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Environment 2022

2022 Annual Report on monitoring the application of EU law - Infringement cases by policy area

Infringement cases open at year-end 2018 - 2022

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By clicking on the multi-level chart, you can consult, for 2022, the number of infringement cases open at the year-end per policy sector and per type of infringement.

Compliance promotion activities in 2022

Guidelines on how to implement EU law

Meetings with Member States

  • Meeting of Ambient Air Quality Expert Group relating to the implementation of the NEC (national emission ceilings) Directive (EU) 2016/2284;
  • Two meetings (on 5 April and 1 December 2022) relating to the implementation of the Ambient Air Quality Directives (Directive 2008/50/EC and Directive 2004/107/EC);
  • Two meetings (on 17 May and 27 October 2022) with the Strategic Coordination Group established under the Common Implementation Strategy under the Water Framework Directive;
  • Several meetings of all sub-groups under the Common Implementation Strategy under the Water Framework Directive: Water scarcity and droughts, Ecological status, Floods, Chemicals, Groundwater, Water Re-use, Reporting, Economics;
  • Two meetings with the Water Directors in two Member States (Czechia and France);
  • Two  meetings of the sub-Expert Group on the Birds and Habitats Directives (Nature Directives Sub-Expert Group, NADEG) (5-6 April and 30 November 2022) took place to discuss a wide range of issues on the implementation of the Birds and Habitats Directives;
  • Three meetings of the sub-Expert Group on Reporting under the Nature Directives (25 March, 22 June and 8 November 2022) dealing primarily with the revision of the reporting formats and guidelines under Article 17 of the Habitats Directive and Article 12 of the Birds Directive (which were eventually finalised in the Habitats and ORNIS committees at the end of 2022) and the revision of the Natura 2000 Standard Data Form. This work supports efficient monitoring and reporting of core data-sets, that are crucial for the implementation of the Nature Directives;
  • Two  meetings of the Task Force on the Recovery of Birds (18 March and 7 November 2022) focusing on implementing the adaptive harvest management of the turtle dove in the context of the Birds Directive and the approach towards ensuring appropriate conservation of the Birds Directive Annex II species not in a secure status;
  • Online meeting of the Commission Sub-group on marine issues – Marine Expert Group under the Birds and Habitats Directives (23 and 24 June 2022), focusing on: the Biodiversity Strategy targets for the marine environment, the issue of management effectiveness of marine Natura 2000 sites, the reporting of fisheries management measures in Natura 2000 sites and ways to reduce bycatch of protected species from fishing activities. This work supports the designation and management of marine Natura 2000 sites and the management of fisheries and other activities in accordance with the Birds and Habitats Directives, that are crucial for the implementation of the Nature Directives and the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030;
  • 7th meeting of the Invasive Alien Species Expert Group (30 November 2022);
  • Nine Nature Dialogues with Member States (Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Finland);
  • Meeting of the Expert Group Article 13 Forum (Industrial Emissions Directive) on 10 May 2022;
  • Meeting of the Industrial Emissions Expert Group (20 September 2022);
  • Two  meetings of the Industrial Emissions Directive Article 75 Committee (8 June and 19 September 2022);
  • Two webinars with Member States about implementation of the Best Available Techniques (BAT) Conclusions for Surface treatment with solvent (23 March 2022) and about implementation of the baseline report – Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) Article 22 (8 November 2022);
  • 9th meeting of the Seveso expert group (22 - 24 June 2022);
  • Technical Assistance and Information Exchange instrument Environmental Implementation Review (TAIEX EIR) workshop on combatting environmental crime and reinforcing cross sectorial compliance actions, organised as a part of the European Commission's engagement in the auspices of the Environmental Compliance and Governance Forum;
  • Two expert groups meetings in support of the implementation of the Aarhus Convention and related access to justice requirements in EU law;
  • Three expert group meetings on the Environmental Liability Directive (14 February, 7 June and 23 November 2022);
  • Stakeholder workshop on the Support study on the evaluation of the Environmental Liability Directive (22 November 2022);
  • Meeting of the Environmental Impact Assessment Strategic Environmental Assessment (EIA SEA) expert group (7 April 2022);
  • Four technical committee meetings on waste and eight expert group meetings on waste;
  • One meeting of the Administration Cooperation group under the Restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances (RoHS) Directive 2011/65/EU (December 2022).

