Filenews 28 May 2021 - by Angelos Nikolaou
The Legal Service is critical of the attitude of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment to open procedures for infringement of the European Union's environmental acquis, which the Commission is investigating concerning the protection and management of Natura 2000 network areas in Cyprus.
The inaction of recent years in complying with the Commission's warnings has alarmed the Legal Service, which is seeing new infringements in relation to the protection and management of Natura 2000 areas constantly added. Therefore, the Legal Service is now openly concerned as the Commission has already warned the competent authorities of the Republic of Cyprus of a systemic and continuous infringement of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats as well as of wild fauna and flora.
It is noted that the Republic of Cyprus is already faced with two existing infringement procedures with regard to Directive 92/43/EEC. The first infringement procedure concerns the mis application of Article 3, paragraph 2 and Article 4(1) of Directive 92/43/EEC and Article 4(1) and (2) of Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds (formerly Directive 79/409/EEC). As part of this procedure, the Commission has forwarded to the Cypriot authorities a letter of formal notice on 17/5/2018 and a reasoned opinion on 30/10/2020. The second infringement procedure concerns the poor application of Article 6(3) and Article 7 of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, under which the Commission has forwarded a letter of formal notice to the Cypriot authorities on 27/11/2019.
In addition to the above, on 14/10/2016 the Commission indicated to the Republic of Cyprus that the six-year period for the designation of Special Conservation Areas has been fulfilled for 36 Sites of Community Importance, contrary to the provisions of Article 4(4) of Directive 92/43/EEC and requested clarifications on the list of areas designated as Special Conservation Areas, the definition of conservation objectives and the adoption of conservation measures. Subsequently, the Republic of Cyprus replied on 21/12/2016, quoting the information requested and the Commission returned on 27/2/2017 requesting additional information and clarifications on the Ministerial Decrees concerning the above. On 27/6/2017, the Department of the Environment sent a letter containing all the additional information requested by the European Union.
For a number of years, non-compliance with the obligations
Almost five years after the Commission asked for information on a possible infringement procedure (EU Pilot), it appears that the Republic of Cyprus has not implemented its commitments, which has alarmed the Legal Service. In a letter to the Directorate of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, the Legal Service refers to this case and informs that the Commission services have rejected the position of the services of the Republic of Cyprus and will refer the matter for further handling by them, through the opening of preliminary infringement proceedings.
In its letter to the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, the Legal Service notes that according to settled case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union, Member States are not allowed to rely on provisions, practices or situations of their domestic legal order to justify non-compliance with the obligations and deadlines set by a directive.
Therefore, it notes, any notable difficulties at national level cannot justify for many years non-compliance with the obligations arising from European Union law. It follows, it adds, that such an argument does not succeed before the Court of Justice of the European Union.
The Legal Service notes that the file was opened in October 2016 and most of the necessary actions committed by the Republic of Cyprus are still pending. In particular, it states the following: (a) For the declaration of the 40 Sites of Community Importance in Special Conservation Zones, and/or (b) for the adoption of the necessary decrees for the establishment of the conservation objectives of the Special Conservation Zones, and/or (c) for the adoption of the necessary decrees for the conservation measures of the Special Conservation Zones, and/or (d) for the declaration of the 30 Special Protection Zones for the conservation of birds, and/or (e) for the adoption of the necessary decrees with the conservation measures of the Special Protection Zones.
According to the Legal Service, the timetables for the above actions were repeatedly revised and postponed, and the replies and updates submitted by the Republic of Cyprus by default did not satisfy the Commission's services after rejecting them and expressly stated that they would proceed with the opening of the formal preliminary infringement procedure.
Special mention is made by the Legal Service in the case of the Akamas Peninsula, for which the positions of the Republic of Cyprus have been rejected, both in the context of this 2016 request for information and in the context of a previous request for information in 2013.
Furthermore, the Legal Service underlines that the position of the Republic of Cyprus on this matter is further deteriorating in view of the infringement preliminary ruling procedures already in place, concerning the same Directive (92/43/EEC), concerning the declaration, protection and management of Natura 2000 network areas in Cyprus. The Legal Service even points out that in the latter infringement the scope of each infringement alleged against the Republic of Cyprus is such that it leads the Commission to claim a systemic and continuous infringement of EU law on nature conservation.
The Legal Service notes that, in view of the self-evident seriousness of the matter, the information is forwarded to the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, urging it to use the time between the letter from the Legal Service and the commission's service of the letter of formal notice on the necessary actions that must now be taken.
