Case C-393/02: Action brought on 8 November 2002 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Portuguese Republic
Date: 2002-12-21
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: European Commission, Portugal, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, mutual recognition principle, national implementing measure, professional experience, professional qualifications, recognition of diplomas

21.12.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 323/27

Action brought on 8 November 2002 by the Commission
of the European Communities against the Portuguese
Republic

The applicant claims that the Court should :

(Case C-393/02)

(2002/C 323/39)

An action against the Portuguese Republic was brought
before the Court of Justice of the European Communities on
8 November 2002 by the Commission of the European
Communities, represented by C. Tufvesson and M. França,
acting as Agents.

The applicant claims that the Court should :

— Declare that, by failing to adopt and bring into force
within the prescribed period the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply with
Directive 1999/42/EC of the European Parliament and of
the Council of 7 June 1999 establishing a mechanism
for the recognition of qualifications in respect of the
professional activities covered by the Directives on liberal-
isation and transitional measures and supplementing the
general systems for the recognition of qualifications (1),
the Portuguese Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations
under that directive; and

— Order the Portuguese Republic to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

The period prescribed for transposing the directive expired on
31 July 2001.

( 1) OJ 1999 L 201, p. 77.

Action brought on 11 November 2002 by the Com-
the
mission of

the European Communities against

Kingdom of Spain

(Case C-398/02)

(2002/C 323/40)

An action against the Kingdom of Spain was brought before
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 11 No-
vember 2002 by the Commission of the European Communi-
ties, represented by G. Valero Jordana and M. Konstantinidis,
acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg.

1. Declare that, by failing to adopt and bring into force
within the prescribed period the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply with
Articles 4, 9 and 13 of Council Directive 75/442/EEC (1)
of 15 July 1975 on waste, as amended by Council
Directive 91/156/EEC of 18 March 1991 (2), the Kingdom
of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under that
directive;

2. Order the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

— Infringement of Article 9 of Directive 75/442/EEC:
Although the Spanish authorities in their reply to the
formal notice and the reasoned opinion respectively
claimed that the disposal site at La Bañeza had been
authorised in 1979 to 1980 and that it complied with
the requisite conditions, they have not forwarded any
copies of such authorisation. Accordingly, the Com-
mission takes the view that, in the absence of any such
information, there was no authorisation or, if it exists,
that it cannot be in conformity with the requirements of
Article 9 of Directive 75/442/EEC.

Moreover, the obligation to obtain authorisation is dis-
charged only when the waste disposal site is finally closed
or sealed, but when the period prescribed by the reasoned
opinion expired the disposal site at La Bañeza was
still open pending the construction of the Centro de
Tratamiento de Residuos (waste disposal processing cen-
tre) at San Román de la Vega.

— Infringement of Article 4 of Directive 75/442/EEC:
Although the Spanish authorities claim to have carried
out a range of work to ‘improve’ the deficient conditions
at the waste disposal site in question,
it continues to
operate and it is still
in its deficient state, entailing a
steady deterioration in the environment and causing
serious problems for the local population.

— Infringement of Article 13 of Directive 75/442/EEC:
Although, according to Article 14 of Directive 1999/31/
EC (3), Annex II to that directive is not immediately
applicable to existing waste disposal sites, its provisions
make clear the type of regular inspections to which
Article 13 of Directive 75/442/EEC refers. The Spanish
authorities have not responded to the request for detailed
information on the inspections carried out nor have they