Package meetings

Package meetings are meetings between the Commission and a Member State to discuss implementation issues and EU Pilot or infringement cases in a given policy area. They can be held before the Commission has detected a breach of EU law or concern existing infringement cases of the Member State. Package meetings can be an efficient tool to deal with challenges a Member State may face in a policy area, across different acts of EU legislation. The Commission held the following package meetings with Member States in the policy area of Environment:

  • Bulgaria: 22-24 June 2022;
  • Ireland: 23 November 2022;
  • Germany: 14 January, 11 February, 5 and 25 May 2022;
  • Czechia: 2 February 2022;
  • Estonia: 11 February 2022;
  • Slovakia: 27 April 2022;
  • Slovenia: 12 October 2022.

Other compliance promotion tools

  • Priorities action frameworks (PAFs): PAFs submitted by Member States pursuant to Article 8 of the Habitats Directive promoting compliance by identifying the financial needs of Member States and securing appropriate funding for management and restoration of Natura 2000 sites. The Commission analysed all submitted PAFs and assessed overall financing needs. The results of this work will be made available in the staff working document “EU level PAF”.
  • CAP Strategic Plans: ensures compliance of agricultural and forestry practices with the nature legislation. The focus was on reflecting the needs identified in the PAFs under the Nature Directives as well as on nature relevant conditionality (Good agricultural and environmental conditions - GAECs):
    • GAEC 2 (protection of wetlands and peatland),
    • GAEC 8 (protection of landscape),
    • GAEC 9 (prohibition of conversion or ploughing of permanent pasture designated as environmentally sensitive in the Natura 2000).
      Properly designed ecoschemes, agri-environmental measures, Natura 2000 and forest payments will also contribute to the compliance.
  • Third Clean Air Outlook, in support of the implementation of the National Emission reduction Commitments Directive.
  • TAIEX-EIR support for Romanian authorities in the protection of Romania’s natural habitats, wild fauna and flora.
  • Compliance assurance, the efforts to combat environmental crime, the access to justice as well as the implementation of the Environmental Liability Directive were subject in the 2022 country reports of the Environmental Implementation Review (EIR) under Section 6 ‘Environmental governance’.
  • Assessment of other EU funding programmes for 2021-2027 submitted by the Member States (European Regional Development Fund, Cohesion Fund, European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund) to ensure sufficient funding for implementation of the Nature Directives and minimisation of negative impacts of other funded projects on biodiversity.
  • Publication of the Environmental Implementation Review reports for all the Member States.
  • Contribution to the assessment of major projects co-financed by EU funds and the European Investment Bank in view of their potential impact on Natura 2000.
  • Online platform for sharing information on the implementation of the Industrial Emissions Directive.
  • Online platform (for Member States only) for implementation support on Seveso requirements.
  • Cooperation with European environmental enforcement networks, such as the European Union Network for the Implementation and Enforcement of Environmental Law, the European Network of Prosecutors for the Environment, EnviCrimeNet and the European Union Forum of Judges for the Environment, intensified with a focus on identification of training needs, preparation of training materials and sharing of good practices in environmental enforcement.
  • Booklet of the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union on the Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive.
  • Eight voluntary country visits organised by Eurostat (Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Hungary, Romania, Finland, Sweden). These visits are organised to understand Member States’ good practices in terms of calculating the recycling rates of plastic packaging. Additional voluntary visits will be organised in 2023 to Germany, Hungary, Portugal, Slovenia and Slovakia.

Follow-up given to petitions

In 2022, the Commission received petitions related to Environment:

  • Nine petitions were linked to complaints and/or to structural infringements, which were already being investigated.
  • Several petitions were linked to complaints and/or to structural infringements, which were already being investigated and 10 petitions raised individual complaints of bad application, which are no longer pursued by the Commission, in line with the approach defined in the Communication of December 2016, confirmed by the Communication “Enforcing EU law for a Europe that delivers” of 13 October 2022, and therefore did not lead to investigations.
  • For 50 petitions, no breach of EU law could be identified.
  • As regards existing infringement cases based on petitions, further infringement steps in 2022 are related to the three following cases:
  • Illegal hunting of migratory birds (Petition 1374/10) – formal step against Malta adding the grievance of spring hunting of Turtle Dove.
  • Extraction of peat (Petition 0755/10) – formal step against Ireland in relation to bad application of the Habitats Directive with regard to peat extraction in raised and blanket bogs.
  • Deterioration of protected habitats and excessive water abstraction in the area around Doñana National Park (based on Petition 907/99 and later linked to Petition 0260/2018) - next step in the procedure against Spain concerning bad application of the Water Framework Directive, the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive.

Important Court of Justice rulings against Member States

  • Commission v Slovakia (Bruit dans l’environnement), C-683/20;
  • Commission v Portugal (Bruit dans l’environnement), C-687/20;
  • Commission v Bulgaria (Mise à jour des stratégies marines), C-510/20;
  • Commission v France (Valeurs limites - PM10), C-286/21;
  • Commission v Bulgaria (Valeurs limites - SO2), C-730/19;
  • Commission v Italy (Valeurs limites - NO2), C-573/19;
  • Commission v Slovakia (Protection du Grand tétras), C-661/20.

