EU Court of Justice confirms that environmental impacts of life-time extensions must be assessed

In a long awaited judgement, the CJEU has clarified that Member States authorities are obliged to conduct assessments under both the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Habitats Directive when deciding to extend the operating time of polluting infrastructure. The judgement answered a set of questions referred by the Belgian Constitutional Court concerning a 2015 law extending the life-time of nuclear reactors Doel 1 and 2. It addresses a hole in the applicability of both Directives and is set to send ripples through national planning laws, far beyond the nuclear sector.

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