WRITTEN QUESTION E-1642/00 by Heidi Hautala (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Environmental impact of motorway between Thessaloniki and Kavalla.
Date: 2000-05-29
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU environmental policy, Macedonia, environmental impact, motorway, road building

20.3.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 89 E/63

(2001/C 89 E/061)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1641/00

by Alejandro Agag Longo (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(29 May 2000)

Subject: Inflation in the euro area

The general consensus seems to be that the trend in oil prices on the one hand and the low value of the
euro on the other are the main causes of the inflationary pressure which the European Central Bank has
sought to counter with the recent interest rate increases. Since it is to be assumed that the Commission
bases its analyses and forecasts on accurate data, and in the interests of greater transparency, can the
Commission indicate what proportion of the price increases in the European Union is estimated on
average to correspond to increasing oil prices and to the imported inflation derived from the continuing
depreciation of the euro respectively?

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(7 July 2000)

The latest available harmonised data for consumer prices in the Community refer to April 2000. The
annual rate of consumer price inflation in the euro area in April 2000 was 1,9 % (compared to one year
earlier). Consumer prices for energy products (i.e. gasoline, electricity, heating oil, etc.) rose by 10,5 %
relative to one year earlier. This was partly due to increases in energy taxes in some Member States,
notably Germany, and partly to higher oil prices. Consumer expenditure on energy accounts for about
9 % of total consumer expenditure included in the harmonised consumer price index for the euro area.
Thus,
in consumer energy prices contributed about 0,9 percentage points
(i.e. 9 % x 10,5 %) to the annual rate of increase in consumer prices in April 2000. Core consumer prices
excluding energy and seasonal food increased by 1,2 % year-on-year in April 2000.

the mechanical

impact

The main reason for the increase in consumer energy prices has been the increase in oil prices on world
markets. Between April 1999 and April 2000, oil prices increased from USD 15,3 per barrel to USD 23,3
per barrel, i.e. by 52 %. Measured in euro, oil prices increased even more, namely from € 14,3 per barrel to
€ 24,6 (i.e. by 72 %), due to the depreciation in the exchange rate of the euro against the US dollar. These
numbers suggest that movements in world oil prices (measured in US dollar) accounted for between two-
thirds and three-fourths of the increase in oil prices measured in euro in the year to April 2000, while
movements in the exchange rate accounted for the remainder.

While the depreciation in the euro exchange rate has put upward pressure on import prices, including
non-energy import prices, in the euro area, it is not possible to say with precision the extent to which the
depreciation may have affected the prices of non-energy goods and services. At this stage, however, it
appears that import price increases have not been passed completely through to consumer prices. The
prices of non-energy industrial goods, which can be expected to be the most sensitive to changes in the
external value of the euro, are still rising at a subdued pace in the euro area with no clear signs of an
upward trend (the consumer prices of non-energy industrial goods were up by 0,6 % year-on-year in April
2000, the same as in December 1999).

(2001/C 89 E/062)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1642/00

by Heidi Hautala (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(29 May 2000)

Subject: Environmental impact of motorway between Thessaloniki and Kavalla

The existing motorway between Thessaloniki and Kavalla in Northern Greece follows the route of the
ancient Via Egnatia close to the coast, some 4 km to the south of the village of Vrasna. However, the

C 89 E/64

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

20.3.2001

Greek State is building a new motorway with EU funding, whose route lies further north, passing from the
southern edge of Vrasna into a valley to the west of the village and then through a tunnel.

In 1997 the people of Vrasna complained to the EU about the new route, but it seems that no action was
taken (document 473/97).

Vrasna(cid:146)s village community will be destroyed by the construction of the motorway. Communications with
the regional administration in Asprovalta and with the rest of the coastal region will become more
difficult. Many people who live in Vrasna go to work, and children go to school, in places along the coast.

The project will also destroy a unique cave to the west of the village, whose structure and wildlife were for
example studied by researchers from the University of Thessaloniki last summer. A rare species of bat lives
in the cave, as do other rare species of small animal. If the road is built, it will pass very close to the cave,
and the construction work alone will cause serious damage to it, to say nothing of the harm which will in
the future be occasioned by the multilane motorway. There are also various ancient remains and sites of
former settlements in the mountains to the south of the village, ranging in date from prehistory to the
Byzantine era.

Did the Commission require an environmental impact assessment to be performed for the project? Has the
Commission discussed the implementation of the project with the local authorities since receiving the
villagers(cid:146) request for clarification? What is the Commission(cid:146)s opinion of alternative routes for the road?

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

(4 July 2000)

As the Commission indicated to the petitioners in February 1998, the information at its disposal, which
has recently been confirmed, shows that an environmental impact study was carried out in 1993 on the
stretch of the Via Egnatia in question, which includes the cave in the municipality of Vrasna.

All the procedures required under Greek law were observed, including public consultation. The Greek
authorities also maintain that the environmental impact study included an examination of alternatives to
the new route.

Work has not yet commenced on the Egnatia stretch referred to by the Honourable Member.

Regarding the cave, the Ministerial Decision concluding the impact study procedure contains no special
measures or conditions to be taken into account. The anthropogeology and speleology departments of the
Ministry of Culture do not consider the cave to be important. Nor is it linked to a special protection area
under Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds (1) or to a site of
Community importance proposed in accordance with Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on
the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (2).

Nonetheless, the Ministry of the Environment and Public Works conducted a geophysical study to analyse
the route of the motorway in relation to the cave. The study did not indicate any direct relation between
the two, as the cave is located some 200 m from the route of the Via Egnatia. The Ministry concluded that,
if necessary, specific measures could be taken during the construction work, once it starts, to ensure that
the cave remains in its present condition.

(1) OJ L 103, 25.4.1979.
(2) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.