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    Reference: SG/E/2012/10
    Received Date: 12 July 2012
    Subject: DTS Expressway, Poland
    Complainant: The association ‘Stowarzyszenie Gliwiczanie dla Gliwic'
    Allegations: Failure to comply with environmental law
    Type: E - Environmental and social impacts of financed projects
    Outcome*: No grounds
    Suggestions for improvement: no
    Admissibility*
    Assessment*
    Investigation*
    Dispute Resolution*
    Consultation*
    Closed*
    12/07/2012
    4/02/2014
    24/02/2014
    4/03/2014

    * Admissibility date reflects the date the case was officially registered. All other dates pertain to the date in which a stage was completed.

    Case Description

    On 16 July 2012 the complainant lodged a complaint with the EIB-CM concerning the DTŚ expressway project, co-financed by the EIB and the European Commission. In her letter, the complainant alleged breach of national and EU environmental law. In particular, the complainant alleged:

    • Inappropriate location of the project within an area of flood risk;
    • Lack of simulation and studies regarding the project impact on human safety in case of floods; and
    • The project’s construction permit was issued in breach of national law due to the absence of the Regional Water Management Authority (RWMA).

    In further correspondence, the complainant informed the EIB-CM that she had lodged a complaint with the national courts in Poland as well as with the European Commission, which is the competent authority to deal with alleged infringements of EU law by EU Member States.

    The Project

    DTŚ Expressway II concerns the construction of the Western section (15.8 km) of a high capacity urban highway between the agglomeration of Katowice and Gliwice (some 31 km in Total) via Chorzow, Swietochlowice, Ruda Slaska and Zabrze. The DTŚ expressway II is a continuation of the DTŚ expressway I, also partially financed by the EIB, which consisted of the construction of a 13 km long section of urban expressway in the Greater Katowice area. The Promoter is Drogowa Trasa Srednicowa S.A. (DTŚ S.A.) an engineering company specialised in the management of investment projects. The range of services covers the full replacement investment and its components as programming, preparation, implementation and supervision of the implementation, maintenance and design which is responsible for all activities relating to the design, construction, financing and operation of the proposed projects. The main decision-making body of the (DTŚ S.A.) is its meeting of shareholders. A 5-member Supervisory Board is headed by a representative of the Silesia voivodship.

    Findings & Conclusions

    With regard to the Complainant’s concerns regarding the project location within a flood risk zone and the alleged lack of simulation studies of the project’s impact in case of floods, it appears that an initial assessment for flood risk had been carried out by the Meteorological and Water Management National Research institute, which had identified historical and possible floods. The Promoter also confirmed that in light of the initial identified risk areas, additional precise and detailed maps of flood hazards will be drawn up together with a mathematical hydraulic modelling for the rivers indicated in the initial flood map. However, the National and EU laws do not forbid the implementation of projects located in areas of flood zones.

    In addition, it appears that the Promoter obtained the required permissions by the water law pursuant to Article 11d section 2 of the Act of 10 April 2003 on special rules for preparation and implementation of projects in national roads and provided the EIB with a copy of the final construction permit for the contested section that was issued on 2 December 2013.

    However, it is important to highlight that the complainant also lodged a complaint with the European Commission which from a preliminary analysis of the complaint, did not identify any breach of EU Law at that stage. However, due to the ongoing national court reviews at the time of the lodged complaint, the Commission had discontinued its review on the case, considering the possibility to reassess the case in light of the expected national court decision. The EIB-CM takes note that the national courts had subsequently dismissed the complainant’s allegations and considered them ungrounded.

    From the gathered information as well as the findings reached by EIB-CM’s inquiry into the raised allegations, it appears that the EIB had actively verified, in line with the EIB standard procedures, that the Promoter as well as the competent authorities had taken the necessary measures to identify the project’s impacts in order to avoid, reduce and mitigate them and to ensure the compliance with the EIB standards as well as with the applicable regulatory framework. In light of the reported findings, the EIB-CM closes the file with no recommendations.