JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Second Chamber)

of 13 January 2005

in Case C-117/03 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Consiglio di Stato): Società Italiana Dragaggi SpA and Others v Ministero delle Infrastrutture e dei Trasporti and Regione Autonoma del Friuli Venezia Giulia (1)

(Directive 92/43/EEC - Conservation of natural habitats - Wild fauna and flora - National list of sites eligible for identification as sites of Community importance - Conservation measures)

(2005/C 57/13)

Language of the case: Italian

In Case C-117/03: reference for a preliminary ruling under Article 234 EC from the Consiglio di Stato (Italy), made by order of 17 December 2002, received at the Court on 18 March 2003, in the proceedings between Società Italiana Dragaggi SpA and Others v Ministero delle Infrastrutture e dei Trasporti and Regione Autonoma del Friuli Venezia Giulia – the Court (Second Chamber) composed of C.W.A. Timmermans, President of the Chamber, C. Gulmann (Rapporteur), J.-P. Puissochet, N. Colneric and J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, Judges; J. Kokott, Advocate General; M. Múgica Arzamendi, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 13 January 2005, the operative part of which is as follows:

On a proper construction of Article 4(5) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, the protective measures prescribed in Article 6(2), (3) and (4) of that directive are required only as regards sites which, in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 4(2) of the directive, are on the list of sites selected as sites of Community importance adopted by the Commission of the European Communities in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21 of the directive.

In the case of sites eligible for identification as sites of Community importance which are included in the national lists transmitted to the Commission and, in particular, sites hosting priority natural habitat types or priority species, the Member States are, by virtue of Directive 92/43, required to take protective measures that are appropriate, from the point of view of the directive's conservation objective, for the purpose of safeguarding the relevant ecological interest which those sites have at national level.

(1)  OJ C 146 of 21.06.2003.