has just issued has repeatedly violated the Community directive on the treatment of urban wastewater, by not guaranteeing in numerous urban agglomerations the collection, purification and control of discharges required by European regulations.
The court, based in Luxembourg, supported the accusation made by the European Commission, which brought the case before the community justice in the management of sanitation in dozens of areas throughout the territory. According to the court’s press service, the non-compliance affects around 50 urban agglomerations and inter-municipal areas with more than 10,000 inhabitants, including areas of the Canary Islands (up to 11, all on the island of Tenerife) and Andalusia (15), as well as larger centers such as Donostia-San Sebastián, Cáceres or Mérida.
The ruling, known this Thursday, confirms that Spain did not adopt the necessary measures to ensure the collection of wastewater in multiple locations, especially in municipalities in the Canary Islands where individual systems were used that did not comply with the conditions set by community regulations. Furthermore, in at least 34 agglomerations the collected water does not receive the secondary treatment – or equivalent – required by the Directive before being discharged, while in another 19 that discharge into sensitive areas a more rigorous procedure is not applied.
This Wednesday, Spain presented its arguments at a hearing held before the CJEU in Luxembourg, Efe reports. The case will then be analyzed by an advocate general of the CJEU, on whose conclusions the judges can rely, later on.
In its ruling, the court highlights the failure to comply with the obligations to control discharges, as compliance with the technical requirements provided for in the Directive has not been adequately verified in many of the urban agglomerations. This, in the court’s opinion, represents a continued violation of the articles that regulate the collection, treatment and monitoring of wastewater.
Although the ruling does not immediately establish economic sanctions, it opens the door for the European Commission to request the CJEU to impose periodic penalty payments or flat-rate sanctions if Spain does not effectively correct the deficiencies detected.
