WRITTEN QUESTION E-2560/99 by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission. Sea water cleanliness.
Date: 2000-01-11
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU Member State, bathing water, marine pollution

C 303 E/80

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

24.10.2000

It is difficult to compare the existing and future standards of the Community with those of the United
States or Japan. Other countries apply a different definition of waste and a different scope of application.
Moreover, settings such as standard oxygen contents of flue gas or different measurement intervals
complicate a comparison.

(1) OJ L 365, 31.12.1994.
(2) OJ L 163, 14.6.1989.
(3) OJ L 203, 15.7.1989.
(4) Press Release No 13293/99.

(2000/C 303 E/071)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2560/99

by Christopher Huhne (ELDR) to the Commission

(11 January 2000)

Subject: Sea water cleanliness

Would the Commission please publish the latest available figures showing the cleanliness of sea water at
the principal European Union coastal resorts, together with the equivalent figures for each resort for each
of the last five years?

Answer given by Mrs Wallstr(cid:246)m on behalf of the Commission

(17 January 2000)

The annual reporting obligations under Council Directive 76/160/EEC of 8 December 1975 concerning
the quality of bathing water (1) imply that a quality assessment of Member States(cid:146) bathing waters is made
after each bathing season.

The Directive requires that the data be reported to the Commission by 31 December by the responsible
authority of the Member State. The Commission collects all these data for its annual report that is
presented before the next bathing season around mid-May. The data on the 1999 bathing season will
therefore be presented in May 2000.

The latest available data are at the moment those of the 1998 bathing season. The references of the annual
paper report are: Quality of bathing water (1998 bathing season), May 1999 (cid:129) EUR 18831. This
information can also be found on the Europa internet site at http://europa.eu.int/water/water-bathing/
index_html. The atlas on the internet site gives the quality status of each individual bathing area since
1992.

(1) OJ L 31, 5.2.1976.

(2000/C 303 E/072)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2609/99

by Mogens Camre (UEN) to the Commission

(12 January 2000)

Subject: Breaches of human rights in Turkey

The Copenhagen criteria of 1993 require countries wishing to become members of the EU to guarantee
human rights and respect and protect minorities. According to Parliament(cid:146)s Resolution of 6 October 1999
Turkey is still far away from meeting these criteria. For example, official Turkish policy includes a
prohibition on Christian religious activities and the Christian cathedral of Hagia Sophia is still under
Muslim occupation.

These clear breaches of human rights openly flout the Copenhagen criteria and it would therefore be
interesting to know what demands the Commission makes on Turkey in the course of their present
collaboration.

Under Article 28 of the Association Agreement Turkey receives aid from the European Union. Will the
Commission therefore describe the demands it makes in the course of its relations with Turkey regarding
Turkey(cid:146)s treatment of its Christian minority?