Opinion of Mr Advocate General Lenz

Mr President,

Members of the Court,

1. The Court is familiar with the Commission's application in this case, in which it asks the Court to declare that the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Council Directive 83/513/EEC of 26 September 1983,on limit values and quality objectives for cadmium discharges, by failing to adopt, within the time-limit laid down in Article 6 of that directive, the measures necessary to ensure proper transposition of the directive or by failing to give immediate notice thereof to the Commission.

2. The seven points which the Commission representative has just raised are set out in the Report for the Hearing. The representative of the Italian Government has not denied the infringement of the Treaty, either at the hearing today or in the written procedure. Consequently, Mr President and Members of the Court, I propose that the Court uphold the Commission's application and order the Italian Republic to pay the costs.

1 Original language: German.

2 OJ 1983 L 291, p. 1.