WRITTEN QUESTION E-1160/98

by Roberta Angelilli (NI) to the Commission

(24 April 1998)

Subject: The involvement of organized crime in the illegal disposal of refuse in Southern Lazio, Italy

For some time, the Italian press has been publishing reports about the resumption of illegal discharges of toxic or hazardous waste in the Lazio, which is now third in line of the Italian regions most affected by illegal activities involving the disposal of rubbish, particularly in the provinces of Rome, Latina and Frosinone.

Some 60 % of the waste covered by the abovementioned categories is disposed of at unknown locations, as admitted by the chairman of the parliamentary committee of inquiry into waste disposal, Massimo Scalia. From 1994 to 1997, 36 633 breaches of criminal law or administrative rules were ascertained, while there have been reports of intimidation of those firms legitimately involved in disposing of waste in accordance with the relevant laws and European directives. It appears that organized crime has become involved in these illegal activities. The many investigations now under way apparently concern the unlawful disposal of about 500 000 tonnes of waste in the abovementioned areas.

In the light of the foregoing, would the Commission state:

1. whether it agrees that it should approach the Italian authorities, particularly the Ministry of the Environment and the Lazio regional administrative authorities, to request more stringent monitoring, not least in the light of European directives 91/156/EEC(1), 91/689/EEC(2) and 94/62/EC(3);

2. its views on the involvement of organized crime in the illegal and irregular disposal of refuse, particularly toxic or dangerous waste, with reference also to the wider European context;

3. whether the Commission documents about this problem exist;

4. whether, and if so, in which cases, the zones referred to have already given rise to studies or investigations by the Commission into the problem in question?

Answer given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission

(16 June 1998)

There is no legislation, at the Community level, expressly addressing the involvement of organized crime in the illegal and irregular disposal of waste, this being a prerogative of Member States. Nevertheless illegal waste disposal and recovery is clearly prohibited by Directives 91/156/EEC on waste, 91/689/EEC on hazardous waste, and 94/62/EC on packaging and packaging waste. In accordance with its mission of ensuring the observance of Community law, including the above mentioned directives, the Commission, acting in the framework of the EC Treaty has already opened infringement proceedings against Italy concerning Community waste legislation. For details, the Honourable Member is invited to refer to the reply given by the Commission to her written question E-3412/97(4).

On the basis of the limited information given by the Honourable Member, the Commission is not in a position to draw clear conclusions about her concerns. In general, the presence of concentrations of abandoned (and in that sense illegal) hazardous waste, besides being contrary to national and Community law, is to be considered as something having a potentially considerable environmental impact. The Commission agrees that it is necessary to prevent the development of such situations, and recognises that, in such cases, an effective intervention should be carried out promptly, in order to avoid negative environmental consequences, which may sometimes be irreversible.

On the other hand, in order to warrant a specific intervention against a Member State for bad application of Community law, the Commission needs detailed and precise information about the situation concerned (well defined facts and places). The Honourable Member is invited to furnish such specific and concrete information as would allow the Commission to start an inquiry.

The Member States have established an informal network on the implementation and enforcement of environmental law (IMPEL), which aims to monitor illegal cross-border waste transport. It also has a working group on environmental prosecutions, and is considering if it can address environmental crime in a wider context. The Commission takes part in the activities of this network. IMPEL has produced a report on transfrontier shipments of waste, known as "TFS-2 project transfrontier shipment of waste, final report concerning European co-operation on the enforcement of Community Regulation (EEC) 259/93 on transfrontier shipments of waste - May 1996". The Commission is sending this report direct to the Honourable Member and to the Parliament's Secretariat.

The Commission has not carried out studies or investigations in relation to the matters raised by the Honourable Member in the zones she mentions.

(1) OJ L 78, 26.3.1991, p. 32.

(2) OJ L 377, 31.12.1991, p. 20.

(3) OJ L 365, 31.12.1994, p. 10.

(4) OJ C 158, 25.5.1998.