Greece is EU slacker on ecology
Greece is among the slackest member states in the EU when it comes to protecting the environment, according to an annual Commission survey on the implementation and enforcement of European environmental law whose findings were made public yesterday. The Commission highlighted 11 instances last year of Greece failing to enshrine European directives in its national law, three cases of inadequate redrafting of its national legislation and 27 cases of deficient implementation of European directives. The government faced the European Court of Justice for delaying implementation of European directives relating to the protection of the ozone layer, Kyoto treaty provisions to curb gas emissions and waste management. Greece was also indicted for its failure to create special zones for the protection of migratory birds and to safeguard the breeding ground of Caretta-caretta sea turtles on Zakynthos, while the overburdened waste-processing plant on Psyttaleia also put Greece before the tribunal. The Court earlier fined Greece over the illegal Kouroupitos dump in Crete.
