WRITTEN QUESTION E-1693/01 by Adriana Poli Bortone (UEN) to the Commission. Coastline of Gallipoli and the island of Sant'Andrea.
Date: 2001-06-14
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Italy, environmental impact, environmental protection, impact study, littoral, protected area, tourism

C 40 E/78

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

14.2.2002

It is true that transport operations carried out under ECMT licences are not conducted in the same
3.
competition conditions. These conditions are not the same in any of the ECMT(cid:146)s 40 member countries. On
the contrary, the misuse of ECMT licences (e.g. for cabotage purposes) is distorting competition. Effective
control of the use of ECMT licences is in the hands of the competent authorities of the ECMT countries.

Given that the number of ECMT licences being granted is increasing slowly but surely and that the
4.
award of these licences to transport undertakings is decided annually by the competent authorities of the
ECMT countries, it is very likely that new transport firms will have access to ECMT licences.

(2002/C 40 E/078)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1692/01

by Gerhard Schmid (PSE) to the Council

(15 June 2001)

Subject: Work of the European Police Academy (EPA)

The European Police Academy (EPA) was launched on 1 January 2001 as a network.

I would therefore like to ask the Council the following questions:

1. Has the EPA, or at least its governing board, already begun work?

2.

If so, which national training institutes for high-ranking police officers form the network?

3. Where has the permanent secretariat, which is to support the EPA in its administrative tasks, been set

up, or where is it to be set up?

4. How will the language problem at seminars and other events be solved, or how has it been solved?

5. Are there syllabuses and, if so, what form do they take?

6. Where are the seminars and other events held?

Reply

(8 October 2001)

The Council would invite the Honourable Member to put his questions directly to the governing board of
the European Police Academy (EPA).

(2002/C 40 E/079)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1693/01

by Adriana Poli Bortone (UEN) to the Commission

Subject: Coastline of Gallipoli and the island of Sant(cid:146)Andrea

(14 June 2001)

The Italian Government has authorised (cid:129) even granting funding via the (cid:145)Sviluppo Italia(cid:146) scheme (at least
according to press reports) (cid:129) projects to build holiday homes on the coastline of Gallipoli and the island
of Sant(cid:146)Andrea (Apulia, Italy).

This is all the more serious in view of the fact that the area has been classified as a site of Community
interest, under the code number COD IT 9150015, and therefore an area subject to special environmental
protection.

Is the Commission willing to take swift action to ascertain the compatibility of these buildings with the
needs of environmental protection?

14.2.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 40 E/79

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

(3 September 2001)

Article 6 of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992, on the conservation of natural habitats and of
wild fauna and flora (1), provides for protection requirements with reference to Special Conservation Areas
(SCA). Under Article 4, paragraph 5, of Directive 92/43/EEC these requirements are applied also to Sites of
Community Importance (SCI) when, on the basis of the list of proposed Sites of Community Importance
(pSCI), they are adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4, paragraph 2. At present,
SCA have not yet been designated and the list of the SCI, has not been adopted yet. However, with
reference to proposed Sites of Community Importance, in particular when including priority habitat and
species, Member States have certain obligations to act in a way so as to ensure that the aims of the
Directive are not jeopardised. Even in the absence of a Community list, Member States are advised to at
least abstain from all activities that may cause a proposed site to deteriorate.

On the basis of the information given by the Honourable Member, the site chosen for the tourist complex
the
appears
characteristics of the project and the effects of it on the site have not been described.

to fall within the proposed Site of Community Importance IT9150015. However,

Directive 92/43/EEC does not prohibit the construction of tourist complexes in natural protected areas. It
makes the consent for projects likely to have significant effects on SCA the subject of the regime provided
for by the Directive. No element or circumstance is given which can be considered as a breach of this
regime. The simple fact that a proposed tourist complex is granted a consent is not in itself a breach of the
Directive.

Therefore, in the light of the above, no possible breach of the Directive 92/43/EEC can be identified.

The project mentioned by the Honourable Member could be a project of Annex II of Council Directive 85/
337/EEC of 27 June 1985, on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the
environment (2), as modified by Council Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997 (3) (hereafter: EIA Directive).
According to the EIA Directive, Member States are obliged to ensure that, before consent is given, projects
likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia, of their nature, size or location
are made subject to a requirement for development consent and an assessment with regard to their effects.
Projects covered by the Directive are identified in the annexes. For projects listed in Annex II, the Directive
provides that Member States shall determine through a case-by-case examination, or thresholds or criteria,
whether the project is to be made subject to an assessment in accordance with Articles 5 to 10.

However, on the basis of the information given by the Honourable Member, no circumstance is identified
which can be considered as a breach of the Directive. The simple fact that a project for a tourist complex
is granted a consent is not in itself a breach of the Directive. The EIA Directive does not prohibit the
construction of tourist complexes. It makes the consent for these projects the subject of the regime
provided for by the EIA Directive.

Therefore, in the light of the above, no possible breach of Directive 85/337/EEC, as modified, can be
identified at present.

In any event, the Commission informs the Honourable Member that the Commission had already opened a
complaint file on the project mentioned, on the basis of a letter of complaint. The complaint is under
assessment. Should the Commission verify relevant evidence that Community law is being breached in the
specific case,
it would not hesitate, as the guardian of the EC Treaty, to take all necessary measures,
including infringement procedures under Article 226 (ex Article 169) of the EC Treaty, in order to ensure
the observance of relevant Community law.

(1) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.
(2) OJ L 175, 5.7.1985.
(3) OJ L 73, 14.3.1997.