CELEX: 62004CJ0332
Language: en
Date: 2006-03-16
Title: Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 16 March 2006. # Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of Spain. # Failure of a Member State to fulfil its obligations - Directive 85/337/EEC as amended by Directive 97/11/EC - Assessment of the effects of projects on the environment - Inter-action between factors likely to be directly and indirectly affected - Obligation to publish the impact statement - Assessment limited to urban development projects outside urban areas - Construction project for a leisure complex at Paterna. # Case C-332/04.

Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 16 March 2006 – Commission v Spain
      (Case C-332/04) 
      Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations – Directive 85/337/EEC, as amended by Directive 97/11/EC – Assessment of the effects of projects on the environment – Interaction between factors likely to be directly and indirectly affected – Obligation to publish the impact statement – Assessment limited to urban development projects outside urban areas – Construction project for a leisure complex at Paterna
      1.                     Environment – Assessment of the effects of certain projects on the environment – Directive 85/337 (Council Directive 85/337,
            as amended by Directive 97/11, Art. 3) (see paras 33-37)
      2.                     Acts of the institutions – Directives – Implementation by Member States – Administrative practice insufficient (Art. 249,
            third para., EC) (see para. 38)
      3.                     Actions for failure to fulfil obligations – Examination of merits by the Court – Situation to be taken into consideration
            – Situation on expiry of the period laid down in the reasoned opinion (Art. 226 EC) (see para. 40)
      4.                     Community law – Interpretation – Multilingual texts (see para. 52)
      5.                     Environment – Assessment of the effects of certain projects on the environment – Directive 85/337 (Council Directive 85/337,
            as amended by Directive 97/11, Art. 9(1)) (see paras 45-46, 48-59)
      6.                     Environment – Assessment of the effects of certain projects on the environment – Directive 97/11 (Council Directive 97/11,
            Art. 3(1)) (see paras 65-66)
      7.                     Environment – Assessment of the effects of certain projects on the environment – Directive 85/337 (Council Directive 85/337,
            as amended by Directive 97/11, Arts 2(1) and 4(2)) (see para. 77)
      Re:
      
         
               Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations – Incomplete/incorrect transposition of Arts 3, 9(1) and Paragraph 10(b) of
                  Annex II to Council Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects
                  on the environment (OJ 1985 L 175, p. 40), as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997 (OJ 1997 L 73, p. 5) –
                  Failure to apply the transitional scheme established by Article 3 of Directive 97/11/EC – Failure to have submitted a construction
                  project for a leisure complex at Paterna (Valencia) for an assessment
               
            Operative part:
      The Court:
      
         
                  1.
               
               
                  
               
               
                  Declares that, by failing fully to transpose Article 3 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, as amended by Council Directive 97/11, by failing to
                     transpose Article 9(1) of Directive 85/337, as amended by Directive 97/11, by failing to comply with the transitional scheme
                     provided for by Article 3 of Directive 97/11, by failing correctly to transpose the combined provisions of Paragraph 10(b)
                     of Annex II and Articles 2(1) and 4(2) of Directive 85/337, as amended by Directive 97/11, and by failing to have submitted
                     the construction project for a leisure complex at Paterna to the procedure for the assessment of the effects on the environment
                     and, consequently, by failing to apply the provisions of Articles 2(1), 3, 4(2), 8 and 9 of Directive 85/337, as amended by
                     Directive 97/11, the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive;
                  
               
            
         
                  2.
               
               
                  
               
               
                  The Kingdom of Spain is ordered to pay the costs.