WRITTEN QUESTION P-3858/02

by María Valenciano Martínez-Orozco (PSE) to the Commission

(6 January 2003)

Subject: Treatment of waste from the Prestige accident

The company Protección Medioambiental (PMA), which has already been sanctioned for environmental offences by the Galician Government on several occasions, is the main firm responsible for managing the tonnes of waste fuel oil collected every day along the Galician coast following the serious accident involving the Prestige. PMA stores the fuel collected in large tanks before recycling it by manufacturing filler bricks for the construction industry.

Some ecological and local residents' groups have already expressed their concern at this method of dealing with the fuel collected, since the furnaces used to manufacture the bricks are producing large columns of strong-smelling and probably toxic smoke which could affect neighbouring communities if it is not properly treated.

Can the Commission guarantee that activities linked to processing fuel from the Prestige are being carried out in accordance with the rules laid down by Community legislation for such cases?

What action will the Commission take to guarantee that waste from the Prestige is managed properly, in a way which will not pose fresh risks to the environment in the form of atmospheric pollution, or any threat to the health of people living nearby?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(11 February 2003)

From the perspective of Community legislation on waste management, it is important to underline that Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste, as amended(1) stipulates a number of key obligations for Member States in connection with the management of waste, which includes materials that have been spilled, lost or have undergone other mishap(2) such as the fuel oil from the Prestige oil tanker.

Specifically, Article 4 requires Member States to take the necessary measures to ensure that waste is recovered or disposed of without endangering human health and without using processes or methods which could harm the environment. In particular, this must be done without risk to water, air, soil and plants and animals, without causing a nuisance through noise or odours and without adversely affecting the countryside or places of special interest. In addition, Member States are specifically required under that provision to take the necessary measures to prohibit the abandonment, dumping or uncontrolled disposal of waste. Furthermore, Articles 9 and 10 specify that waste disposal and recovery operators must obtain a permit from the relevant national competent authority. In addition to Directive 75/442/EEC, Member States must also comply with the provisions set out in Council Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 on the landfill of waste(3) and Council Directive 91/689/EEC of 12 December 1991 on hazardous waste(4) which includes discarded heavy fuel oil(5). Individual Member States are responsible for implementing these Community obligations.

The Commission is not aware of grounds to suggest that methods used to deal with the fuel oil from the Prestige in Galicia are in contravention of Community rules. However, if the Honourable Member or any other person has any grounds to consider that specific Community obligations have been infringed, it is open to them to file a formal complaint with the Commission. Under Article 211 EC, the Commission has the duty to ensure that the provisions of the European Community Treaty and the measures taken by its institutions are applied.

(1) OJ L 194, 25.7.1975, as amended by Council Directive 91/156/EEC OJ L 78, 26.3.1991 and Commission Decision 96/350/EC OJ L 135, 6.6.1996.

(2) See entry Q4 of Annex I to Directive 75/442/EEC, as amended.

(3) OJ L 182, 16.7.1999.

(4) OJ L 377, 31.12.1991.

(5) See hazardous waste entry 13 07 01* fuel oil and diesel in Commission Decision 2000/532/EC of 3 May 2000 OJ L 226, 6.9.2000 as amended by Commission Decision 2001/119/EC of 22 January 2001 OJ L 47, 16.2.2001 which provides a consolidated Community list of wastes.