Case C-301/12: Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Consiglio di Stato (Italy) lodged on 20 June 2012 — Cascina Tre Pini s.s. v Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare and Others
Date: 2012-06-20
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: degradation of the environment, environmental impact, interpretation of the law, region








C_2012258EN.01001201.xml










25.8.2012   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 258/12





Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Consiglio di Stato (Italy) lodged on 20 June 2012 — Cascina Tre Pini s.s. v Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare and Others
(Case C-301/12)
2012/C 258/19
Language of the case: Italian

Referring court

Consiglio di Stato

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant: Cascina Tre Pini s. s.

Defendants: Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare and Others

Questions referred







I.








1.


Is the proper application of Articles 9 and 10 of Directive 92/43/EEC (1) prevented by a provision of national law (Article 3(4a) of Decree No 357/97 of the President of the Republic) under which power is conferred on the Regions and the Autonomous Provinces to propose, of their own motion, a review of the [Sites of Community Importance, ‘SCIs’], but no obligation is placed on them to exercise that power in response to a reasoned request to that effect made by private owners of land falling within SCIs, even where those private individuals argue that the land has suffered environmental degradation?










2.


Is the proper application of Articles 9 and 10 of Directive 92/43/EEC prevented by a provision of national law (Article 3(4a) of Decree No 357/97 of the President of the Republic) under which power is conferred on the Regions and the Autonomous Provinces to propose, of their own motion, a review of the SCIs, through a periodic assessment, but the frequency with which that review must be conducted (every two or three years, for example) is not specified and there is no obligation for notice to be given of the periodic review by the Regions and Autonomous Provinces by means of some form of general advertising campaign designed to enable stakeholders to submit comments or proposals?










3.


Is the proper application of Articles 9 and 10 of Directive 92/43/EEC prevented by a provision of national law (Article 3(4a) of Decree No 357/97 of the President of the Republic) under which a power of initiative is conferred on the Regions and Autonomous Provinces in relation to the review of the SCIs, but no power of initiative is also conferred on the State, even to act in lieu of the Regions or Autonomous Provinces in the event that they fail to act?










4.


Is the proper application of Articles 9 and 10 of Directive 92/43/EEC prevented by a provision of national law (Article 3(4a) of Decree No 357/97 of the President of the Republic) under which power is conferred on the Regions and Autonomous Provinces to propose, of their own motion, a review of the SCIs, where that power is entirely discretionary and not mandatory, even where pollution or environmental degradation has taken place and this has been formally confirmed?














II.


… Must the procedure governed by Article 9 [of Directive] 92/43/EEC, implemented by the national legislature by means of Article 3(4a) of Decree No 357/97 of the President of the Republic, be interpreted as a procedure which must close with the adoption of an administrative act, or as a procedure the outcome of which is merely ‘optional’? Is it necessary to construe a ‘procedure which must close with the adoption of an administrative act’ as a procedure which ‘where the conditions are satisfied, consists in the transmission of the regional proposal, by the Ministry of the Environment and the Protection of the Land, to the European Commission’, there being no need in that regard for any consideration as to whether it must be construed as a procedure which may be instigated only by the authority of its own motion or whether it may also be instigated at the request of a party?










III.








1.


Does Community law and, in particular, Directive 92/43/EEC preclude legislation of a Member State under which it is necessary to initiate the declassification procedure, rather than to adopt further monitoring and protection measures, on the basis of a report from a private party concerning the degree of degradation of the site?










2.


Does Community law and, in particular, Directive 92/43/EEC preclude legislation of a Member State under which the declassification procedure must be initiated in relation to a site covered by the Natura 2000 network in order to protect exclusively private interests of a commercial nature?










3.


Does Community law and, in particular, Directive 92/43/EEC preclude legislation of a Member State under which, in the context of infrastructure projects in the general, social and economic interest — acknowledged also by the European Union — which may be detrimental to a natural habitat recognised in accordance with that directive, it is necessary to initiate a procedure for the declassification of the site rather than to adopt countervailing measures to ensure the overall coherence of the Natura 2000 network?










4.


Does Community law and, in particular, Directive 92/43/EEC preclude legislation of a Member State under which, as regards natural habitats, importance is attributed to the commercial interests of individual owners, enabling them to obtain from the national court a decision requiring the boundaries of the site to be re-drawn?










5.


Does Community law and, in particular, Directive 92/43/EEC preclude legislation of a Member State under which provision is made for a site to be declassified where it has suffered degradation which is anthropogenic and not natural in origin?










(1)  OJ L 206, p. 7.