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EU Sues Greece over Landfill, Turtles

The European Commission is taking Greece to Court over a landfill site in a protected area on the island of Zakynthos. The landfill is operating in breach of European Union waste legislation and constitutes a serious threat to human health, the environment, and in particular, to nesting turtles, officials said.

Greece needs to either close the landfill, or bring it into line with EU waste legislation. At the same time, Brussels urged Greece to protect the loggerhead turtle in the environs and protect sea turtles in Kyparissia Bay in the Western Peloponnese. The Caretta loggerhead sea turtles are a globally-endangered species strictly protected under the Habitats Directive, and the bay in question is one of their most significant nesting beaches.

The Commission opened infringement proceedings on this matter in October 2011, but Greece has not acted on the landfill site nor to protect the species as it was required to do under under the EU’s Natura 2000 requirements.  The Commission’s request takes the form of a reasoned opinion (the second stage in EU infringement proceedings), and Greece has two months to respond.

(Source: ANSA)

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