The European Court declared illegal the M-501

Ecologistas en Acción (15/12/2011)

By ruling made ​​public today, December 15, 2011, the European Court of Justice declared that the Kingdom of Spain has failed to comply with European regulations, having proceeded to split the M-501. Ecologistas en Acción greatly appreciates this ruling is a setback for the arguments that had been using the Community of Madrid for not implementing the decision of the Spanish courts.

The Fifth Chamber of the European Court of Justice has just published the sentence which states that the Kingdom of Spain has failed to comply with European legislation in relation to Directive 85/337/EEC on environmental impact assessment and Directive 92 / 43/CEE on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora. This statement is a consequence of the appeal lodged by the European Commission in December 2008, provoked, in turn, by complaints filed by Ecologists in Action and SEO / BirLife.

Remember that this decision comes after the High Court of Justice of Madrid (TSJM) in February 2008, declared null and void the agreements under which the split was approved and declared of public interest and order, to urge restoration of the land affected. Subsequently, in February 2011, this ruling was upheld by the Supreme Court.

However, the Community of Madrid has been stubbornly refusing to comply with these rulings, arguing, on the one hand that the sentences were already fulfilled by the agreements reached with the European Commission in 2008, relating to alleged environmental assessment afterwards. On the other hand still on the ground of public interest based on the splitting of the road accidents.

However, the European Court is dismantling each and every one of the arguments made by the Community of Madrid. Prove the existence of serious damage to habitats and species, fragmentation of the territory, considers the environmental assessment does not minimize posteriorri conditions and should have been made prior to the execution of works. As for the declaration of public interest order, stated that such statement was made without making the appropriate environmental assessment and therefore without assessing the existence of alternatives to solve the problems of accidents.

Ecologists in Action warmly welcomes this statement and even if she later appears at a crucial time, when working out the enforcement of the initial sentence of TSJM. It so happens that the main reason argued by the Community of Madrid for not returning the land to its original state is precisely the agreement reached with the European Commission. This argument has collapsed like a house of cards with this statement.

Ecologists in Action believes that to abuse of authority expressed by the regional government, contempt for the law and the environment, the constant deception of society and the attempt to demonize all persons and associations that have expressed contrary to this illegal work, there should be political and legal responsibilities. The President, Esperanza Aguirre, Maria Dolores de Cospedal or Manuel Lamela (Board of Transportation in 2005 and 2008) have been directly responsible for this work and who should pay with their personal assets expense of restoring the land.