[ParlTrack]

Motion for a resolution
Recital B

B. whereas concern for the Baltic marine environment is one of the principal ~~task~~objectives of the Union’s Northern Dimension, as repeatedly confirmed by Commission communications and Parliament resolutions,

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Recital L

L. whereas, moreover, the munitions containers are in a critical condition, their corrosion having been estimated at 80%, and their exact location cannot always be determined,

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Recital N

N. having regard to the potential impact deleted of a major breakdown of the gas pipeline on the Baltic marine environment and on states bordering on the Baltic, and in particular the threat to the biosphere resulting from reduced oxygenation levels and the supersaturation of sea water with the escaping gas,

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Recital O

~~O. having regard to the potential fire hazard and the risk of loss of buoyancy and the sinking of vessels resulting from a breakdown of the gas pipeline,~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Recital P

P. whereas the construction of the North European Gas Pipeline will result in a technogenic impact on an undersea lane 1 200 km long and approximately 2 km wide, with an area of 2 400 km², which will thus become the largest undersea construction site in the world,deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Recital X

~~X. whereas the proposed gas pipeline would be the longest dual subsea gas pipeline in the world, as well as the shallowest one, which makes it especially vulnerable to potential damage,~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)

1a. Recalls that the International Energy Agency, the European Commission and numerous independent studies predict that demand for gas imports to Europe will rise significantly over the coming years as domestic supplies decrease, and that it is therefore necessary to meet rising demand and to replace less environmentally friendly fossil fuels;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 b (new)

1b. Underlines that energy security must be regarded as an essential component of the overall security of the European Union, whereby the definition of energy security should not merely be limited to the lack of internal EU production but should also take into account the geopolitical aspects of dependency on imports and the potential therein for politically motivated interruptions; believes that the Third Energy Package will reduce each Member State's energy dependence as no state can be disconnected from a third-country supplier in a fully liberalised and integrated energy market;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 c (new)

1c. Regrets the marginal role played by the EU in this project, in particular that of the Commission; points out that greater EU involvement would reduce the uncertainty felt by many Member States about the Nord Stream project;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2

2. Expresses its resolute opposition to regarding large-scale transboundary projects planned for the Baltic Sea area, which is a common asset of the states bordering the Baltic Sea, as matters of bilateral relations between states;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3

~~3. Expresses its conviction that projects of this kind should be subjects of common interest and concern for the whole European Union;~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4

4. Calls, therefore, on the Commission and the Council to make a full commitment to analysing the environmental impact of the construction of the North European Gas Pipeline, particularly in situations involving the considerations requiring a Commission opinion, as specified in Article 6(4) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5

5. Regrets the Commission’s failure to accept the proposal contained in Parliament’s resolution of 16 November 2006 concerning the preparation of environmental impact assessments of proposed projects by the Commission, while reiterating its call for the preparation of such an assessment;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6

6. Expresses its concern at the project timetable adopted by Nord Stream, whose implementation will prevent a thorough analysis of the results of the EIA by interested states, non-governmental organisations and HELCOM experts;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7

7. Points out that dozens of months of work in an area of up to 2 400 km², requiring the use of a large number of vessels and other equipment, represents a serious threat to biodiversity and to the number of habitats in the region;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8

~~8. Regrets the absence of a precise definition of the extent of interference with the seabed required to bury the pipeline, which could have a critical impact on the benthic environment;~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9

9. Expresses profound concern at the reports that before commissioning the gas pipeline the investor intends to use a highly toxic compound known as glutaric aldehyde, which it is then planning to release into the Baltic, an action that would result in a major environmental disaster with irreversible consequences; simultaneously calls on the Commission and the Council to take immediate action to prevent this scenario from taking place;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10

10. ~~Emphasises~~Calls on the developer to ensure that the construction and operation of the ~~Gas P~~pipeline ~~on the Baltic seabed will threaten~~does not endanger the many species of fish and birds as well as the existence of a population of porpoises numbering only 600, which are a species unique to this geographical region;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11

11. ~~Finds that in addition to declaring~~Considers that the protection of the marine environment of the Baltic Sea ~~to be a key~~is a component of the Northern Dimension of the EU~~, Community institutions must take specific action with respect to this largest-ever Baltic Sea project~~;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12

