WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3214/98 by Alexandros ALAVANOS to the Commission. Operating licence for quarry in area protected by Natura 2000
C 135/178 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 14. 5. 1999 (1999/C 135/223) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3214/98 by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission (26 October 1998) Subject: Operating licence for quarry in area protected by Natura 2000 Environmental organizations − which have also lodged an appeal with the State Council − claim that the Ministry of Agriculture has granted an operating licence for a marble quarry on Mt Falakron in the region of Drama. The Drama Forest Inspectorate has already designated it a protected area because of its exceptional beauty; it also forms part of the Natura 2000 network as a designated ‘B’ area and there are indications that it is the site of an ancient settlement. Will the Commission say: 1. whether the requisite environmental impact assessments have been carried out to take account of all the environmental effects of operating the quarry, and 2. whether it intends to ask the Greek authorities to revoke their decision in order to preserve the ecological balance and the exceptional beauty of the area? Answer given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission (19 November 1998) 1. In the region concerned, a site known as ‘Koryfes Orous Falakro’ under Code GR 1140004, is contained in the list of sites of Community importance (SCI) put forward by the Greek authorities under Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (1), for inclusion in the Natura 2000 European ecological network. Under Article 6. 3 of that Directive any plan or project that is likely to have a significant impact on an SCI must be subjected to an appropriate assessment of its impact in terms of the intentions regarding site conservation. The authorisation decision is subject to the results of that assessment. However, that site has still not been selected as an SCI. 2. Nevertheless, the site includes several types of natural habitat and priority species and it should thus automatically be accepted for the Natura 2000 network in accordance with the Directive’s criteria. Therefore adequate action must be taken by the Member State concerned in order to avoid any deterioration of that site with a view to its future designation. On the basis of what has been said above, the Commission will contact the Greek authorities to order to establish whether the impact studies which should be conducted in pursuance of Directive 85/337/EEC on the assessment of the impact of certain public and private projects on the environment (2) have taken sufficient account of the ecological value of the site concerned by the project in question. (1) OJ L 206, 22. 7. 1992. (2) OJ L 175, 5. 7. 1985. (1999/C 135/224) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3215/98 by Alexandros Alavanos (GUE/NGL) to the Commission (26 October 1998) Subject: Data on fires in Greece Pursuant to Regulation 308/97 on protection of the Community’s forests against fire, the Member States forward data on the number, extent and duration of fires, etc. to the Commission’s responsible departments. This data is considered especially useful for monitoring and evaluating preventive and protective measures for forests in the Member States, as also indicated in the extremely interesting report entitled ‘Community system of information on forest fires 1985-87’, published by the Commission’s department responsible for forests