WRITTEN QUESTION E-0674/01 by Johan Van Hecke (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Guidelines for land use planning around EU airports.
Date: 2001-03-06
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU environmental policy, airport, environmental protection, noise, town and country planning

13.11.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 318 E/97

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has launched its (cid:145)Innovation 2000 Initiative(cid:146) with the objective of
strengthening research funding and venture capital. The EIB has doubled the reserve set aside to cover
capital investment to € 2 billion until 2003.

Finally, three potential fields for collaboration and joint action between the Commission and the EIB in the
fields of research and innovation have been identified: research infrastructure, near-market industrial
research and development, and venture capital to fund start-ups and business incubators. The objective is
to create a framework for collaboration to capitalise more fully on the complementary strengths and
synergies between these two institutions.

(1) COM(2001) 94 final.

(2001/C 318 E/100)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0667/01

by Philip Bushill-Matthews (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Lisbon European Council and agreed indicators

(6 March 2001)

invited (cid:145)the Council and the Commission to promote a better
The 2000 Lisbon European Council
understanding of social exclusion through continued dialogue and exchanges of information and best
practice, on the basis of commonly agreed indicators.(cid:146) Have these indicators been established, and if so
what are they?

Answer given by Mrs Diamantopoulou on behalf of the Commission

(30 April 2001)

The Lisbon European Council invited the Council and the Commission to promote a better understanding
of social exclusion through continued dialogue and exchanges of information and good practice, on the
basis of commonly agreed indicators, and agreed that the Social Protection Committee should be involved
in establishing these indicators. To this end, the Social Protection Committee has established a subgroup
on indicators to assist it in the selection and development of indicators. This subgroup, which met for the
first time on 20 February 2001, will prepare at technical level the deliberations of the Committee in this
area. The progress achieved in developing indicators in the field of social exclusion will be presented in
a report to the Laeken European Council at the end of 2001.

(2001/C 318 E/101)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0674/01

by Johan Van Hecke (PPE-DE) to the Commission

Subject: Guidelines for land use planning around EU airports

(6 March 2001)

With reference to the Communication on Air Transport and Environment of 1 December 1999, in which
the European Commission affirmed its intention to draw up guidelines for land use planning around EU
airports and the Resolution on the Commission Communication on Air Transport and the Environment,
adopted by the European Parliament on 7 September 2000, the Commission is asked:

(cid:129) Will an initiative be taken on drawing up guidelines for land use planning around EU airports?

(cid:129) What is the timetable?

(cid:129) When will the consultation process start?

(cid:129) Is it already known who will be involved in this consultation process?

C 318 E/98

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

13.11.2001

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(31 May 2001)

The Commission wishes to confirm that it considers the existence of appropriate guidelines for the use of
land around airports as an important element for a balanced strategy towards mitigating the impact of
aircraft noise.
therefore considers development of recommended practices as a potentially useful
instrument for achieving progress in this field.

It

Any such initiative, however, will have to take account of the allocation of responsibilities and the lack of
direct Community competence on land-use decisions. For this reason the Commission believes that the
ongoing work on this issue will have to recognise the existing institutional balance as well as the variety of
interests involved covering also non-aviation interests.

From this background the Commission is working on the creation of a group of experts involving
representatives of national authorities competent for decisions on land-use around airports and represen-
tatives of airports and environmental non-governmental organisations (NGOs). This group would have to
undertake the necessary groundwork for recommended practices in this field. Information resulting from
the implementation of other Community instruments, such as the proposed Directive relating to the
Assessment and Management of Environmental Noise (1), may provide useful input to this group.

The Commission hopes that the group will be operational before the summer break of 2001. Consultation
of interested parties will start once the Terms-of-Reference for this group will have been agreed.

(1) OJ C 337 E, 28.11.2000.

(2001/C 318 E/102)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0676/01

by Monica Frassoni (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(8 March 2001)

Subject: Landing-stage for the amusement park Gardaland at Castelnuovo del Garda (Verona), Italy

In its answer to Question E-2653/00 (1) which raised the question, among others, of the need to subject to
an environmental impact assessment the construction of a jetty on the shore of the lake to serve the
amusement Gardaland, situated in Ronchi di Castelnuovo del Garda (Verona), the Commission said that
projects of this kind do not feature in any of the categories of project listed in the annexes to the
Community directives on environmental impact assessment.

However, the beach affected by the project is covered by the SCI site Basso Garda IT3210018, which
safeguards the strip of reedbeds on the southern shore of the lake.

This structure, which would allow boats belonging to the company Navigarda to dock in order to bring
visitors to Gardaland via the lake, would not therefore really be of public interest and the authorities
proposing the project could not invoke overriding reasons of public interest.

Does the Commission therefore not consider that the project for a jetty should not involve the SCI site in
question, in view of the high level of deterioration already caused to the shore of Lake Garda by mass
tourism?

Can the Commission take steps to ensure that this site is not adversely affected by further projects to
provide tourist facilities?

(1) OJ C 136 E, 8.5.2001, p. 68.