WRITTEN QUESTION E-2527/01 by Antonios Trakatellis (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Operation of illegal waste sites in Greece and compliance with Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste.
Date: 2001-09-19
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Greece, infringement of EU law, infringement procedure (EU), national implementing measure, report, storage of waste, unauthorised dumping

C 134 E/40

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

6.6.2002

(2002/C 134 E/042)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2527/01

by Antonios Trakatellis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(19 September 2001)

Subject: Operation of illegal waste sites in Greece and compliance with Directive 1999/31/EC on the

landfill of waste

A great many waste sites operate illegally in Greece and at others there is uncontrolled disposal and landfill
of waste with total disregard for the rules laid down by Directive 75/442/EEC (1) on waste, as amended by
Directive 91/156/EEC (2),
creating public health and environmental hazards. Directive
1999/31/EC (3) on the landfill of waste lays down strict measures, procedures and guidelines for the
prevention and reduction of negative effects on the environment
(pollution of surface water and
groundwater, soil, air, and effects on the global environment), as well as any resulting risk to human
health, from landfilling of waste, during the whole life-cycle of the landfill.

thereby

Given that the deadline for Member States’ compliance with Directive 1999/31/EC expired in April 2001,
will the Commission say:

1. how many waste sites are in operation in Greece, in what way they operate and how many of them
have been granted an operating licence by the competent authorities in accordance with Community
directives,

2. whether there is compliance in Greece with the requirements of Directive 75/442/EEC on waste and
what measures it will take against breaches of Community rules protecting the environment and
public health,

3. whether Greece has communicated the legal provisions transposing Directive 1999/31/EC into
national law as laid down in Article 18 of the Directive and, if not, what measures the Commission
intends to take to ensure compliance,

4. what measures Greece has taken to dispose of only processed waste at landfill sites, to dispose of
hazardous waste only at sites intended for that purpose and to dispose of inert waste only at sites
intended for that purpose, as provided in Directive 1999/31/EC,

5. what the cost is to Greece of implementing Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill of waste and whether

provision has been made for Community funding to set up landfill sites?

(1) OJ L 194, 25.7.1975, p. 47.
(2) OJ L 78, 26.3.1991, p. 32.
(3) OJ L 182, 16.7.1999, p. 1.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(12 November 2001)

According to the Greek national waste management plan there are at present 33 sanitary landfill
1.
sites, which accept around 45 % of the municipal waste in Greece. Another 45 % of the municipal waste is
landfilled in tips, that, according to the plan, comply only partly with the sanitary landfill specifications.

The Commission does not have the powers at present, to require the transmission of data on all landfill
sites and their conformity with Community legislation. Better information will be available when the
Member States report according to Commission Decision 2000/738/EC of 17 November 2000 concerning
a questionnaire for Member States reports on the implementation of Directive 1999/31/EC on the landfill
of waste (1). The first reports are to be drawn up by the Member States for the period 2001 to 2003 and
must be presented to the Commission by September 2004.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 134 E/41

The Commission has received numerous complaints about illegal landfill sites in Greece and has

2.
taken legal action against Greece for bad application of Community waste legislation (2).

3. and 4.
Directive 1999/31/EC of 26 April 1999 to the Commission.

Greece has not yet communicated the national measures for the transposition of Council

5.
Before the adoption of Directive 1999/31/EC a study was made on the costs and benefits of the
Directive (3). In this study the costs for Greece to meet the proposed Directive were estimated at around
€ 1 000 million. Household waste management in Greece is currently co-financed under the Cohesion
Fund and the 13 regional operational programmes (ROPs) of the Structural Funds. It includes activities
relating to implementation of
the Directive. The total amount of aid can be estimated at around
€ 500 million from the Cohesion Fund for the whole of the period 2000-2006. To this is added the aid
provided under the environmental measures included in the 13 ROPs of
the Community support
framework for the Greek regions eligible for Objective 1 during that period. The Commission does not
have the breakdown of all the aid allocated to these measures (€ 578 million) but estimates that some
€ 100 million will be used for waste-disposal-related activities. The Commission would like to stress that
the co-financing of certain activities by Community funds does not mean that the Community is under any
obligation to co-finance the implementation of the relevant Directives.

(1) OJ L 298, 25.11.2000.
(2) See for instance the Kouroupitos case.
(3) Commission of the European Communities, A Cost-Benefit Analysis of the Proposed Council Directive on the

Landfill of Waste, January 1994.

(2002/C 134 E/043)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2528/01

by Ioannis Marínos (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(19 September 2001)

Subject: Funding of Christian religious institutions

Are the Christian religious organisations,
in particular the dioceses and monasteries of the Orthodox
Church, considered to be non-governmental organisations within the meaning of Community Law owing
to the wide range of charitable work they carry out (orphanages, old people’s homes, homes for the
terminally ill, caring for the destitute), and are they entitled to claim a share of the funding allocated to
those organisations from the Union’s budget?

Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission

(18 October 2001)

The eligibility of organisations to apply for Community funding depends on whether or not they meet the
criteria published in calls for proposals. A major criterion is that applicants must have a proper legal status
and thus prove that they are properly constituted and registered under the law. As there is no definition of
non-governmental organisations in Community law,
the Commission has to rely on the status of
applicants under national law when assessing this eligibility, usually to see whether or not they enjoy the
status of not-for-profit organisations. However, it should be pointed out to the Honourable Member that,
even though an orthodox diocese or monastery which has its own distinct legal status may be eligible to
apply under one scheme or another, eligibility alone would not entitle them to a share of funds, as of
right. Funds are awarded on the basis of a comparison of the relative merits of the various applications
received. Applications from institutions acting as intermediaries on behalf of others are in general not
permitted.