EU Puts Legal Pressure On Those Who Refuse Noise Regulation (moved from ATSNN), page 1

The EU council stated that unless the 11 remaining countries that are holding out from the Noise regulations, agree to the policy by the end of this month then legal repurcussions will be taken. This comes as a surprise after the failure of the EU constitution to be enacted.

cnn.netscape.cnn.com
The European Commission said it was initiating legal action against 11 states which had failed to incorporate the rules into national noise pollution legislation, which should have been done by July 2004.

The states are Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal and Britain.

"The EU's objective is to substantially reduce the number of people in Europe affected by noise by 2012," Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said in a statement.

"To reach this objective, it is crucial that all member states implement the agreed measures."

The rules require states to draw maps that track the level of noise from cars, planes, machinery and other sources in areas inhabited by more than 100,000 people. Busy intersections or traffic networks are also targeted.

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I do not understand why this must be a part of the EU's legislation. Especially since the failure of the constitution, I thought that the EU had lost its flame. This however may fuel nationalist feelings and further ruin any effort for the EU. The control noise levels of other countries by a central continental government should some what discourage support.