The European Commission announced this Friday the initiation of an infringement procedure against the 27 member states for not having fully transposed the new community rules aimed at reducing pollution generated by factories, other industrial facilities, and livestock farms into their national laws, obligations that the countries were supposed to have in place before the past July 1.
The sanctioning process begins with the sending of a letter of formal notice to each capital, from which they have a period of two months to respond to the community executive, complete the incorporation of the directive into their internal regulations, and formally notify the measures adopted.
In case the explanations sent are not satisfactory for the Commission's services, Brussels may move to the next stage of the file by issuing a reasoned opinion, a step prior to deciding whether to elevate the case for non-compliance before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).
The delay this time extends to all Twenty-Seven, given that no member state notified on time the full application of the regulation, which tightens the requirements to reduce pollution resulting from industrial and livestock activities, restricts the use of hazardous chemicals, and increases the number of facilities subject to these obligations.
Furthermore, the directive strengthens the rights of citizens and opens the door to claim compensation for health damages caused by illegal pollution, updating the rules that the EU has applied since 2010 to more than 50,000 industrial facilities to reduce their impact on people and the environment through the use of the best available techniques.