Surface Water Directive: Commission moves to ensure that Portugal will implement a Court ruling

The European Commission is sending a "Reasoned Opinion" to Portugal for failure to implement a European Court of Justice ruling of June 1996. The Court found that Portugal did not have an action plan aiming to improve the quality of surface water to be used as drinking water. To date, Portugal has not yet properly implemented the Court ruling.

On 17 June 1998, the European Court of Justice handed down a judgement against Portugal for failure to comply with the Community's Surface Water Directive (Council Directive 75/440/EEC concerning the quality required of surface water intended for the abstraction of drinking water in the Member States). This directive aims to protect and improve the quality of surface waters used as a source of drinking water. The Court condemned Portugal for not having a systematic plan of action in accordance with the directive aimed at improving water quality(1). At the end of 1998, Portugal transmitted an action plan, but the Commission considers this to be manifestly inadequate. The Commission decided then to launch the Article 228 procedure by sending a first warning (Letter of Formal Notice) to which Portugal failed to respond. Hence, the decision to send a Reasoned Opinion.

Article 228 gives the Commission the right to take legal action against a Member State which does not comply with a previous Court judgement. The article also allows the Commission to ask the Court to impose a financial penalty on the Member State concerned.

Welcoming this decision, Environment Commissioner Margot Wallström declared on this occasion: "It is crucial that all citizens in the EU can have access to safe drinking water. The quality improvement scheme provided by the Surface Water Directive is a prerequisite for this and therefore Member States must fully implement this Directive".

(1) Article 4(2) of the Directive