WRITTEN QUESTION E-2896/01

by Laura González Álvarez (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(22 October 2001)

Subject: Branch railway to the port of Marín (Pontevedra, Spain)

The parish of Lourizan, which comes under the Pontevedra local authority (4 000 inhabitants) has in recent years suffered from various blows which have seriously impaired the quality of life of its inhabitants (sewage station malfunction, continual enlargement of the Pontevedra-Marín harbour and problems caused by a chlorine-producing plant built right next to dwelling houses).

A branch railway to the port of Marín is now under construction, which cuts right through the public Placeres Square, the heart of the village which surrounds the Square, and necessitates an overpass for road traffic, a huge concrete barrier which closes off the Square to the north and physically separates it from the rest of the village.

Eight hundred pupils attending a school in the neighbourhood will use the overpass on a daily basis.

Once the branch railway comes into operation, it will form part of a long-distance rail link. This means that it should have been the subject of an environmental impact assessment, and the public should have been kept officially informed as to the proceedings. Neither of these requirements has been met.

What does the Commission intend to do to ensure that Community environmental legislation is complied with, and particularly Directives 97/11/EEC(1) amending Directive 85/337(2) on the impact of certain public and private projects on the environment, and Directive 90/313/EEC(3) on access to information on the environment?

(1) OJ L 73, 14.3.1997, p. 5.

(2) OJ L 175, 5.7.1985, p. 40.

(3) OJ L 158, 23.6.1990, p. 56.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(5 December 2001)

Article 4(2) Council Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment(1) amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997(2) provides for Member States to determine, on the basis of a case by case examination, the projects referred to in Annex II which are likely based on thresholds or criteria or on a combined approach to have notable effects on the environment and which will thus be subject to an environmental assessment in accordance with Articles 5 to 10 of the Directive. To determine which of the projects in Annex II are to be subject to an environmental assessment, Member States must take account of the criteria set out in Annex III to the Directive. The decision must be made available to the public.

The construction of railways other than those for long-distance rail traffic is referred to in Annex II, point No 10(c), of Directive 85/337/EEC amended by Directive 97/11/EC in its Spanish version. Provided that the railway line between the conglomeration of Lourizan and the Port of Marín is connected to a long-distance railway line, it may also be considered the extension of a long-distance railway link as referred to in Annex II, point No 13, of the Directive.

On the basis of the elements provided by the Honourable Member, the Commission is not in a position to establish whether the Spanish authorities have completely fulfilled their obligations resulting from Directive 85/337/EEC amended by Directive 97/11/EC. For this reason, the Commission will write to the Spanish authorities asking them for more detailed information.

If the result of this enquiry leads to the conclusion that the Spanish authorities have not observed Directive 85/337/EEC amended by Directive 97/11/EC, the Commission might initiate an infringement procedure pursuant to Article 226 (ex Article 169) of the EC Treaty.

Article 3 of Council Directive 90/313/EEC of 7 June 1990 on the freedom of access to information on the environment(3) provides that public authorities are required to make available information relating to the environment to any natural or legal person at his request and without his having to prove an interest.

Article 3(4) states that the public authority must respond to a person requesting information as soon as possible and at the latest within two months. The reasons for refusing to provide the information requested must be given and based on the exceptions provided for in Article 3(2) and (3).

Furthermore, Article 4 of Directive 90/313/EEC states that any person who considers that his request for information has been unreasonably refused or ignored or has been inadequately answered by a public authority may seek a judicial or administrative review of the decision in accordance with the relevant national legal system.

The facts as reported by the Honourable Member do not, on their own, permit the Commission to ascertain whether the Spanish authorities responded inappropriately or not to a request for access to information, which could constitute an infringement of the provisions of the Directive.

If it should be the case that a request for access to information had been refused by the authority asked, in infringement of the directive, it would be up to the requester of the information concerned to seek a review as provided for in the abovementioned Article 4 of the Directive and through the transposed Spanish law.

(1) OJ L 175, 5.7.1985.

(2) OJ L 73, 14.3.1997.

(3) OJ L 158, 23.6.1990.