L’integrazione dell’ambiente nelle decisioni pubbliche e il carattere procedurale della valutazione ambientale strategica

The article concerns the strategic environmental assessment (SEA) and particularly its procedural nature, as established by European Directive 01/42/EC. This directive defines SEA as a tool for ensuring the effective integration of environmental interests into public policies and decisions, in implementation of Article 11 TFEU. The study examined the reasons that led to the exclusion of a formalistic conception of SEA as an ex-post control, favouring instead a dynamic and integrated approach in planning and programming procedures, from the preliminary stages to the monitoring of their implementation. The procedural nature of this assessment resulted in the rulings of the Italian Constitutional Court, which affirmed an ‘administrative procedure reserve’. The purpose of this ‘reservation’ is to ensure that public strategic planning and pro gramming decisions strike an appropriate balance between interests, giving priority to environmental interests.