WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/GEN/435
23 October 2003
(03-5593)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Original:  Spanish
IMPLEMENTATION OF INTERNATIONAL STANDARD FOR PHYTOSANITARY
MEASURES NO. 15 "GUIDELINES FOR REGULATING WOOD
PACKAGING MATERIAL IN INTERNATIONAL TRADE" IN
NATIONAL STANDARDS
Statement by Chile at the Meeting of 29-30 October 2003
1. Chile's Agriculture and Livestock Service (SAG), in its capacity as the National Plant
Protection Organization (NPPO), recognizes the ri ght of Members to establish the phytosanitary
measures necessary to ensure plant protection and to protect their territory from damage caused by the
entry, establishment or spread of pests.  It also recognizes that wood packaging material presents a
high phytosanitary risk as regards the spread of pests, as confirmed by information in the SAG and
other NPPO databases on the interception of major pests in such packaging.
2. Chile agrees with the principles underlying and technical and scientific basis for the issue of
International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) No. 15 "Guidelines for Regulating Wood
Packaging Material in International Trade" by the FAO International Plant Protection Convention.  As
an exporting country of wood for packaging mate rials, Chile does, however, wish to express its
concern with regard to the implementation of this ISPM.
A number of countries are seeking to adopt this standard expeditiously as an import
requirement, without any further analysis and without taking Articles 5 and 6 of the Agreement on the
Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement) into consideration with regard
to the fact that " phytosanitary measures are adapted to the ... phytosanitary characteristics of the area
... from which the product originated and to which the product is destined " or with regard to the need
for risk assessment and management to be in direct correlation with the appropriate level ofprotection.  Neither are they taking into account that, if the spirit of paragraph 2 of Annex B of the
SPS Agreement is to be faithfully observed, "Except in urgent circumstances, Members shall allow a
reasonable interval between the publication of a sani tary or phytosanitary regulation and its entry into
force in order to allow time for producers in exporting  Members, and particularly in developing country
Members, to adapt their products and methods of production to the requirements of the importingMember".
3. In the light of the above, Chile proposes that countries incorporating these guidelines into
their import requirements take the following factors into consideration:
Implementation period
4. Most national standards under consultation and statements of intent with regard to the
implementation of ISPM No. 15 specify January to March 2004 as the date of entry into force.G/SPS/GEN/435
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5. If, however, the following are taken into consideration:
• the industry's need for major investment in drying facilities and infrastructure, given
that the existing installed capacity will be unable to meet the growing demand to dry
or fumigate wood for packaging materials;
• the need to decide, in conjunction with the International Plant Protection Convention,
upon the system for using the registered mark in the wood packaging material
certification process;
• the need to establish accreditation systems for wood treatment companies and the
companies certifying the process;
• the need to set up supervisory and audit systems in NPPO-accredited companies;
a reasonable interval for entry into force in the signatory countries is required, pursuant to Annex B of
the SPS Agreement.
Strength of phytosanitary measures appropriate to the phytosanitary status of each country
6. Standards under consultation contend that the origin of wood packaging materials for general
cargo is difficult to define and that such materials are often reused, recycled or remanufactured, forwhich reason the measure would be applied uniformly, regardless of origin.
7. Such an argument fails to take into account the fact that Article 3.3. of ISPM No. 15 provides
for other measures, by clearly stating that:
"NPPOs may accept any measures other than thos e listed in Annex I by arrangement with
their trading partners, especially in cases where the measures listed in Annex I cannot beapplied or verified in the exporting country.  Such measures should be technically justified
and respect the principles of transparency, non-discrimination and equivalence.
The NPPOs of importing countries should cons ider other arrangements for wood packaging
material associated with exports from any country (or particular source) where evidence isprovided which demonstrates that the pest risk is adequately managed or absent (e.g., areas
with similar phytosanitary situations or pest-free areas)."
8. Full effect should be given to Articles 4, 5 and 6 of the SPS Agreement with regard to
equivalence of sanitary and phytosanitary measures, assessment of risk and determination of theappropriate level of sanitary or phytosanitary protection, and adaptation to regional conditions,
including pest- or disease-free areas and areas of low pest or disease prevalence.
Wood packaging material for plant prod ucts with phytosanitary certification
9. With regard to plant products moved for international trade and covered by a phytosanitary
export certificate, the condition of the wood packaging material and cases used - items regulated as
prescribed by the International Plant Protection Convention and subject to the phytosanitary
inspection measures required for certification - are also covered by this certificate.  One further point
which should be made is that the databases of countries which apply packaging control measures
report no cases of pest interception in wood packaging material or cases used to transport plant
products with phytosanitary certification and which meet the requirements of being bark-free and free
of live insects in any stage of development and of any damage attributable thereto.G/SPS/GEN/435
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10. On the basis of the above, and in accordance with ISPM No. 15, the export phytosanitary
inspection of wooden cases and wood packaging mate rial for plant products should be considered a
phytosanitary action or an equivalent phytosanitary measure , pursuant to ISPM No. 15 and the SPS
Agreement, respectively.
Implementation of ISPM No. 15 in a more restric tive manner than required by the international
standard
11. Some countries have expressed concern over the potential transmission of quarantine fungi by
wood or, more particularly, wood packaging material . Annex I of ISPM No. 15 mentions insects and
the pine wood nematode  as the key pests for which treatment is intended.  The international standard
makes no mention of fungi; establishing more stringent phytosanitary measures than those of the
international standard would therefore require strong technical justification and have to be in keepingwith the appropriate level of protection established by the country in question.
12. Accordingly, countries must comply with Article 3.3 of the SPS Agreement on
harmonization, with regard to the need for scientific justification for any departure from the
international standard, and with Article 5.6 of the Agreement, with regard to assessment of risk and
determination of the appropriate level of protection, w ith regard to ensuring that such measures are not
more trade-restrictive than required, taking into account technical and economic feasibility.
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