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| **[World Trade]{.smallcaps}**                    |                   |
|                                                  |                   |
| **[Organization]{.smallcaps}**                   |                   |
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|                                                  | **                |
|                                                  | G/SPS/N/AUS/164** |
|                                                  |                   |
|                                                  | 21 June 2004      |
+--------------------------------------------------+-------------------+
|                                                  | (04-2684)         |
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|                                                  |                   |
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| **Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary        | Original: English |
| Measures**                                       |                   |
+--------------------------------------------------+-------------------+

**NOTIFICATION**

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| ** | **Member to Agreement notifying:** [AUSTRALIA]{.underline}      |
| 1. |                                                                 |
| ** | If applicable, name of local government involved:               |
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| ** | **Agency responsible:** The Australian Government Department of |
| 2. | Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF)                      |
| ** |                                                                 |
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| ** | **Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified  |
| 3. | in national schedules deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers       |
| ** | should be provided in addition, where applicable):** Solid wood |
|    | packaging material used in supporting, protecting or carrying   |
|    | cargo imported into Australia.                                  |
+----+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| ** | **Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent     |
| 4. | relevant or practicable:** All countries                        |
| ** |                                                                 |
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| ** | **Title, language and number of pages of the notified           |
| 5. | document:** Industry Notice: Proposed changes to AQIS import    |
| ** | requirements for wood packaging under *ISPM 15: Guidelines for  |
|    | Regulating Wood Packing Material in International Trade.*       |
|    | (available in English, 2 pages).                                |
+----+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| ** | **Description of content:** Australia proposes to adopt the     |
| 6. | *International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures No. 15:      |
| ** | Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packing Material in              |
|    | International Trade* (ISPM 15). Australia has regulated         |
|    | standards for wood packaging material and dunnage for many      |
|    | years, and, intends to incorporate the provisions of ISPM 15    |
|    | into Australia\'s existing measures for wood packaging material |
|    | and dunnage. In addition to the ISPM 15 measures, Australia     |
|    | will maintain the following existing requirements:              |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | -   freedom from bark; and                                      |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | -   methyl bromide fumigation at 48 grams per cubic metre for   |
|    |     24 hours (not 16 hours) and the timber at time of treatment |
|    |     being no greater than 200mm in diameter in the smallest     |
|    |     plane.                                                      |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Australia will re-evaluate its required treatment period of 24  |
|    | hours after the findings of an international review of the      |
|    | methyl bromide treatment specified under the ISPM 15 standard   |
|    | have been released.                                             |
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| ** | **Objective and rationale: \[   \] food safety, \[   \] animal  |
| 7. | health, \[ X \] plant protection, \[   \] protect humans from   |
| ** | animal/plant pest or disease, \[   \] protect territory from    |
|    | other damage from pests**                                       |
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| ** | **International standard, guideline or recommendation:**        |
| 8. |                                                                 |
| ** | **\[**   **\] Codex Alimentarius Commission, \[   \] World      |
|    | Organization for Animal Health (OIE), \[ X \] International     |
|    | Plant Protection Convention, \[   \] None**                     |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | **If an international standard, guideline or recommendation     |
|    | exists, give the appropriate reference and briefly identify     |
|    | deviations:** *International Standard for Phytosanitary         |
|    | Measures No.15: Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging        |
|    | Material in International Trade.* Deviations as described in 6  |
|    | above.                                                          |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Australia\'s existing import conditions for solid wood          |
|    | packaging material and dunnage will continue to be offered in   |
|    | parallel to the proposed import conditions incorporating ISPM   |
|    | 15. This will ensure continued market access to Australia for   |
|    | countries not in a position to implement ISPM 15.               |
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| ** | **Relevant documents and language(s) in which these are         |
| 9. | available:** *International Standards for Phytosanitary         |
| ** | Measures Publication No. 15 - Guidelines for Regulating Wood    |
|    | Packaging Material in International Trade (ISPM 15)*. The full  |
|    | text of ISPM 15 is available in English at:                     |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | <http://www.ippc.int/servlet/BinaryDownloaderS                  |
|    | ervlet/ISPM_15_English.pdf?filename=1055161712885_ISPM15_e.pdf> |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Notice to Industry No. 19: Proposed changes to AQIS import      |
|    | requirements for wood packaging material under *ISPM 15:        |
|    | Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging Material in            |
|    | International Trade.* This document may be accessed at:         |
|    | [http://www.aqis.gov.au/iian](http://www.daff.gov.au/c          |
|    | ontent/output.cfm?ObjectID=5004A72A-0B7D-4441-988D67815F27F4C0) |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Australia\'s existing import requirements for solid wood        |
|    | packaging material are outlined in the Cargo Containers:        |
|    | Quarantine Aspects and Procedures document. AQIS approved non   |
|    | permanent treatments for wood packaging material are described  |
|    | in Appendix II of this document. This document may be accessed  |
|    | at: <http://www.aqis.gov.au/cargoqap>                           |
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| *  | **Proposed date of adoption:** 1 September 2004                 |
| *1 |                                                                 |
| 0. |                                                                 |
| ** |                                                                 |
+----+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| *  | **Proposed date of entry into force:** 1 September 2004         |
| *1 |                                                                 |
| 1. |                                                                 |
| ** |                                                                 |
+----+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| *  | **Final date for comments:** 16 August 2004                     |
| *1 |                                                                 |
| 2. | **Agency or authority designated to handle comments:            |
| ** | \[ X \] National notification authority, \[   \] National       |
|    | enquiry point, or address, fax number and E-mail address (if    |
|    | available) of other body:**                                     |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | The Australian SPS Notification Point                           |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | GPO Box 858                                                     |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | CANBERRA ACT 2601                                               |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Fax: + (612) 6272 3678                                          |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Email/Internet: <sps.contact@daff.gov.au>                       |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Website: [http://www.daff.gov.au](http://www.daff.gov.au/)      |
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| *  | **Texts available from: \[   \] National notification           |
| *1 | authority, \[ X \] National enquiry point, or address, fax      |
| 3. | number and E-mail address (if available) of other body:**       |
| ** |                                                                 |
|    | The Australian SPS Notification Point                           |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | GPO Box 858                                                     |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | CANBERRA ACT 2601                                               |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Fax: + (612) 6272 3678                                          |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Email/Internet: <sps.contact@daff.gov.au>                       |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Website: [http://www.daff.gov.au](http://www.daff.gov.au/)      |
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