91997E1884

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1884/97 by Amedeo Amadeo (NI) to the Commission (2 June 1997)

Subject: Waste management

With reference to the Commission's 'Communication on the review of the Community Strategy for Waste Management' and the 'draft Council Resolution on waste policy' (COM(96) 0399 final),

will the Commission make a greater commitment to developing more incisive and effective measures for monitoring and verifying the Member States' progress in implementing Community legislation by launching specific programmes for investigations and studies where necessary?

Answer given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission (4 July 1997)

The Commission shares the Honourable Member's view on the importance of monitoring and verifying the Member States' progress in implementing Community waste legislation.

On 22 October 1996 the Commission adopted a communication on implementing Community environmental law ((COM (96) 500. )), the aim of which was to reinforce the obligations which different actors in the regulatory chain (the Commission, Member States, regional and local authorities, industry, citizens and non-governmental organisations) bear in the 'shared responsibility' for the application of Community environmental law, in order to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of environmental policy and law and improve the quality of the environment in Europe.

Proper application of Community waste legislation depends largely on the national, regional and local authorities taking a range of measures to deal with the many applications for authorisation, to grant authorisation in accordance with statutory conditions, to encourage economic operators to comply with the conditions of authorisation and to adopt the necessary corrections or penalties.

Most problems in the waste sector relate to Member States' failure to apply measures. Accordingly, the Commission has instituted, or is about to institute, many infringement proceedings to ensure the legislation is complied with.