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| **[World Trade]{.smallcaps}**                    |                   |
|                                                  |                   |
| **[Organization]{.smallcaps}**                   |                   |
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|                                                  | **                |
|                                                  | G/SPS/N/MEX/204** |
|                                                  |                   |
|                                                  | 10 December 2003  |
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|                                                  | (03-6536)         |
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|                                                  |                   |
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| **Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary        | Original: Spanish |
| Measures**                                       |                   |
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NOTIFICATION OF EMERGENCY MEASURES

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| ** | **Member to Agreement notifying:** [MEXICO]{.underline}         |
| 1. |                                                                 |
| ** | **If applicable, name of local government involved:**           |
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| ** | **Agency responsible:** Ministry of the Environment and Natural |
| 2. | Resources (SEMARNAT)                                            |
| ** |                                                                 |
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| ** | **Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified  |
| 3. | in national schedules deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers may   |
| ** | be provided in addition, where applicable).** Wood packaging    |
|    | material in international trade                                 |
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| ** | **Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent     |
| 4. | relevant or practicable:** Any trading partner marketing        |
| ** | products with wood packaging material destined for Mexico.      |
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| ** | **Title and number of pages of the notified document:**         |
| 5. | Emergency Mexican Official Standard NOM-EM-144-SEMARNAT-2003    |
| ** | Establishing the Technical Specifications for the Phytosanitary |
|    | Measure (Treatment) and Use of the Mark Certifying the          |
|    | Application Thereof in Relation to Wood Packaging Material in   |
|    | International Trade (6 pages, in Spanish).                      |
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| ** | **Description of content:** This Emergency Mexican Official     |
| 6. | Standard establishes the technical specifications for the       |
| ** | recognized phytosanitary measure (treatment) and use of the     |
|    | mark attesting to the application thereof in relation to wood   |
|    | packaging material. This Standard is mandatory throughout       |
|    | Mexican territory.                                              |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | This Emergency Standard is in partial conformity with the       |
|    | International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures \"*Guidelines |
|    | for Regulating Wood Packaging Material in International         |
|    | Trade*\", adopted on 15 March 2002 by the Interim Commission on |
|    | Phytosanitary Measures (ICPM) of the International Plant        |
|    | Protection Convention (IPPC) of the Food and Agriculture        |
|    | Organization (FAO).                                             |
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| ** | **Objective and rationale: \[**   **\] food safety, \[**   **\] |
| 7. | animal health, \[** X **\] plant protection,\                   |
| ** | \[**   **\] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease,   |
|    | \[** X **\] protect territory from other damage from pests**    |
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| ** | **Nature of the urgent problem(s) and reasons for urgent        |
| 8. | action:** The purpose of this Emergency Mexican Official        |
| ** | Standard is to reduce the risk of the introduction into and/or  |
|    | spread within Mexico of quarantine pests associated with wood   |
|    | packaging material in use in international trade (made of       |
|    | coniferous and non-coniferous raw wood) and to subject such     |
|    | material to phytosanitary control by way of the application of  |
|    | a globally recognized mark. There is an urgent need to          |
|    | establish phytosanitary measures in order to eliminate the risk |
|    | of the introduction of most quarantine pests and significantly  |
|    | reduce the risk of that of other pests that may be associated   |
|    | with such packaging material.                                   |
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| ** | **Nature of the urgent problem(s) and reasons for urgent action |
| 8. | (cont\'d):** The grounds for issuing this Emergency Standard    |
| ** | are interceptions at a number of entry points for imported      |
|    | goods and merchandise of non-native quarantine pests in wood    |
|    | packaging material and the fact that the introduction, survival |
|    | and spread of such pests could cause economic and ecological    |
|    | harm to national territory.                                     |
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| ** | **International standard, guideline or recommendation:**        |
| 9. |                                                                 |
| ** | **\[   \] Codex Alimentarius Commission, \[   \] Office         |
|    | International des Epizooties,**                                 |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | **\[ **X** \] International Plant Protection Convention, \[     |
|    |  \] None**                                                      |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | **If an international standard, guideline or recommendation     |
|    | exists, give the appropriate reference and briefly identify     |
|    | deviations:**                                                   |
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| *  | **Relevant documents and language(s) in which these are         |
| *1 | available:** *Diario Oficial de la Federación* (Official        |
| 0. | Journal) of 26 November 2003 (available in Spanish).            |
| ** |                                                                 |
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| *  | **Date of entry into force/period of application (as            |
| *1 | applicable):** Day after publication in the Official Journal /  |
| 1. | six months from the date following publication.                 |
| ** |                                                                 |
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| *  | **Agency or authority designated to handle comments:            |
| *1 | \[ **X** \] National notification authority, \[   \] National   |
| 2. | enquiry point, or address, fax number and E-mail address (if    |
| ** | available) of other body:**                                     |
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| *  | **Texts available from: \[** X **\] National notification       |
| *1 | authority, \[**   **\] National enquiry point or address, fax   |
| 3. | number and E‑mail address (if available) of other body:**       |
| ** |                                                                 |
|    | Web site: [www.economia.gob.mx/?P=85]{.underline} (Standards    |
|    | catalogue).                                                     |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Enquiry point:                                                  |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | E-mail: <cidgn@economia.gob.mx>                                 |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | General Directorate of Standards:                               |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Tel.: (52+55) 5729-9300, Ext. 4156                              |
|    |                                                                 |
|    | Fax: (52+55) 5520-9715                                          |
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