The European Commission is referring Portugal to the Court of Justice of the EU for not designating Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) for the protection of natural habitats and species included in the Natura 2000 network and for failing to establish the necessary conservation measures for these sites.

Portugal had to designate seven SACs in the Atlantic region by 7 December 2010 and 54 SACs in the Mediterranean region by 19 July 2012. Portugal has also failed to establish the necessary conservation measures to maintain or restore the protected habitats and species in these sites. The current measures adopted in the framework of the Portuguese Natura 2000 sectorial plan (PSRN2000) and the other sectorial and special plans (e. g. the rural development plans (PRODER) and the municipal plans) are not comprehensive and precise enough to allow for an adequate level of protection and SACs designation. As recognised by Portugal, the designation of the SACs requires a prior mapping of natural habitats and species as well as the adoption of management plans for each site.

The Commission has repeatedly urged Portugal to fulfil its obligations. A letter of formal notice was sent in February 2015 and a reasoned opinion in May 2016. So far, Portugal has not been able to respect its own commitments for SACs designation, and establishment of conservation measures.

Background

The Habitats Directive (Council Directive 92/43/EEC) requires the establishment of the Natura 2000 network, the EU-wide network of protected natural areas, made of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), and Special Protection Areas for birds (SPAs) under the Birds Directive. Each Member State identifies and proposes sites that are important for the conservation of species and habitats occurring naturally in their territory.The Commission subsequently adopts them as Sites of Community Importance (SCI). Member States then have up to six years to designate them as Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) but also to introduce the necessary management measures to maintain or restore the species and habitats present to a favourable condition. These are key requirements to protect biodiversity across the EU and consequently these cases rank high on the enforcement agenda of the Commission.

For More Information

-On the key decisions in the January 2018 infringements package, see full MEMO/18/349.

-On the general infringements procedure, see MEMO/12/12 (an info graph).

-On the EU infringements procedure.

Europe’s transition to a clean and modern economy is the goal of the Energy Union, a priority of the Juncker Commission. It is now becoming the new reality on the ground, and one important building block is adapting the European infrastructure to the future energy needs. Properly interconnected electricity lines and gas pipelines form the backbone of an integrated European energy market anchored on the principle of solidarity. Thus, supporting these 17 selected electricity and gas projects , signals Europe’s willingness to upgrade and make the European energy system more competitive that will ultimately deliver cheaper and secure energy to all European consumers.

The EU funding for the chosen projects comes from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the European support programme for trans-European infrastructure.

Commission Vice-President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič said: “Once more we demonstrate that cooperation and solidarity pays off and that the Energy Union is becoming a reality with tangible impact on the ground. These are important projects with major cross-border benefits and by implementing them we strengthen energy resilience of EU Member States. The Connecting Europe Facility has yet again shown tremendous added value in the modernisation of the European economy.“

Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete said: “The construction of the Biscay Gulf France-Spain interconnection marks an important step towards ending the isolation of the Iberian Peninsula from the rest of the European energy market. Only a fully interconnected market will improve Europe’s security of supply, reducing the dependence of single suppliers and giving consumers more choice. An energy infrastructure which is fit for purpose is also essential for renewable energy sources to thrive and for delivering on the Paris Agreement on climate change.“

Of the 17 projects selected for funding:

• 8 are in the electricity sector (EU support €680 million) and 9 in the gas sector (EU support €193 million).
• 4 relate to construction works (EU support €723 million) and 13 to studies (EU support €150 million).

In the electricity sector, a grant of €578 million, the largest Connecting Europe Facility-Energy grant ever awarded, will be decisive the construction of the Biscay Gulf France-Spain interconnection. The new electricity link will better integrate the Iberian Peninsula into the internal electricity market. The project, with a 280 km long off-shore section, incorporates technologically innovative solutions regarding the design of the route over the Capbreton canyon and the French land section, which is fully underground. This new link will nearly double the interconnection capacity between both countries – increasing it from 2,800 MW to 5,000 MW, and will bring Spain closer to the 10% interconnection target from the current level of 6%. Such a leap will allow for an enhanced incorporation of renewable energies, thus contributing strongly to the clean energy transition and to the EU’s clean energy transition policy.

SuedOstLink, one of the largest German energy infrastructure projects, will receive €70 million for activities to enable the construction works to start. The project consists of 580 kilometres of high-voltage cables laid fully underground. The power line will create an urgently needed link between the wind power generated in the north and the consumption centres in the south of Germany. It will thus ensure better integration of renewable energies, as well as enhance the cross-border exchange of energy with neighbouring EU Member States.

A grant of €27 million will also be allocated to support the construction of a new 400 kV internal power line between Cernavoda and Stalpu (RO), which will contribute to increase the interconnection capacity between Romania and Bulgaria and help integrate wind power from the Black Sea coast.

