Posted on December, 17 2024
ClientEarth, WWF Greece and Greenpeace Greece filed a formal complaint with the Commission, flagging that drilling was systemically being approved despite clear dangers posed to marine species, and proximity to protected sites. The organisations had exhausted all potential remedies at national level, leaving intervention by the Commission the last line of defence.
Following the threat that the complaint would be closed, the NGOs reiterated their legal arguments in September, urging the Commission to scrutinize the issue.
Commission officials have now confirmed that they will “seek clarifications” on how the Greek authorities arrived at their approval decisions.
ClientEarth wildlife lawyer Francesco Maletto said: “Fossil fuel drilling, at the direct expense of nature, merits legal scrutiny by the EU Commission and we’re extremely pleased to see that will go ahead as we asked.
“The European Commission is the guardian and enforcer of EU laws. It's essential they act to ensure that laws are not undermined by Member States as we are seeing here from Greece.
“Nature fights climate change; oil and gas worsen it. There is only one logical, and legal, path to take.”
Read the background here:
Scientific evidence shows that such harmful practices, which include generating loud seismic waves, drilling and an increase in the number of vessels, are likely to jeopardise protected marine areas and threaten endangered species such as whales, dolphins, Monk seals and Loggerhead turtles. These species are found across the Hellenic Trench, a critical habitat and marine biodiversity hotspot of global ecological importance, that extends from the northern Ionian Sea to south of Crete.
The NGOs are urging the European Commission to reassess legal and scientific evidence of impact on biodiversity – from activities including drilling, installation of pipelines and platforms, and site decommissioning (sometimes using explosives) – and take action to ensure that EU laws are not undermined.
