Case C-301/22,  Sweetman: Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 25 April 2024 (request for a preliminary ruling from the High Court (Ireland) – Ireland) – Peter Sweetman v An Bord Pleanála, Ireland and the Attorney General (Reference for a preliminary ruling – Environment – Directive 2000/60/EC – Framework for EU action in the field of water policy – Article 4(1)(a) – Environmental objectives relating to surface waters – Obligation of the Member States not to authorise a project which may cause a deterioration of the status of a surface water body – Article 5 and Annex II – Characterisation of surface water body types – Article 8 and Annex V – Classification of surface water status – Article 11 – Programme of measures – Project for the abstraction of water from a lake with a surface area below 0.5km²)
Date: 2024-04-25
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: building permit, development plan, environmental impact, lake, protected area, surface water, water protection








C_202403566EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2024/3566


17.6.2024






Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) of 25 April 2024 (request for a preliminary ruling from the High Court (Ireland) – Ireland) – Peter Sweetman v An Bord Pleanála, Ireland and the Attorney General


(Case C-301/22,
                (1)
Sweetman)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Environment - Directive 2000/60/EC - Framework for EU action in the field of water policy - Article 4(1)(a) - Environmental objectives relating to surface waters - Obligation of the Member States not to authorise a project which may cause a deterioration of the status of a surface water body - Article 5 and Annex II - Characterisation of surface water body types - Article 8 and Annex V - Classification of surface water status - Article 11 - Programme of measures - Project for the abstraction of water from a lake with a surface area below 0.5km2)
(C/2024/3566)
Language of the case: English

Referring court

High Court (Ireland)

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant: Peter Sweetman

Defendants: An Bord Pleanála, Ireland and the Attorney General

intervening parties: Bradán Beo Teoranta, Galway City Council, Environmental Protection Agency

Operative part of the judgment







1.


The first indent of Article 5(1) and Article 8 of Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy, read in conjunction with Annexes II and V to that directive,
must be interpreted as meaning that a lake with a surface area below 0.5 km2 is not covered by the obligation to establish its type-specific reference conditions or by the obligation to establish programmes for the monitoring of water status, which are laid down in those provisions.










2.


Article 4(1)(a) and Article 11 of Directive 2000/60
must be interpreted as requiring a competent authority – when it decides on an application for development consent for a project which potentially affects a lake in respect of which, because its surface area is below 0.5 km2, neither its type-specific reference conditions, nor a programme for the monitoring of water status has been established pursuant to the first indent of Article 5(1) and Article 8 of Directive 2000/60, read in conjunction with Annexes II and V to that directive respectively – to satisfy itself, first, that the achievement of such a project is not liable to cause, on account of its effects on such a lake, a deterioration of the status of another surface water body which has been or ought to have been identified by that Member State as constituting a surface water body ‘type’, nor is it liable to compromise the attainment of good surface water status or of good ecological potential and good chemical status of such other surface water body and, second, that the achievement of that project is compatible with the measures implemented pursuant to the programme established, in accordance with Article 11 of that directive, for the river basin district concerned.






(1)  
            OJ C 276, 18.7.2022.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/3566/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)