(2004/C 78 E/0946)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-4023/03

by Jean-Louis Bernié (EDD) to the Commission

(5 January 2004)

Subject:   Natura 2000

In its judgment of 19 January 1994 (Case C-435/92), the Court of Justice considered that ‘any hunting activity is liable to disturb wildlife and that it may in many cases affect the state of conservation of the species concerned, independently of the extent to which it depletes numbers … Those disturbances are reported to have an adverse impact on the level of energy of each individual and the mortality rate of all the populations concerned.’.

In its reasoned opinion issued to France on 13 September 1994, the Commission took the view that Article 7 does not allow hunting within special protection areas, that hunting is bound to affect the living conditions of birds, even if there is a guarantee that they will not be killed, and that beating, shooting and the presence of hunters and their dogs are incompatible with the objectives of reproduction and survival specified in Article 4.

The Commission went on to point out that the aim of the financial support granted to France for developing special protection areas had been to establish hunting-free nature reserves quickly.

Lastly, it stated that, in its view, that hunting within such areas could not under any circumstances be justified by citing imperative reasons of overriding public interest within the meaning of Article 6(4) of Directive 92/43/EEC (1).

However, both the Commission and the Member States maintain that hunting will continue in the Natura 2000 network, in which no disturbances to wildlife will be permitted.

On what legal bases and on what case law is the Commission relying for its assertion that hunting and protected areas (SPAs and SACs) will be compatible?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(5 February 2004)

The safeguards applying to Natura 2000 sites, given under Article 6 of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, are framed so as to be of general application. There are no specific provisions concerning the practice of hunting and Natura 2000. Therefore, the approach to hunting must be based on the general principles that also apply to other human activities that have potential to be detrimental to the conservation objectives of a site.

There is no specific Community case law with respect to hunting and Natura 2000 sites. To the extent that existing case law is relevant to the general protection regime applying to Natura 2000, the Commission has sought to reflect this in its guidance document on the provisions of Article 6 of Directive 92/43/EEC (2). It also takes account of other case law emerging since the publication of this document. The Honourable Member is also referred to the new guidance document on hunting which refers to this topic (3).

(1)  OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7.

(2)  Managing Natura 2000 sites. The provisions of Article 6 of the ‘Habitats’ Directive 92/43/EEC. Available at http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/nature/legis.htm

(3)  Guidance document on hunting under Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. Available at http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/nature/sustainable_hunting.htm