WRITTEN QUESTION E-0451/09
by Gerardo Galeote (PPE‑DE)
to the Commission

Gibraltar has begun the urban project Eastside with the aim of constructing skyscrapers, hotels, more than two thousand homes, as well as a marina for 500 boats, squares, gardens and swimming pools.

Under the Treaty of Utrecht Spain ceded the Rock of Gibraltar to the United Kingdom in 1713. This initiative violates this treaty because the new installations would be built on Spanish waters to the east, beyond the territory of the Rock of Gibraltar.

Furthermore, the tipping operations to raise the sea-bed infringe environmental preservation legislation, and materials which could prove toxic have also been used. The environmental impact of these works, which involve reclaiming land from the sea, is beginning to cause changes in tidal movement.

Has the Commission already evaluated the environmental consequences of this initiative? If not, does it consider it to be necessary to carry out such an evaluation?

OJ C 189, 13/07/2010