Bayer CropScience SA-NV and Stichting De Bijenstichting v College voor de toelating van gewasbeschermingsmiddelen en biociden.
Date: 2016-11-23
37


In that regard, it must be pointed out at the outset, first, that neither the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union nor its Rules of Procedure make provision for the parties to submit observations in response to the Advocate General’s Opinion (see, inter alia, order of 4 February 2000, Emesa Sugar, C‑17/98, EU:C:2000:69, paragraph 2, and judgment of 6 September 2012, Döhler Neuenkirchen, C‑262/10, EU:C:2012:559, paragraph 29).
38


Secondly, it should be pointed out that the Court may, at any time, after hearing the Advocate General, order the reopening of the oral part of the procedure, under Article 83 of its Rules of Procedure, in particular if it considers that it lacks sufficient information or where the case must be decided on the basis of an argument which has not been debated between the parties or the interested persons referred to in Article 23 of the Statute of the Court of Justice of the European Union (see, inter alia, judgment of 28 April 2016, Borealis Polyolefine and Others, C‑191/14, C‑192/14, C‑295/14, C‑389/14 and C‑391/14 to C‑393/14, EU:C:2016:311, paragraph 40).
44


Consequently, it is apparent that the EU legislature intended to subject requests for access by third parties to information contained in application dossiers for authorisation to place plant protection products or biocides on the market, in respect of which confidential treatment may be requested pursuant to the abovementioned provisions, to the general provisions of Directive 2003/4 (see, a contrario, judgment of 22 December 2010, Ville de Lyon, C‑524/09, EU:C:2010:822, paragraph 40).
53


First, as recital 5 of Directive 2003/4 confirms, in adopting that directive the EU legislature intended to ensure the consistency of EU law with the Aarhus Convention with a view to its conclusion by the Community, by providing for a general scheme to ensure that any natural or legal person in a Member State has a right of access to environmental information held by or on behalf of public authorities, without that person having to state an interest (see, inter alia, judgment of 19 December 2013, Fish Legal and Shirley, C‑279/12, EU:C:2013:853, paragraph 36).
54


It follows that, for the purposes of interpreting Directive 2003/4, account is to be taken of the wording and aim of the Aarhus Convention, which that directive is designed to implement in EU law (see, inter alia, judgment of 19 December 2013, Fish Legal and Shirley, C‑279/12, EU:C:2013:853, paragraph 37) and, in particular, point (d) of the first subparagraph of Article 4(4) of that convention which provides that the confidentiality of commercial and industrial information may not be invoked against the disclosure of information on emissions relevant for the protection of the environment.
55


Secondly, in accordance with the Court’s settled case-law, the objective of Directive 2003/4 is to ensure a general principle of access to environmental information held by or for public authorities and, as is apparent from recital 9 and Article 1 of that directive, to achieve the widest possible systematic availability and dissemination to the public of environmental information (see, inter alia, judgment of 19 December 2013, Fish Legal and Shirley, C‑279/12, EU:C:2013:853, paragraph 66).
56


It follows that, as expressly provided for in the second subparagraph of Article 4(4) of the Aarhus Convention and recital 16 and the second subparagraph of Article 4(2) of Directive 2003/4, the disclosure of information must be the general rule and the grounds for refusal referred to by those provisions must be interpreted in a restrictive way (see, inter alia, judgments of 16 December 2010, Stichting Natuur en Milieu and Others, C‑266/09, EU:C:2010:779, paragraph 52, and of 28 July 2011, Office of Communications, C‑71/10, EU:C:2011:525, paragraph 22).
70


However, by virtue of the Court’s settled case-law, while that guide may be regarded as an explanatory document, capable of being taken into consideration, if appropriate, among other relevant material for the purpose of interpreting the Aarhus Convention, the indications contained therein have no binding force and do not have the normative effect of the provisions of that convention (see, inter alia, judgment of 19 December 2013, Fish Legal and Shirley, C‑279/12, EU:C:2013:853, paragraph 38 and the case-law cited).
79


Under those circumstances, ‘emissions into the environment’ covers emissions which are actually released into the environment at the time of the application of the product or substance in question and foreseeable emissions from that product or that substance into the environment under normal or realistic conditions of use of that product or substance corresponding to those under which the authorisation to place the product in question on the market is granted and which prevail in the area where that product is intended for use.
84


According to settled case-law of the Court, the need for a uniform interpretation of a provision of EU law means that, where there is divergence between the various language versions of the provision, the latter must be interpreted by reference to the context and purpose of the rules of which it forms part (see, inter alia, judgment of 15 October 2015, Grupo Itevelesa and Others, C‑168/14, EU:C:2015:685, paragraph 42 and the case-law cited).
85


As set out in paragraph 55 of the present judgment, the objective of Directive 2003/4 is to ensure a general principle of access to environmental information held by or for public authorities and to achieve the widest possible systematic availability and dissemination to the public of environmental information. As noted in recital 1 of that directive, such access and dissemination seek, inter alia, to contribute to a greater awareness of environmental matters and more effective participation by the public in environmental decision-making (see, inter alia, judgment of 28 July 2011, Office of Communications, C‑71/10, EU:C:2011:525, paragraph 26).
87


It follows that ‘information on emissions into the environment’ within the meaning of the second subparagraph of Article 4(2) of Directive 2003/4 must be interpreted as covering not only information on emissions as such, namely information concerning the nature, composition, quantity, date and place of those emissions but also data concerning the medium to long-term consequences of those emissions on the environment.
91


By contrast, contrary to the Commission’s submission, ‘information on emissions into the environment’ covers studies which seek to establish the toxicity, effects and other aspects of a product or substance under the most unfavourable realistic conditions which could possibly occur, and studies carried out in conditions as close as possible to normal agricultural practice and conditions which prevail in the area where that product or substance is to be used.