In the gas sector, the Connecting Europe Facility will support infrastructure projects important for two island Member States. First, the introduction of natural gas in Cyprus through the CyprusGas2EU project (EU support €101 million) will end the current energy isolation of the Cyprus, bring diversification to a region mostly dominated by one single source of supply and help reduce air pollution and emissions by allowing switching from heavy fuel oil to gas for power generation. It will also improve energy security and price competitiveness. Secondly, a €3.7 million grant will be awarded for a study on the Malta-Italy Gas Interconnection which aims to end Malta’s isolation from the European Gas network. This interconnector will link Malta to the Italian market, enhancing the island’s security of supply in gas in similar way a sub-sea cable funded by an earlier EU programme has done for the electricity sector.

Funding will also be allocated to a study on the permit-granting process of the STEP project (€1.7 million), which aims at creating a new gas interconnection point between France and Spain to increase the bidirectional flows between the Iberian Peninsula and France and improve the interconnection with the internal gas market through the development of the Eastern gas axis.

The Commission will also invest in studies to support the synchronisation of the Baltics with the central European electricity network. Today’s decision is of key importance for Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and Poland to agree on the way forward to find, by the end of May 2018 at the latest, a solution on the best way to synchronise the Baltic States’ electricity grid with the continental Europe system, in line with the results of the ministerial meeting from December 2017 (see STATEMENT/17/5271).

Background

Under the Connecting Europe Facility, a total of €5 billion has been allocated to trans-European energy infrastructure for the period 2014-2020. In order to be eligible for a grant, a proposal has to be ‘a project of common interest’. When completed, the projects will each result in significant benefits for at least two Member States, enhance security of supply, contribute to market integration, and enhance competition, as well as reduce CO₂ emissions. The list is updated every two years. The latest PCI list was published by the Commission in November 2017. The Connecting Europe Facility (Energy) already granted €647 million to 34 projects in 2014, €366 million to 35 projects in 2015 and €707 million to 27 projects in 2016.

For More Information

List of all projects receiving EU support under the current call

Overview of projects financed by Connecting Europe Facility – Energy in 2014-2016

Current list of ‘projects of common interest’ 

Innovation & Networks Executive Agency (INEA)

Today, the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) published the Country of Origin Information (COI) Report titled ‘Afghanistan: Networks’. In 2016, Afghanistan ranked second in the top countries of origin in EU+ countries¹, with more than 175,000 applicants. In the first eleven months of 2017, close to 45,000 applications have been lodged in the EU+ by Afghans, ranking third (in the overall applications to date). In addition, the Afghan applications constitute the largest backlog of all countries of origin. At the end of November 2017, there were more than 53,000 asylum applications from Afghan nationals in the EU+ pending at first instance.
 
The report was drafted by COI researchers from the Norwegian Country of Origin Information Centre, Landinfo, in accordance with the EASO COI Report Methodology. The report was reviewed by COI researchers from Austria, the Netherlands and EASO. 

The report describes various types of networks in Afghanistan and the significance of these networks for individuals and families, be it during displacement, or for reintegration after return from abroad or after internal displacement within the country. Firstly, a number of types of networks are described, ranging from the extended family to tribes, clans, ethnic and other networks.  Core principles, obligations and loyalties exist within these networks, and are discussed accordingly. The second chapter looks at the role networks play when it comes to individual and group decisions concerning internal and external migration. A separate sub-chapter examines the situation for unaccompanied minors. The tird chapter looks at how migrants and networks maintain contact. Finally, the report focuses on issues relevant to networks in relation to settlement and reintegration (employment, housing, etc.) upon return from abroad or after internal relocation.

In 2017, EASO published several COI Reports on Afghanistan, titled Key socio-economic indicators, state protection, and mobility in Kabul City, Mazar-e Sharif, and Herat City (August 2017); Individuals targeted by armed actors in the conflict (December 2017); Individuals targeted under societal and legal norms (December 2017); and Afghanistan – Security Situation (December 2017). A further update of the EASO COI Report Afghanistan – Security Situation is expected in spring 2018.

It is EASO’s intention to continue to produce such reports on important countries of origin and to update them regularly in order to raise and harmonise COI standards in the EU and to further support the practical implementation of the Common European Asylum System.

Download Report [EN] 

Any further information may be obtained from the European Asylum Support Office by contacting press@easo.europa.eu 

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^{1EU Member States plus Norway and Switzerland}
 

Protection of health and safety at work is one of the key principles of our European Pillar of Social Rights. It is imperative that employer and worker representatives, national authorities and OSH advisors work together to ensure that workers in micro and small enterprises can enjoy safe and healthy working conditions.