By Madga Panoutsopoulou
ATHENS
The European Court of Justice imposed on Tuesday a €10 million fine on the Greek government for disregarding EU waste management directives by failing to close down illegal landfills.
The country was also ordered to pay an extra €14.5 million for every six months that the landfills remain open.
This six-month fine will be reduced by €40,000 for each landfill that is shut down.
The first fine is not due until June 2015, which gives the Greek government an opportunity to close down the remaining illegal dumps.
Responding to the European Court of Justice’s decision on Tuesday, the Environment Ministry said authorities would continue their efforts to “reduce to zero” the number of illegal landfills in Greece.
According to Greece's Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change, there are 39 illegal landfills operating in the country, 21 of which are on islands.
The EU waste directive obliges all member states to make sure that their waste is disposed of without endangering human life or harming the environment.
In addition to dumping, uncontrolled disposal and abandonment of waste is prohibited and all waste management operations must be completed by experienced authorities in accordance with the directive.
Greece was fined €5.4 million in 2000 for failing to meet EU directives with regards to one of the dumps in Hania, a region of the Greek island Crete.
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