this information.

The abovementioned infringement proceedings, along with other action the Commission has taken against Spain to ensure compliance with the Community directives on water, could help resolve the problem of the River Segura referred to by the Honourable Member.

With particular reference to this problem, the Spanish authorities have sent the Commission their Plan for environmental rehabilitation of the Segura basin. This plan, drawn up by the Ministry of the Environment and the Autonomous Communities of Murcia and Valencia, involves construction of treatment plants, agreements between the authorities and industry, administrative monitoring measures and penalties, and major investments.

The various parts of the Plan are currently being implemented. Indeed, six new treatment plants began operating at the start of 2002 to assist the remediation of the River Segura basin, notably in the middle and lower stretches of the river (Vega Media and Vega Baja).

Regarding the various illegal activities the Honourable Member reports are being carried out in the River Segura basin, these are matters which do not really fall within Community jurisdiction. The Commission therefore has no means of preventing them. Nonetheless, they are matters which may be pursued through national appeal procedures with the competent administrative and jurisdictional authorities in accordance with the relevant Spanish law.

With regard to possible Community co-financing, the Commission would point out that in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity and pursuant to Council Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999 of 21 June 1999 laying down general provisions on the Structural Funds(3), both the choice of projects and their implementation are the responsibility of the Member States. The Commission therefore wrote to the Spanish authorities on 10 July 2002 to obtain that information and will pass it on to the Honourable Member as soon as it is received.

(1) Judgment of 25.11.1998. Case C-214/96.

(2) OJ L 129, 18.5.1976.

(3) OJ L 161, 26.6.1999.