(ANSA) - BRUSSELS - The European Commission is taking Germany
to Court over its failure to apply the requirements of the
Habitats Directive in relation to the authorisation of a coal
power plant in Hamburg/Moorburg.
The project in question risks having a negative impact on a
number of protected fish species including salmon, European
river lamprey and sea lamprey, which pass near the power plant
when migrating from the North Sea to some 30 Natura 2000 sites
on the Elbe, upstream of Hamburg. The species are harmed by the
water abstraction process used to cool the power plant. When
authorising the plant, Germany failed to carry out an
appropriate assessment as required by the Directive, and to
assess alternative cooling processes which could avoid the
killing of the protected species concerned. (ANSA)
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