Council Directive 2002/89/EC of 28 November 2002 amending Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community

• Published date: 30 December 2002
• Official Gazette Publication: Official Journal of the European Communities, L 355, 30 December 2002

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32002L0089

Council Directive 2002/89/EC of 28 November 2002 amending Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community

Official Journal L 355 , 30/12/2002 P. 0045 - 0060

Council Directive 2002/89/EC

of 28 November 2002

amending Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 37 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission(1),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament(2),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee(3),

Whereas:

(1) Council Directive 2000/29/EC of 8 May 2000 on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community(4) sets out the Community plant health regime, specifying the phytosanitary conditions, procedures and formalities to which plants and plant products are subjected when introduced into, or moved within, the Community.

(2) With respect to the procedures and formalities, to which plants and plant products are subjected when introduced in the Community, certain clarifications should be provided and further detailed provisions are required in certain areas.

(3) The phytosanitary procedures and formalities should be completed before customs clearance takes place. Since consignments of plants or plant products do not necessarily undergo phytosanitary procedures and formalities in the same Member State as that in which customs clearance takes place, a system of cooperation in communication and information among the responsible official bodies and the customs offices should be established.

(4) In order to improve the protection against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products, Member States should intensify the checks required. Those checks should be effective and carried out in a harmonised manner throughout the Community.

(5) The fees charged for such checks should be based on a transparent cost calculation and aligned in all Member States as much as possible.

(6) In the light of experience, several other provisions of Directive 2000/29/EC should be completed, clarified or amended in the light of developments.

(7) Since the implementation of the conditions of the internal market, phytosanitary certificates as established in the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) are no longer used for the marketing of plants or plant products within the Community. It is however important to keep standardised certificates issued by Member States under the IPPC.

(8) Some of the functions of the "single authority" of each Member State for coordination and contact in the practical operations of the Community plant health regime require specific scientific or technical knowledge. It must therefore be made possible, to delegate specific tasks to another service.

(9) The current provisions on the procedure for the amendment of the Annexes of Directive 2000/29/EC by the Commission and for the adoption of derogation decisions include some procedural conditions which are no longer necessary or justified. It is also necessary to base amendments to the Annexes, more explicitly, on a technical justification consistent with the pest risk involved. The procedure for the adoption of emergency measures does not provide the possibility for a rapid adoption of interim measures consistent with the level of emergency in specific cases. The provisions on these three procedures should therefore be amended accordingly.

(10) The list of tasks in respect of which the Commission may organise plant health checks under its authority, should be extended, to take into account the widening of the field of plant health activities through new practices and experiences.

(11) It is appropriate to clarify certain aspects of the procedure for the refunding of the Community Phytosanitary contribution.

(12) Some provisions of Directive 2000/29/EC (first, second and fourth subparagraphs of Article 3(7)), as well as Articles 7, 8 and 9 have been superseded by other provisions since 1 June 1993, and have therefore become redundant since then. They should consequently be deleted.

(13) Under Article 4 of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement), the Community must recognise, under certain conditions, the equivalence of phytosanitary measures of other Parties to that Agreement. The procedures for such recognition in the field of plant health should be specified in Directive 2000/29/EC.

(14) The measures necessary for the implementation of Directive 2000/29/EC should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission(5),

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Directive 2000/29/EC is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 1 shall be amended as follows:

(a) in the second subparagraph of paragraph 1, the following point shall be added:

"(d) the model of 'Phytosanitary Certificates' and 'phytosanitary certificates for Re-export' or their electronic equivalent issued by Member States under the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).";

(b) Paragraph 4 shall be replaced by the following:

"(4) The Member States shall ensure a close, rapid, immediate and effective cooperation between themselves and the Commission in relation to matters covered by this Directive. To this end, each Member State shall establish or designate a single authority, which shall be responsible, at least, for the coordination and contact in relation to such matters. The official plant protection organisation set up under the IPPC shall preferably be designated for this purpose.

This authority and any subsequent change shall be notified to the other Member States and to the Commission.

In accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2) the single authority may be authorised to assign or delegate tasks of coordination or contact, insofar as they relate to distinct plant health matters covered by this Directive, to another service.";

2. Article 2(1) shall be amended as follows:

(a) point (a) shall be amended as follows:

(i) the first subparagraph shall be replaced by the following:

"plants shall be considered to mean: living plants and specified living parts thereof, including seeds;"

(ii) The second subparagraph shall be amended as follows:

- the following seventh indent shall be inserted after the sixth indent:

"- leaves, foliage,"

- the existing seventh indent shall become the eight indent,

- the following ninth indent shall be added:

"- live pollen"

- the following tenth indent shall be added:

"- bud-wood, cuttings, scions"

- the following eleventh indent shall be added:

"- any other part of plants, which may be specified in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 18(2).";

(b) point (e) shall be replaced by the following:

"(e) harmful organisms shall be considered to mean: any species, strain or biotype of plant, animal or pathogenic agent injurious to plants or plant products";

(c) in point (f), third subparagraph, the terms "Article 8" shall be replaced by "Article 18(2)";

(d) point (g), shall be amended as follows:

(i) In the first subparagraph, in point (i), the word "services(s)" shall be replaced by the word "organisation(s)".

(ii) The fifth subparagraph shall be replaced by the following:"The single authority referred to in Article 1(4) shall inform the Commission of the responsible official bodies in the Member State concerned. The Commission shall forward that information to the other Member States.";

(e) in point (h), third subparagraph, in the second sentence and in the fifth subparagraph, the words "in writing" shall be inserted between the words "notified" and "to the Commission";

(f) in point (i), first subparagraph, the first indent shall be replaced by the following:

"- by representatives of the official national plant protection organisation of a third country or, under their responsibility, by other public officers who are technically qualified and duly authorised by that official national plant protection organisation, in the case of statements or measures related to the issuing of the phytosanitary certificates and phytosanitary certificates for re-exports, or their electronic equivalent";

(g) the following points shall be added:

"(j) point of entry shall be considered to mean: the place where plants, plant products or other objects are brought for the first time into the customs territory of the Community: the airport in the case of air transport, the port in the case of maritime or fluvial transport, the station in the case of railway transport, and the place of the customs office responsible for the area where the Community inland frontier is crossed, in the case of any other transport;

(k) official body of point of entry shall be considered to mean: the responsible official body in a Member State in charge of the point of entry;

(l) official body of destination shall be considered to mean: the responsible official body in a Member State in charge of the area where the 'customs office of destination' is situated;

(m) customs office of point of entry shall be considered to mean: the office of the point of entry as defined in (j) above;

(n) customs office of destination shall be considered to mean: the office of destination within the meaning of Article 340b(3) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93(6);

(o) lot shall be...