WRITTEN QUESTION E-0094/03

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

(28 January 2003)

Subject: Planned diversion of water from the River Castril to the Jabalcón Canal (Granada, Spain)

The Association for the Protection and Promotion of the River Castril, along with leaders of several irrigator communities, local councils themselves, members of the Castril-Jabalcón Platform and a range of ecological organisations have all informed me of their opposition to the plan to channel water from the River Castril to the Jabalcón Canal, which was presented by the Guadalquivir Hydrographic Confederation and was to receive European funding. This project was first publicised in 2000, but was clearly unviable and was withdrawn as a result of strong public opposition. At the same time, another project, entitled improvement of the river banks and reforestation in the Castril river valley, is also being presented, and has already been the subject of two thousand complaints.

This diversion project, which is envisaged as a necessary part of the national hydrographic plan, would seriously affect farmers in the area, many of whom are organic farmers, and would impact on the countryside, on fauna and flora and on the Sierra de Castril natural park, with its precious ecosystem.

Implementation of this project could violate the following directives:

(a) Directive 85/337/EEC(1), as amended by Directive 97/11/EC(2) on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment;

(b) Directive 92/43/EEC(3) on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora.

What steps will the Commission take to ensure compliance with Community legislation governing the environment, and more specifically with the directives referred to above?

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

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

(3) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(25 February 2003)

The Commission notes, firstly, that the Spanish authorities have proposed the Sierra del Castril as a site of Community importance for inclusion in the Natura 2000 network. The Sierra has also been designated a special protection area for birds under Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds(1). Article 6 of Directive 92/43/EEC stipulates that any plan or project likely to have a significant effect on a special area of conservation must be subject to appropriate assessment of its implications for the site in view of the site's conservation objectives. The authorities must not authorise the plan or project until they have ascertained that it will not adversely affect the integrity of the site. If, in spite of a negative assessment of the implications for the site and in the absence of alternative solutions, a plan or project must nevertheless be carried out for imperative reasons of overriding public interest, including those of a social or economic nature, the Member State must take all compensatory measures necessary to ensure that the overall coherence of Natura 2000 is protected.

With regard to Directive 85/337/EEC, as amended by Directive 97/11/EC, the Commission would point out that Article 2 stipulates that, before consent is given, projects likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia, of their nature, size or location are made subject to an assessment with regard to their effects. This provision applies to the projects listed in Annexes I and II to the Directive. The water diversion project referred to in the written question could come under Annex I (point 12) or Annex II (point 10m) depending on its scale and its features. If it comes under Annex I, environmental impact assessment is compulsory. If it comes under Annex II, the Member State must determine, either through a case-by-case examination or using thresholds or criteria set by the Member State, or through a combination of both these procedures, whether the project must be made subject to an assessment.

The information supplied by the Honourable Member does not indicate whether an environmental impact study of the reported project has been completed. On the basis of that information, therefore, the Commission cannot assume that there has been any violation of Community law. It will thus be contacting the Spanish authorities very shortly for information on whether Directives 85/337/EEC and 92/43/EEC have been applied in the case reported in the written question. As guardian of the Treaties, the Commission will in any event take all the necessary steps to ensure that Community law is complied with in this instance.

(1) OJ L 103, 25.4.1979.