Environment : effects of public and private projects (amend. Directive 85/337/EEC)

The amended Commission proposal incorporates either all or part of 16 of the 58 amendments adopted by Parliament at first reading. These cover: - the inclusion of relevant references such as the 5th action programme on the environment and sustainable development and the conclusions of the Dublin European Council; - incorporation of the main principles of the Espoo Convention; - the stipulation that projects requiring an assessment must be made subject to a prior request for development consent; - clarification of the definition of the environmental factors covered by assessments; - reinstatement of the minimum list of information to be gathered for assessments; - insertion of a new paragraph concerning the timetable for consultations in a cross-border context; - the stipulation that the detailed arrangements for publishing development consent decisions shall be determined by the Member States; - clarification of the scope of Annex I through the inclusion of a reference to projects relating to certain activities, for example the production and enrichment of nuclear fuels, installations for the incineration of waste, ground water abstraction and certain intensive livestock installations; - clarification of the scope of Annex II by including a reference to the extraction of minerals by marine dredging, wind farms, permanent racing and test tracks, the storage of scrap iron and scrap vehicles, and cable cars. �