12. Emphasises that alternative gas pipeline routes, which do not disturb the marine environment, should be analysed first, and notes that it is possible to run ~~such~~alternative routes to the Russian border overland, solely through European Union Member States;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13

~~13. Calls on the Commission to undertake such an analysis in a dialogue with interested states, the investor, the Helsinki Commission and with the participation of interested NGOs;~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)

13a. Notes that the Langeled offshore pipeline, recently opened between Norway and the UK, is currently the world's longest offshore export pipeline, being of roughly the same length as the proposed Nord Stream, and that it was brought into service with the minimum of impact on the marine environment and commercial operations, such as fishing and shipping, in the North Sea;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14

14. ~~Support~~Notes the Swedish Government’s ~~Decision~~request of 12 February 2008 refusing to grant Nord Stream AG permission to build the gas pipeline due to significant procedural and substantive shortcomings and in particular the lack of an analysis of an alternative route and of the option of abandoning the construction of the pipelineto Nord Stream AG for further information about the project;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16

~~16. Regrets the fact that the Green Paper ‘Towards a future Maritime Policy for the Union’ pays no attention to the problem of large-scale projects such as subsea pipelines;~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)

16a. Observes that Nord Stream is in the process of producing a comprehensive environmental impact assessment (EIA) which will be submitted to the national authorities in Russia, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Germany – the “countries of origin” as set out in the Espoo Convention – in order for an evaluation to be carried out by each of those countries of the full data and studies produced;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 b (new)

16b. Calls for a truly independent environmental impact assessment to be commissioned, with the approval of all littoral states, while recognising the environmental impact assessment carried out by Rambøll;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17

17. Regrets that in the legal instruments and communications concerning marine strategies initiated by it, the Commission usually passes over the problem of subsea pipelines, which is crucial from the point of view of both environmental protection and the EU’s energy security;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18

18. Reiterates, therefore, its call in its resolution of 16 November 2006 for the proposal of a mandatory mechanism for negotiation between Member States and its insistence that the Council take action at international level to develop mandatory environmental impact assessments in relations between the EU and third countries;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19

19. Expresses its belief that routing the North European gas pipeline through EU territory would enable it to meet the strategic and economic objectives set out in Decision 1364/2006/EC whilst avoiding extensive environmental damage;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20

~~20. Calls on the Council and Commission to use every legal means at their disposal to prevent the construction of the North European gas pipeline on the scale proposed by the investor;~~deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21

21. Calls on the Commission in particular to ensure compliance with the provisions of the documents referred to above, the Convention on the Law of the Sea, the HELCOM Convention, the Espoo Convention, the Aarhus Convention, Directives 85/337/EEC, 97/11/EC, 92/43/EEC and 79/409/EEC, as well as Article 10 of the EC Treaty and the precautionary principle and the principle of sustainable development~~, and to initiate proceedings under Article 226 of the EC Treaty in the event of failure to comply with the above obligations~~;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22

22. Calls on the Commission in particular to take resolute action in line with the principle of good governance, which recognises that decision-making bodies with wide discretion are required to carry out a timely analysis of the actual state of affairs and, where necessary, obtain expert opinion to prevent an arbitrary decision being made;deleted

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22 a (new)

23a. Suggests the establishment of a system of common supervision of the pipeline, to include all countries in the Baltic Sea region; further suggests that the obligation to pay compensation for environmental damage should lie solely with Nord Stream AG;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22 b (new)

23b. Calls on the Commission to investigate the possibility, within the Northern Dimension Partnership, of requiring the equivalent of 'planning gain' from Nord Stream in connection with possible regeneration projects in the Finno-Russian border area where the pipeline is proposed to commence or within the context of the Baltic Sea Strategy, likewise within the Northern Dimension Partnership;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Diana WALLIS

Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22 c (new)

23c. Notes the lack of institutional structures capable of responding adequately to the environmental and geopolitical security issues associated with this project; suggests, therefore, that the Commissioner on Energy, in cooperation with the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, should be given wide-ranging powers to act on issues concerning geopolitical security;

2008/05/08
Committee: PETI

Activities of Diana WALLIS related to 2007/2118(INI)

Plenary speeches (1)

Legal basis opinions (0)

Amendments (35)

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