On Wednesday, the European Commission announced it will be taking Portugal back to court due to the country’s failure to abide by a 2019 judgement on conservation of Natura 2000 sites.
In 2019, the European Court of Justice ruled that Portugal did not designate 61 Sites of Community Importance (SCIs) as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), nor did Portugal set up the necessary measures to protect biodiversity within the SACs. These are requirements under the European Union’s Habitats Directive.
The Habitats Directive
The Habitats Directive was implemented in order to protect Europe’s flora and fauna, part of the European Union’s Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.
Under the Habitats Directive, the European Commission, together with Member States, the European Environment Agency, and experts, selected SCIs across Europe, which then became part of the Natura 2000 Network, a coordinated network of protected areas. These sites were selected using scientific criteria which were included in the Habitats Directive.
Moreover, Member States are obliged to designate the selected SCIs as SACs, and “to introduce the necessary management measures to maintain or restore the species and habitats present to a good condition”.
Under these rules, Portugal was required to designate 7 SACs in the Atlantic region by 7 December 2010, and 54 further SACs in the Mediterranean region by 19 July 2012.
Lithium Mining in Portugal
Portugal is an active miner of lithium, the rare metal needed to enable the transition to low-carbon energy. Lithium is an indispensable component of rechargeable batteries, as well as systems to store renewables such as solar and wind. Lithium mining is notoriously harmful for flora and fauna.
There has been extensive coverage of how the European Union wants to be less dependent on the import of materials required for the green transition. Yet, the opening local mines risks harming biodiversity and polluting the bloc’s groundwater.
Clashes between the bloc’s need for renewables and biodiversity protection were previously highlighted when the European Parliament raised a question to the European Commission regarding Portuguese licenses for lithium mining in protected areas.
In November 2023, it was exposed that corruption in Portugal had led to lithium mining concessions. Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa publicly apologized to Portuguese citizens, saying: “Portugal does not waste strategic opportunities for its development”.
At least one of the speedily licensed lithium mining operations was in an area of which nearly half of the area (4,280 hectares) is classified as a SCI. Comparing a map of Portugal’s mining projects and concessions shows significant overlap between SCIs and potential lithium extraction projects.
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