The administrative court acknowledged the woman's appeal against an implicit refusal by Minister for the Environment, Carole Dieschbourg. The court argued that because the Minister did not respond to the woman's enquiry about the expansion of a stable in the central region of the country for over three months, the woman had to be given authorisation to proceed with the project. The issue should be re-referred to the Minister and all charges will be covered by the state.
The issue goes back to October 2017, when the woman submitted an enquiry to the Ministry of the Environment about, among other things, expanding a stable for dairy cows, the construction of a silo, and the refurbishment of a barn. Dieschbourg then requested further information in March 2018, which the woman submitted one month later. The minister answered in September 2018. In the meantime, the woman had submitted her case to the administrative court in August 2018.
The first judges of the court wrote in their judgment that the plots on which the construction work was to take place were situated within a green zone. The environmental protection bill from July 2018 stipulates that construction work within a green zone is only permitted under certain conditions, such as for the purposes of agricultural activity.
Authorisation had not been granted because the stable for dairy cows had already been substantially modified before without the necessary authorisation. A flat of 159 square metres was built, which in turn led to criminal proceedings.
The court argued that the construction work should have been authorised, but was refused due to the stable modifications, which were not authorised. Dieschbourg's decision should be amended in order to grant the woman the necessary authorisation, e.g. for the construction of a silo.
When it comes to the construction work in relation to the land with the dairy cow stable, the court stated that the Minister could authorise the expansion of a facility that was in violation of certain points of a previously granted authorisation. According to the court, the authorisation could be granted under the condition that the facility be returned to its previous state in order to conform to the previous authorisation. The judges stated that this would be easy to do.
This in turn means that this decision by the Minister should also be amended and the woman should receive authorisation for the expansion of the stable. However, the woman was not granted compensation for the proceedings, which amounted to €8,500.
