Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 997: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the European Commission's view that the proposed construction of the M3 motorway through the Tara-Skryne valley amounts to a possible non-compliance by the Government with the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive as it applies to the discovery of sites of archaeological importance at a late stage in the construction authorisation process; and his response to this view. [12227/08]

John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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In the course of an Additional Reasoned Opinion received in June 2007 the European Commission expressed its view that under the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive a new environmental impact assessment (EIA) should have been carried out before a decision was taken on how to proceed in relation to the newly discovered National Monument at Lismullin, County Meath, on the route of the M3 motorway.

On 31 August 2007, the Irish authorities responded in detail to the concerns raised by the Commission in respect of the National Monument at Lismullin, stating, in the course of that response, that they considered that the provisions of EU and Irish Law were fully complied with in this case and that they are supported in that view by legal advice from the Attorney General as well as judgements from the High and Supreme Courts.

In a press release dated 17 October 2007, the European Commission stated that it had decided to refer Ireland to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in a case concerning European Community (EC) legislation on environmental impact assessments and, inter alia, provisions of Irish legislation governing the removal of important archaeological sites. To date the Irish authorities have received no notification from the Court of any such referral.