Keywords
Summary

Keywords

Environment – Assessment of the effects of certain projects on the environment – Directive 85/337

(Council Directive 85/337, as amended by Directive 2003/35, Art. 4 and Annex II)

Summary

Article 4 of Directive 85/337 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment, as amended by Directive 2003/35, must be interpreted as not requiring that a determination, that it is unnecessary to subject a project falling within Annex II to that directive to an environmental impact assessment, should itself contain the reasons for the competent authority’s decision that the latter was unnecessary. However, if an interested party so requests, the competent administrative authority is obliged to communicate to him the reasons for the determination or the relevant information and documents in response to the request made.

If a determination of a Member State not to subject a project falling within Annex II to Directive 85/337 to an environmental impact assessment in accordance with Articles 5 to 10 of that directive states the reasons on which it is based, that determination is sufficiently reasoned where the reasons which it contains, added to factors which have already been brought to the attention of interested parties, and supplemented by any necessary additional information that the competent national administration is required to provide to those interested parties at their request, can enable them to decide whether to appeal against that decision.

(see paras 61, 66, operative part 1-2)