WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1345/97 by Carmen DÍEZ DE RIVERA ICAZA to the Commission. Paraguay - Paraná Waterway
Date: 1997-04-10
Institutions: DIEZ DE RIVERA ICAZA, European Parliament
Subjects: Bolivia, EU aid, Mercosur, harbour installation, impact study, inland waterway, inland waterway shipping, inland waterway transport, transport infrastructure













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91997E1345

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1345/97 by Carmen DÍEZ DE RIVERA ICAZA to the Commission. Paraguay - Paraná Waterway  


Official Journal C 367 , 04/12/1997 P. 0119 





WRITTEN QUESTION P-1345/97 by Carmen Díez de Rivera Icaza (PSE) to the Commission (10 April 1997)Subject: Paraguay - Paraná Waterway1. What is the extent of Commission and EU Member State support for the building of a Paraguay-Paraná Waterway (PPW), particularly within the context of EU relations with Mercosur?2. What are the implications of the EU- funded study into improving ports in the five countries involved in the PPW in terms of support for the construction of the PPW?3. Does the Commission feel itself morally bound by the sustainable development criteria laid down in Agenda 21, adopted in Rio in 1992, when it comes to making decisions concerning its financial support for (mega) projects which will have a major ecological and social impact in third countries?4. What sort of criteria does the Commission apply when deciding on financial support for large-scale projects, and specifically the PPE (socio-economic, sustainable development and ecological, criteria relating to transparency, public participation and information, the rights of local and indigenous communities, preliminary studies assessing environmental impact, economic viability and alternative possibilities, etc.)?5. What funding for the PPW is being provided or is scheduled from the Commission and, in addition, from the Member States? What degree of coordination exists between these various channels of funding?Answer given by Mr Marín on behalf of the Commission (6 May 1997)1. The Mercosur countries and Bolivia decided to carry out a project to improve the navigability of the rivers Paraguay and Paraná in order to improve the integration of the Mercosur countries' transport infrastructures and provide Bolivia with an outlet to the sea.Following the request from these countries, the Commission is cooperating in a technical study for improving certain ports.The Commission is not aware of any funding by Member States.2. The study will make it possible, in an initial stage, to determine feasibility and the scale of the work to be done on the ports and to conduct an evironmental audit and analyse the economic and social impact of the improvements.In a second stage, a civil engineering study is to be carried out in order to produce detailed technical documents for work on revamping the ports.3. The Commission agrees with the Agenda 21 criteria.4. The Honourable Member may refer to the Commission's answers to Written Questions E-3244/95 ((OJ C 109, 15.4.1996. )) and E-3243/95 ((OJ C 161, 5.6.1996. )) from Mrs Van Putten and Written Question No 2157/95 from Mr Kreissl-Dörfler ((OJ C 66, 4.3.1996. )).5. The Commission will finance only the technical studies. Most of the site operations will be financed, where appropriate, by specialized institutions (IDB, Fonplata, UNDP, and the EIB, etc.) and by private banks, depending on the nature of the work to be done.