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Commission of the European Communities v. Portuguese Republic

Country/Territory
European Union, Portugal
Type of court
International court
Date
Jul 13, 2006
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Court name
European Court of Justice
Seat of court
Luxembourg
Judge
Timmermans, C., W., A.
de Lapuerta R., Silva
Kuris, P.
Klucka, J.
Bay Larsen, L.
Reference number
C-191/05
Language
English
Subject
Wild species & ecosystems
Keyword
Protected area Wild fauna Protected animal species Birds
Abstract
By its application, the Commission of the European Communities asked the Court to declare that, by altering the demarcation of the ‘Moura, Mourão, Barrancos’ Special Protection Area, thereby excluding from it areas providing a habitat for species of wild birds for whose protection that protection area was designated, the Portuguese Republic had failed to fulfill its obligations under Article 4(1) of Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds. The Commission maintained that, in reducing, the extent of the protection area concerned, the Portuguese Government had excluded from protection several species of wild birds listed on the Natura 2000 Standard Data Form, which had been used as a basis for creating that protection area, although those species were to be protected under the Directive. Besides that, the alteration of the boundaries of the protection area concerned had no scientific basis, which was contrary to the requirements laid down in the Court’s case-law. The Portuguese Government stated that new, adequate boundaries were currently being drawn up for the protection area concerned. They would take into account the requirements for adequate protection of the concerned species, such as the crane (Grus grus), the eagle owl (Bubo bubo), the black vulture (Aegypius monachus), and, on the other hand, the protection necessary for steppe-land birds in suitable areas. The court noted that the boundaries of the protection area concerned were altered on the ground that it had included areas which were not important habitats for steppe-land birds. However, although the areas excluded from the protection area concerned did not provide a habitat for steppe-land birds, they did provide a habitat for other species of wild birds listed in Annex I to the Directive for whose protection that area had been designated, namely the crane (Grus grus), the eagle owl (Bubo bubo), the black vulture (Aegypius monachus) and others. In those circumstances a Member State could not reduce the surface area of a protection area or alter its boundaries unless the areas excluded were no longer the most suitable territories for the conservation of species of wild birds within the meaning of Article 4(1) of the Directive. The Portuguese Government had not even sought to establish the existence of such a situation in this case. It therefore held that, by altering the demarcation of the ‘Moura, Mourão, Barrancos’ Special Protection Area, thereby excluding from it areas providing a habitat for species of wild birds for whose protection that area was designated, the Portuguese Republic had failed to fulfill its obligations under Article 4(1) of Council Directive 79/409/EEC of 2 April 1979 on the conservation of wild birds.
Full text
Commission of the European Communities v. Portuguese Republic.pdf
Website
curia.europa.eu

References

Cites

Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds.

Legislation | European Union | 1979 (2003)

Keyword: Birds, Hunting/capture, Endangered species, Management/conservation, Protection of habitats, Hunting gear/hunting methods, Protection of species

Source: FAO, FAOLEX