WRITTEN QUESTION E-2258/02

by María Sornosa Martínez (PSE) to the Commission

(24 July 2002)

Subject: Environmental management problems and degeneration of the environment on Spain's eastern seaboard

Throughout this parliamentary term, I have criticised the poor management of Spain's eastern seaboard and the serious effects this is having on the environment and the natural heritage of coastal areas there. Major problems include the on-going construction of coastal infrastructure (ports, promenades, sea walls, breakwaters, etc.), the deterioration in the quality of the sea water and the wholesale urbanisation of the shoreline. Furthermore, urban development and the growth in tourism is causing the degeneration of natural areas adjacent to the coast (marshes, estuaries, lagoons, salt marshes, posidonia beds), triggering climate change, eroding the coastline and eating away at beaches and dune systems. To all this one must add over-fishing and the exhaustion of fishery resources, unsustainable management of water resources and the marked degeneration of the countryside and traditional natural resources, which are even affecting specific features of the local inhabitants' identity and popular culture.

The Valencia regional government plans to reclassify thousands of square kilometres of coastline as development land in order to construct leisure complexes, second homes and golf courses. These plans have sparked a reaction from sections of the population and from opposition parties, who have made open calls for a moratorium on construction until such time as the mandatory surveys and environmental impact studies have been performed for the various projects.

In the light:

- of the communication from the Commission on a European Union strategy for sustainable development(1) and the conclusions of the Gothenburg Council of June 2001 on that subject, and

- of the already-approved Recommendation concerning the implementation of integrated coastal zone management in Europe(2),

Is the Commission aware of this situation and of the plans for the extensive development of the Valencian coast, which are being implemented by means of a reclassification of land by the Valencia regional government?

Does it not feel that it should intervene with the Spanish authorities to ensure that the Valencian coast is managed correctly and in accordance with provisions laid down by the European Union in this area?

Is it in a position to check whether an environmental impact study has been performed on all the development projects being carried out on the Valencian coast?

(1) COM(2001) 264.

(2) OJ L 148, 6.6.2002, p. 24.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(27 September 2002)

Under the terms of the Recommendation on integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) (2002/413/EC), the Commission does not receive development or land use plans for specific coastal zones.

On the question of a Commission intervention with the Spanish authorities, the Commission would point out that the ICZM Recommendation does not provide a formal and legal framework for such an approach. It is a Recommendation which calls on the Member States to formulate strategies to promote integrated coastal zone management on the basis of certain general principles, such as the involvement of all the parties concerned. The situation on the Levantine coast described by the Honourable Member reveals many conflicts between the various uses and users of the coast. In such complex situations, ICZM is able, through its consultation and cooperation mechanism, to provide a solution which is in line with the principle of sustainable development. Indeed, in relation to national strategies on ICZM, the Recommendation calls on Member States to consider, among other things, controlling any additional urbanisation of the coastline (recommendation, Chapter IV, 3 b(i)). Nevertheless, national strategies are not due until 2006, and this again on the basis of a Recommendation, i.e. a non-binding instrument.

As regards impact assessment, the new Directive on strategic environmental assessment (Directive 2001/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2001 on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment(1)), which will apply to certain plans and programmes, will not be fully transposed until 2004. However, Council Directive 85/337/EEC(2) of 27 June 1985, as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997 on the assessment of the effects of certain private and public projects on the environment(3) could apply in the case in question, since a number of the actions criticised by the Honourable Member could be covered by Annex I of the Directive, such as trading ports and piers for loading and unloading (Annex I, point 8(b)), or Annex II, such as marinas (Annex II, point 12(b)), urban development projects, including the construction of shopping centres and car parks (Annex II, point 10(b)), and coastal work to combat erosion and maritime works capable of altering the coast through the construction, for example, of dykes, moles, etc. (Annex II, point 10(k)). Whereas projects in Annex I must be the subject of an impact assessment in the event of significant impact on the environment, it should be noted, however, that for projects listed in Annex II, Member States have to determine on the basis of a case-by-case examination or thresholds or criteria set by the Member State itself whether the project has to be made subject to an assessment in accordance with Articles 5 to 10 of the Directive.

The information provided by the Honourable Member alone, with no details on specific projects, does not allow the Commission to decide whether or not they belong to the Annexes to the Directive. Nevertheless, if the Honourable Member is aware of specific cases where the Directive has not been properly applied, she is requested to notify them to the Commission which will then examine whether those cases are compatible with Community law.

(1) OJ L 197, 21.7.1985.

(2) OJ L 175, 5.7.1985.

(3) OJ L 73, 14.3.1997.