Spain risking fines over failure to treat waste water

The European Commission is sending Spain a final written warning for failing to implement a court ruling on the treatment of waste water in the area of Playa de la Motilla in the Valencia region. Should Spain fail to take the necessary steps to remedy the situation the Commission may again bring it before the European Court of Justice and request that fines be imposed on Spain.

EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said: "Untreated urban waste water is a threat to European citizens and detrimental to the quality of Europe's rivers, lakes and coastal waters. I urge Spain to clean up its act swiftly. Should it not, the Commission will consider asking the Court to impose fines."

Final written warning over the treatment of urban waste water in Platja de Montilla

The Commission is sending Spain a final written warning for its failure to implement a 2007 European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling on urban waste water in the Spanish region of Valencia. The court ruling states that Spain failed in its obligation to appropriately treat the waste water from the cities of Sueca, Benifaió, Sollana, Almussafes and other coastal towns discharged into a sensitive area, the Frente coastline of the Albufera Nature Park, located close to Motilla Beach.

Under the Urban Waste Water Directive urban areas with more than 10,000 inhabitants are required to have adequate collection and treatment systems. According to information received from Spain by the Commission, there are important delays and gaps in the measures necessary to carry out the appropriate collection and treatment of waste water in direct violation of the ECJ ruling. While the agenda for the works remain unclear waste water is being released into the environment. The Commission is therefore sending Spain a second written warning. Should Spain fail to comply fully with the court judgement, the Commission may again refer it to the European Court of Justice and ask that fines be imposed.

Note to editors: The Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive

Larger towns and cities across the European Union are required to collect and treat their urban waste water under the EU Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive. ¹ Untreated waste water can be contaminated with harmful bacteria and viruses and thus present a risk to public health. It also contains nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous which can damage freshwaters and the marine environment by promoting excessive growth of algae that chokes off other life, a process known as eutrophication.

The main type of waste water treatment envisaged by the directive is biological or 'secondary' treatment. The deadline for this infrastructure to be operational was 31 December 2000. If waste water is discharged into ‘sensitive’ water bodies, the directive requires stricter 'tertiary' treatment, involving removal of phosphorous and/or nitrogen. This should have been in place by 31 December 1998.

Legal Process

Article 226 of the Treaty gives the Commission powers to take legal action against a Member State that is not respecting its obligations.

If the Commission considers that there may be an infringement of EU law that warrants the opening of an infringement procedure, it addresses a "Letter of Formal Notice" (first written warning) to the Member State concerned, requesting it to submit its observations within a specified period, usually within two months.

In the light of the reply or absence of a reply from the Member State concerned, the Commission may decide to address a "Reasoned Opinion" (final written warning) to the Member State. This clearly and definitively sets out the reasons why it considers there to have been an infringement of EU law and calls upon the Member State to comply within a specified period, normally two months.

If the Member State fails to comply with the Reasoned Opinion, the Commission may decide to bring the case before the European Court of Justice. Where the Court of Justice finds that the Treaty has been infringed, the offending Member State is required to take the measures necessary to conform.

Article 228 of the Treaty gives the Commission power to act against a Member State that does not comply with a previous judgement of the European Court of Justice. The article also allows the Commission to ask the Court to impose a financial penalty on the Member State concerned.