Equal treatment: The ECJ rules that, even if the steel and non ferrous, plastic and chemical industries are not equally considered within the scope of the Greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme, this breach of the equal treatment principle does not lead the Directive 2003/87 of 13th of October 2003 to be invalid since it is governed by a step by step approach (Arcelor Atlantique et Lorraine)

*This article is an automatic translation of the original article, provided here for your convenience. Read the original article. – ECJ, 16 December 2008, Société Arcelor Atlantique et Lorraine and Others v. Prime Minister and Others, Case C-127/07 The steel sector is, due to the use of fossil materials that emit high levels of CO2, subject to the greenhouse gas emissions trading system. However, some of the goods it offers on the markets are in direct competition with those produced by the plastics and aluminium sector, which are not subject to the carbon constraint. The Court of Justice of the European Communities, while recognising the existence of a difference in treatment within competing sectors, confirms the validity of Directive 2003/87 on the establishment of a European scheme