P.mms Legal Prevails at TAR Sicily in Challenge to Annulment in Self-Protection

P.mms Legal represented an economic operator active at the Ronciglio quay of the Port of Trapani in proceedings before the Regional Administrative Court of Sicily (TAR Sicilia). The firm obtained a favourable judgment (sentence no. 2498/2025) annulling the Regional Assessorate for Territory and Environment's decision of 6 February 2025, which had revoked in self-protection the Administration's "presa d'atto" acknowledging the company's adhesion to the general authorisation for atmospheric emissions. The regional measure had been prompted by ARPA technical inspections and was followed by a separate procedure seeking the forfeiture of the company's occupation authorisation for the state-owned area. The dispute arose from the company's storage and handling of stone material at the Ronciglio quay since 2018. The company had secured an early occupation authorisation for the demanial area and, after a conference of services, the Port System Authority excluded the need for an Environmental Impact Assessment (VIA), deeming a Valutazione di Incidenza Ambientale (VINCA) sufficient; a VINCA was subsequently issued by the Municipality of Trapani. Later reports and a criminal investigation led the Regional Environmental Protection Agency (ARPA) to perform technical checks indicating that the works should have been subject to a VIA, which in turn motivated the regional administration's annulment in self-protection. The TAR accepted the appeal and annulled the administration's self-protection measure, finding that the annulment was not preceded by the mandatory notification of the initiation of the administrative procedure to the company, as required by article 7 of Law no. 241/1990. The Court emphasised that such procedural guarantees were particularly necessary given the Administration's earlier exclusion of VIA, which had created a legitimate expectation for the private party. The Tribunal also upheld the objection concerning the violation of the "reasonable" time limit for the exercise of the power of annullamento d'ufficio, fixed at 12 months by article 21‑nonies of Law no. 241/1990, and rejected the Administration's argument that article 29 of Legislative Decree no. 152/2006 (the Environmental Code) constituted a special rule derogating from that general time limit. P.mms Legal represented the economic operator with a team composed by: Massimiliano Mangano, co‑founder, administrative and environmental law; Lucia Interlandi, associate, administrative and environmental law.

P.mms Legal Prevails at TAR Sicily in Challenge to Annulment in Self-Protection

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