Important preliminary rulings

  • VYSOČINA WIND, C-181/20;
  • Sātiņi-S, C-238/20;
  • Bund Naturschutz in Bayern eV, C- 300/20;
  • Namur-Est Environnement ASBL, C-463/20;
  • Association France Nature Environnement (Impacts temporaires sur les eaux de surface), C‑525/20;
  • FCC Česká republika, s.r.o., C-43/21;
  • Ministerstvo životního prostředí (Perroquets Ara hyacinthe), C-659/20;
  • Deutsche Umwelthilfe (Réception des véhicules à moteur), C-873/19;
  • AquaPri, C-278/21;
  • Porr Bau, C-238/21.

Outlook for 2023

In 2023, the Commission will continue important enforcement work in the policy area of environment which includes:

  • Fostering implementation of the environmental legislation in the Member States in the spirit of cooperation and dialogue;
  • Ensuring correct and complete transposition, implementation and application of the EU environmental law;
  • Monitoring compliance with recent rulings of the Court of Justice;
  • Launching new bad application cases regarding Ambient Air Quality Directive;
  • Organising meetings of the Ambient Air Quality Expert Group, as well the Noise Expert Group;
  • Adoption of a Delegated Directive to amend two annexes of the National Emission reduction Commitments Directive, due to the update of the Air Convention reporting template for emissions projections.
  • Publication of the Noise Implementation Report (January 2023).
  • Organising the fourth EU Clean Air Forum (end of 2023 in Rotterdam) which will bring together decision-makers, stakeholders and experts to reflect on the development and implementation of effective European, national and local clean air policies, projects and programmes.
  • Organising the TAIEX  PEER 2 PEER (P2P) expert mission on air pollution inventories capacity building (National Emission reduction Commitments Directive) (planned for May 2023 in Lithuania).
  • Further working in strategic working groups related to the Water Framework Directive under the common implementation strategy (planned meetings for groundwater indicators, chemicals, water reuse, water security and droughts, floods etc.).
  • Ensuring progress as regards meeting the Water Framework Directive’s environmental objectives.
  • Sustainable management and protection of water bodies based on the 3rd River Basin Management Plans.
  • Launching new non-communication cases regarding Drinking Water Directive.
  • Support of the correct implementation through the joint work of stakeholders, Commission and Member States on policy guidance and exchange of best practice under the Common Implementation Strategy of the Water Framework Directive and the Floods Directive.
  • Focusing on effective management of the Natura 2000 network of protected sites under the Habitats and Birds Directives, with conservation objectives and measures, including where necessary, restoration measures, established for each one.
  • Action in the Member States to eliminate or minimise the negative impact of human activities on the most threatened species and habitats to improve their conservation status.
  • Adoption of the staff working document (SWD) “Investment needs and priorities for Natura 2000 and green infrastructure – EU-wide assessment based on Member States’ prioritised action frameworks”, (EU-level PAF).
  • Adoption of guidance document on Natura 2000 and climate change (SWD).
  • Adoption of guidance document on the Birds Directive’s Articles 5 and 9 (Commission notice).
  • Update of the lists of sites of Community interests for biogeographical regions (Commission implementing decisions).
  • Ensuring proper application of the Urban Waste-water Treatment Directive aiming at guaranteeing that urban waste waters are properly collected and treated and that the performance of existing urban treatment plant facilities is satisfactory.
  • Focus on effective transposition of the 2018 waste legislative package as well as the Directive on single-use plastic (the conformity studies are under assessment and non-conformity cases will be launched if necessary; conformity studies will be launched for the Single Use Plastics Directive).
  • Further action regarding persistent illegal and substandard landfills across the EU.
  • Implementation and compliance analysis support contract (industrial emissions).
  • Continuous promotion of the TAIEX P2P instrument.
  • Revision of the four years implementation report scheme (industrial emissions).
  • Further intensifying training related activities, in cooperation with the European environmental enforcement networks, and strategic exchanges on effective environmental enforcement within the Environmental Compliance and Governance Forum.
  • Update the 2017 Notice on access to justice in environmental matters with a view to developing case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union.
  • Finalising the evaluation of Environmental Liability Directive.
  • Preparations for the new training on the Environmental Liability Directive (to be implemented in 2024).
  • Continue to follow closely the notifications submitted by Member States concerning exemptions of projects from the assessment procedure under Article 2(4) of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive 2011/92/EU.
  • Continue to verify if the conditions for exemptions under the EIA Directive have been properly applied.