WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/N/CRI/48 
31 August 2006 
 (06-4160) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures  Original:  Spanish 
  
NOTIFICATION 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   COSTA RICA
 
If applicable, name of local government involved:  
2. Agency responsible:  Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganade ría, Servicio Fitosanitario del 
Estado  (Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, State Phytosanitary Service) 
3. Products covered (provide tariff item numbe r(s) as specified in national schedules 
deposited with the WTO;  ICS numbers should be provided in addition, where 
applicable):  Regulation governing the registration, us e and control of sy nthetic formulated 
pesticides, technical grade active ingredients,  co-formulants and related substances for 
agricultural use.  Intern ational Classifica tion for Standards (ICS) code 65.100 
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable:  
 Trading partners 
5. Title, language and number of pages of the notified document:  Decreto Ejecutivo 
Nº MAG-S-MINAE-MEIC del Reglamento sob re Registro, Uso y Control de Plaguicidas 
Sintéticos Formulados, Ingrediente Activ o Grado Técnico, Coadyuvantes y Sustancias 
Afines de Uso Agrícola  (Executive Decree No. MAG-S-MINAE-MEIC of the Ministries of 
Agriculture and Livestock, of Health, of th e Environment and Energy and of the Economy, 
Industry and Trade:  Regulation Governing the Registration, Use and Control of Synthetic 
Formulated Pesticides, Technical Grade Active Ingredients, Co-Formulants and Related 
Substances for Agricultural Use) (146 pages, in Spanish) 
6. Description of content:   The notified Decree establishes the regulations, general principles 
and procedures governing the registration proce ss, use and control of synthetic formulated 
pesticides, technical grade active ingredients,  co-formulants and related substances for 
agricultural use, for the purpose of the approval of the sale and use thereof, subject to an evaluation of scientific data sufficient to de monstrate that a product is effective for the 
purpose for which it is designed and that it does  not present undue risks to health or the 
environment when used in accordance with the recommendations for use. 
7. Objective and rationale:  [ X ] food safety, [   ] animal health, [   ] plant protection,   
[ X ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease, [   ] protect territory from other damage from pests  
8. International standard, guideline or recommendation:  
[   ] Codex Alimentarius Commission,  [   ] World Organization for Animal Health 
(OIE),  [   ] International Plant Protection Convention,  [ X ] None 
If an international standard, guideline or recommendation exists, give the appropriate 
reference and briefly identify deviations:    G/SPS/N/CRI/48 
Page 2  
 
  9. Relevant documents and language (s) in which these are available:    
Guidelines on efficacy data for the registra tion of pesticides for plant protection .  Rome, 
March 1985. 
Guidelines for the registration and control of pesticides (including a model scheme for the 
establishment of national organizations) .  Rome, March 1985. 
Guidelines for legislation on the control of pesticides .  Rome, October 1989. 
Guidelines - Initial introduction and subsequent development of a simple national pesticide 
registration and control scheme .  Rome, August 1991. 
Manual on Development and Use of FAO and WHO Specifications for Pesticides .  Rome, 
2004. 
International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides . Revised Version. 
Rome, 2003. 
Guidelines on pesticide residue trials to prov ide data for the registration of pesticides and 
the establishment of maximum residue limits . FAO, Rome. 1986.   
Annex I:  OECD Test Guidelines for Studies Included in the SIDS.  Manual for 
Investigation of HPV chemicals .  Available at: http://www. oecd.org/document/23/0,2340, 
en_2649_34379_1948503_1_1_1_1,00.html. 
Guidance document on the assessment of the equivalence of technical materials of 
substances regulated under Council Directive 91/414/EEC, European Commission, Health 
& Consumer Protection Directorate-General, Directorate D - Food Safety: Production and Distribution Chain, D3 - Chemicals, C ontaminants and Pesticides, April 2005. 
ECETOC (2003).  (Q)SARs: Evaluation of the commerci ally available software for human 
health and environmental endpoints with resp ect to chemical management applications . 
ECETOC Technical Report No. 89. European Cent re for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of 
Chemicals, Brussels. 
European Chemicals Bureau (ECB) (2003):  "Use of (Quantitative) Structure Activity 
Relationships ((Q)SARs)" in: Technical Guidance Document on Risk Assessment in 
support of Commission Directive 93/67/EEC on Risk Assessment for new notified 
substances, Commission Regulation (EC) No  1488/94 on Risk Assessment for existing 
substances and Directive 98/8/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council 
concerning the placing of bi ocidal products on the market , Part III, Chapter 4, European 
Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institu te for Health and Consumer Protection, 
European Chemicals Bureau. 
Tennant, R.W. and Ashby, J. (1991):  "Classi fication according to chemical structure, 
mutagenicity to Salmone lla and level of carcinogenicity of a further 39 chemicals tested for 
carcinogenicity by the U.S. National Toxicology Program",  Mutation Research 257, 
209-227. 
Ashby, J. and Tennant, R.W. (1991):  "Defin itive relationships among chemical structure, 
carcinogenicity and mutagenicity for 302 chemicals tested by the U.S. NTP",  Mutation 
Research 257, 229-306.  
Van den Berg, M. et al (1998):  "Toxic E quivalency Factors (TEFs) for PCBs, PCDDS, 
PCDFs for Humans and Wildlife",  Environmental Health Perspectives, 106 (12), 775-792. 
WHO/FAO (2005).  Manual on Development and Use of FAO and WHO Specifications for 
pesticides. First edition, FAO Plant Production and Protection Paper 173.  WHO and 
FAO, Rome. 
10. Proposed date of adoption:   To be determined  G/SPS/N/CRI/48 
 Page 3 
 
 
  11. Proposed date of entry into force:   Following publication in  the Official Journal La Gaceta 
de Costa Rica .  
12. Final date for comments:   14 September 2006 
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:  
13. Texts available from:  [ X ] National notification authority, [ X ] National enquiry point, 
or address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) of other body:  
Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería 
Servicio Fitosanitario del Estado Centro de Información y Notificación en  Medidas Sanitarias y Fitosanitarias 
Apartado Postal 70-3006 Barreal de Heredia, Costa Rica Tel.: (506) 260-8300, Ext. 2065 
Fax:  (506) 262-7831 
E-mail: notificaciones@protecnet.go.cr