European Union directives

The European Commission on Wednesday said it was referring Romania to the EU Court of Justice for failing to enact revised EU legislation on packaging waste into domestic law.

The revised Packaging Directive updates rules on packaging and packaging waste with a view to reducing their impact on the environment, the Commission said in a statement.

The European Commission called on Bulgaria to bring its legislation in compliance with the EU rules on waste management from extractive industries by issuing a reasoned opinion on Wednesday.

This largely concerns the Mining Waste Directive, which aims to prevent or reduce harmful effects on human health and the environment resulting from waste management from extractive industries.

The European Commission has asked the European Court of Justice to fine Greece for its failure to manage hazardous waste.

Previously convicted by the court in 1999 for failing to comply with the EU?s landfill directive, Greece could pay 17.7 million euros in fines, plus a daily penalty of 8,096 euros until it solves the problem.

By the end of this month Bulgaria will get EUR 240 M in restored payments under the EU Operational Programme Environment for the programming period 2007-2013, said the European Commission (EC).

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EU Member States agreed Wednesday to allocate EUR 647 to support priority infrastructure projects.

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The European Commission said on Thursday it is sending Bulgaria two reasoned opinions related to water legislation.

Debate on Croatia's pace implementing EU directives

Some view the EU's directives as helpful but others as overwhelming to businesses.

Bloggers in Croatia are debating delays in introducing EU directives into national legislation, as the Union moves to initiate legal action.

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The European Commission has given car hire firms an August 30 deadline to comply with directives requiring them to charge uniform rates throughout the EU.

The ombudsman Konstantin Penchev referred to the Constitutional Court  parts of Electronic Communications Act regarding gathering of information on users' internet activities. 

The European Court of Justice has overturned the EU Data Retention Directive, Tuesday.

The Directive allowed telephone and email providers to store private citizens' data en masse for scrutiny by investigators in later cases of serious crime.