Added to Policy Areas, Air, Policy Documents :* Air pollution by ozone in Europe in summer 2004 (EEA Technical report No 3/2005)
In summer 2004, the levels of ground-level ozone were high in southern Europe with widespread exceedances of the information threshold value (180 µg/m3), as laid down in the ozone directive (2002/3/EC). The exceedances of the information threshold were similar to earlier years, except for summer 2003, when there was a record number of exceedances. Also the directive’s long-term objective to protect human health, 120 µg/m3 of ozone concentration over 8 hours, was extensively exceeded in the EU and other European countries. The target value to protect human health was also exceeded in southern and part of central Europe. The highest levels were reported from Italy and Spain, with a maximum ozone level of 417 µg/m3.
http://reports.eea.eu.int/technical_report_2005_3
Added to Policy Areas, Nature, Policy Documents, Biodiversity Studies :
* Wild Bird Indicator Update 2005
An updated indicator of European wild bird populations shows that between 1980 and 2003 farmland bird numbers fell 28% and forest birds 13% while other common birds rose by 28%. Compiled by NGO Birdlife International and first published in 2003, the data was adopted by the EU in 2004 as the basis for one of its official sustainability indicators, a farmland bird population index. 2005’s update includes four new EU member states for the first time and reports separate trends for forest and other common birds for the first time.
/upload/eel-webroot/www/documents/2005_pecbm_indicator_update.pdf
Added to Case Law, ECHR:
* Application No. 55723/00 Fadeyeva v Russia
ECHR 9-06-2005
In the light of Article 44 Para. 2 of ECHR, the governments are legally responsible for preventing serious damage to their citizens’ health caused by pollution from industrial installations, even when they are privately owned and run. The ECHR ruled that the Russian Federation was guilty of violating the human rights of Ms. Fadeyeva, resident of the town of Cherepovets, north-east of Moscow. Ms. Fadeyeva had complained that her health had been harmed by long-term exposure to pollution from a Severstal steel plant in the town. The court said the state had failed to protect Ms. Fadeyeva by either resettling her away from the plant or reducing its pollution levels. It ordered the Russian government to pay her €6,000 in compensation and to ensure it resolved her situation. The ruling is binding and if Russia fails to comply it could ultimately be expelled from the Council of Europe, which administers the Court.
The case marked the first time the ECHR had held a state responsible for damage caused by a private company. The only near-precedent was a similar case in 1994 known as López Ostra, involving pollution from a partly-public, partly-private waste plant in Spain. But the ruling is unlikely to interfere with the EU Environmental Liability directive, according to an EU official closely involved in drafting the law. Any pollution likely to trigger a case in the human rights court would most likely already have triggered the directive’s provisions, and the two legal regimes would be complementary, he said.
Added to Events, Upcoming events:
* 1-30 June 2005, 4th Caucasus zone green ‘environmental festival’, Caucasus region
As June already begun, the Caucasus region’s NGO partners are planning events that will take place during the month long annual festival. This year the theme chosen by UNEP is ‘Green Cities – Plan for the Planet’. More information at: http://server.intellcom.net/mailman/listinfo/cenn_cenn.org
* 6-8 July 2005, G8 Summit, Perthshire, UK
More information at: http://www.g8.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1078995902703
* 11-12 July 2005, EU Emissions Trading 2005, Brussels, Belgium
Event provides an update on the progress of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme including a keynote address from Philippe de Buck, Secretary General of UNICE. More at: http://www.environmental-finance.com/envfin/EUETS4web.pdf
* 16-22 September 2005, EU mobility week
Please visit http://www.mobilityweek-europe.org/index_en.php
* 22 September 2005, European Car-free day
Please see http://www.22september.org/info/en/camp.html
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Editors-in-Chief:
Wybe Th. Douma (T.M.C. Asser Institute, The Hague)
Jens Hamer (Academy of European Law, Trier)
Editor:
Daria Ratsiborinskaya (Institute of European law, MGIMO-University, Moscow)
Technical realisation:
Marco van der Harst, Julien J.M. Simon
(T.M.C. Asser Institute, The Hague)
e-mail: mailto:eelnewsservices@asser.nl