WRITTEN QUESTION E-0983/01

by Gorka Knörr Borràs (Verts/ALE) and Alexander de Roo (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(30 March 2001)

Subject: Risk which the Itoiz reservoir presents to public safety

The Confederación Hidrográfica del Ebro [Ebrus Hydrographic Confederation] has decided to begin filling the Itoiz reservoir in Navarra this spring, despite a new report by Professor Arturo Rebollo Alonso, a geologist and engineer who maintains that the project presents a serious threat to public safety on account of the instability of the clay soil found in the area in which the dam is located. According to the report it is highly probable that land slippage will block the filters built into the dam, thereby causing the water level to increase and thus exposing nearby towns to the risk of flooding and placing extreme pressure on the structure of the dam. This could make the reservoir overflow or even cause a breach in the dam, which would be a full-blown human disaster and would threaten the safety of the Asco nuclear power station.

The new report backs up earlier studies, including a report by Spain's Environment Ministry, which describes the project as constituting maximum risk. Antonio Casas,

Head of the Department of Geodynamics at the University of Zaragoza, also submitted a report a few years ago in which he warned of the disastrous consequences which may ensue if the reservoir is filled.

1. Does the Commission not consider that the Spanish Government is contravening Articles 1, 6 and 17 of the Convention on Nuclear Safety which was drawn up under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency and to which Spain and Euratom are signatory?

2. Would the Commission support local communities and international environmental groups, including Friends of the Earth Europe, the WWF and the International Rivers Network, which are calling on the Spanish authorities to impose a moratorium on the filling of the reservoir until an international group of experts have certified that it is safe?

3. Is the Commission aware of the significance and the impact of the Itoiz reservoir within the National Hydrological Plan as an item of water redistribution infrastructure within the projected scheme for diverting water from the Ebrus?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(6 July 2001)

1. The Euratom Community has acceded to the Convention on Nuclear Safety. The scope of the Euratom Community competence under the Convention, except for Articles 15 and 16(2) thereof, is under the assessment of the Court of Justice. It is not for the Commission to say whether Spain is in contravention of the Convention.

However, it must be mentioned that Chapter 3 of Title II of the Euratom Treaty headed Health and Safety and the secondary legislation adopted thereunder are laying down rules for protection of general public against risk arising from ionizing radiation, both in normal circumstances and in case of radiological emergencies. In accordance with Article 124 of the Euratom Treaty, the Commission will ensure that these rules are correctly applied in the specific context of the Itoiz reservoir, particularly in relation to the nuclear plant of Asco.

2. As regards the environmental law deriving from the EC Treaty, the Commission is, under Article 211 (ex Article 155) of the EC Treaty, responsible for ensuring that Community law is correctly applied by the Member States. However, it has to be stressed that the Commission is unable to intervene in matters which are not covered by Community law.

The safety of the reservoir at the Itoiz dam is a matter which falls outside the scope of Community environmental law. Questions relating to the technical quality of a project are outside the scope of the impact assessment directive(1). There are thus no legal grounds for the Commission to take any action with regard to this issue.

3. The Spanish Government has informed the Commission of its proposed National Hydrological Plan. The Commission has brought to the attention of the Spanish authorities the need to ensure, in the course of the formal adoption procedure for the final Plan and subsequently in the process of its implementation, the full respect of all relevant Community environmental legislation and policy.

(1) Council Directive 85/337/EEC (OJ L 175, 5.7.1985).