We welcome with satisfaction the response of the Council of State regarding the appeals filed by the Ossola Protected Areas Agency and the Piedmont Region, which sought the annulment/reform of the previous precautionary suspension order issued by the Piedmont Regional Administrative Court (TAR) for the works on the Grande Est in Devero.
The Council of State, after hearing the parties on January 11, 2024, "within the limits and reasons given, having considered the appeals, rejects them."
Even in the second gradeof judgment, the legitimacy of the precautions we requested regarding the "risk of compromising the integrity of the Alpi Veglia e Devero-Monte Giove Natura 2000 site", protected by EU directives, has been confirmed.
Together with other environmental protection associations, in May 2023, we filed a lawsuit with the TAR contesting the approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment (VIncA) related to the project "Il grande Est di Devero: percorso ciclo-escursionistico tra gli alpeggi di Bettelmatt" (Devero Great East: cycling and hiking trail among the alpine pastures of Bettelmatt): an assessment that we consider "inappropriate" under the current legislation on projects proposed within Natura 2000 sites.
At the start of the works, undertaken despite our filed appeal, we requested a precautionary suspension of the construction site to ensure that the project was not carried out before a substantive discussion in front of a judge.
On October 5, 2023, the Piedmont Regional Administrative Court (TAR) ruled, ordering a precautionary suspension of the works and scheduling a substantive discussion in November 2024.
The Ossola Protected Areas Agency and the Piedmont Region then appealed to the Council of State, seeking the annulment/reform of the TAR's order.
The Council of State rejected the appeal.
Simultaneously, the Council of State asked the Piedmont TAR to expedite the substantive hearing. We agree with this decision since it confirms the need to "avoid irreversible effects following the completion of the works (with the rejection, on this point, of the precautionary appeal)" and potentially allows the resumption of work in the event of a future substantive judgment favourable to the proponents.