Member states delay environmental liability law

The European Commission will take legal action against 24 member states for their failure to implement legislation making polluters pay for environmental damage.

The environmental liability directive was agreed in 2004 in reaction to environmental disasters, including the sinking of the Erika oil tanker off the French coast.

It sets out an EU-wide liability regime for damage to protected birds, animals and habitats, as well as for water and land pollution that cause harm to human health.

Under the new legislation, operators in charge of high-risk industrial and agricultural activities will be forced to pay for environmental damage caused, whether or not they were at fault or negligent. Low-risk professional activities will see operators fined only if environmental damage was the result of negligence or choice.

Member states had until last Monday (30 April) to transpose the rules into national law, but only Italy, Latvia and Lithuania met the deadline.

"I am very concerned that only three member states have transposed this vital legislation so far," said Stavros Dimas, the European environ-ment commissioner. "If the others do not follow suit very soon the Commission will have to consider starting legal action."

A Commission official said that the environment department was already drafting a first written warning to the other 24 countries and expected to send them.

"Member states were all very well warned about the deadline," he said. "We held a meeting in January to remind them about it."

All 27 member states had the same implementation deadline for the environmental liability directive, whatever their date of accession to the EU.

The European Commission will take legal action against 24 member states for their failure to implement legislation making polluters pay for environmental damage.