1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COMMISSIONREGULATION(EC)No1661/1999
of27July1999
laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 on the
conditionsgoverning importsof agricultural productsoriginating inthird countries following the
accidentattheChernobylnuclearpower-station
(OJ L 197, 29.7.1999, p. 17)
Amended by:
OfficialJournal
No page date
►M1 Commission Regulation (EC) No 1627/2000 of 24 July 2000 L 187 7 26.7.2000
►M2 Commission Regulation (EC) No 1621/2001 of 8 August 2001 L 215 18 9.8.2001
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COMMISSIONREGULATION(EC)No1661/1999
of27July1999
layingdowndetailedrulesfortheapplicationofCouncilRegulation
(EEC)No737/90ontheconditionsgoverningimportsofagriculturalproductsoriginatinginthirdcountriesfollowingtheaccidentatthe
Chernobylnuclearpower-station
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to CouncilRegul ation (EEC) No 737/90 of 22 March
1990 on the conditions governing imports of agricultural productsoriginating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobylnuclear power-station (
1), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 686/95 (2),
and in particular Article 6 thereof,
(1) Whereas the fallout of radiocaesium from the accident at theChernobylpower station on 26 April1986 has affected a widerange of third countries; whereas repeated cases of non-compliance with the maximum permitted levels of radioactivecontamination have been recorded in consignments of certaintypes of mushrooms imported from a number of third countries;
(2) Whereas similar fallout has affected certain parts of the territoriesof some Member States of the European Union;
(3) Whereas forest and wooded areas generally are the natural habitatof uncultivated mushrooms (the products listed in Annex I) andsuch ecosystems tend to retain radiocaesium in a cyclic exchangebetween soiland vegetation;
(4) Whereas, as a result, continual radiocaesium contamination of
uncultivated mushrooms has, in the period since the above-
mentioned accident, hardly declined and may well have increasedin the case of certain species;
(5) Whereas the Commission has carried out in 1986 and subse-quently updated an assessment of possible risks on human healthfrom contaminated foodstuffs with radioactive caesium; whereas
that assessment of possible risks is still valid today, taking into
account the physicalradioactive period of the substance inquestion, and, in addition, the maximum permitted level conformsin essence to the level recommended by the Codex AlimentariusCommission;
(6) Whereas, in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No
737/90, the Member States must carry out checks on products
originating in third countries;
(7) Whereas the detailed rules for the application of that Regulationare to be found in Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1983/88 (
3);
(8) Whereas there is a need to update these provisions and tosupplement them by specific conditions for the import of certain
products; as appears from the considerations herein set out;
(9) Whereas CouncilDirective 92/59/EEC of 29 June 1992 on
generalproduct safety (4) has set up a system for the rapid
exchange of information;
(10) Whereas the measures in situ in the territories of the Member
States of the European Union flow from the legal obligations ofthose States pursuant to Articles 35 and 36 of the Euratom Treaty,
the Community measures already referred to and national
measures and controls which, taken together, are, in terms ofequivalence of result, equal to those enacted in this Regulation;1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 2
(1) OJ L 82, 29.3.1990, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 71, 31.3.1995, p. 15.
(3) OJ L 174, 6.7.1988, p. 32.
(4) OJ L 228, 11.8.1992, p. 24.
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whereas the Commission is taking all the necessary measures to
ensure that the Member States comply effectively with their legalobligations in this respect;
(11) Whereas even if the provisions for sampling and analysis ofvarious agricultural products merit future consideration, theimmediate requirement is to strengthen those provisions withrespect to mushrooms;
(12) Whereas in order to allow more efficient controls, it is, as aconsequence, necessary to identify a restricted number of customs
offices where certain products may be declared for free
circulation in the European Union;
(13) Whereas the lists of customs offices and of third countries can bereviewed as appropriate, taking into account inter alia future
compliance with the maximum permitted levels and otherinformation allowing the Commission to judge whether there is
a need to maintain a third country on the list contained in Annex
IV;
(14) Whereas for the same reason it is appropriate that exportcertificates, as referred to in Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No737/90, be provided for each consignment of such products;
(15) Whereas it is appropriate that the competent authorities of the
Member States be authorised, at their sole discretion, to levy
charges for sampling and analysis and for destruction of theproduct or its return provided that the principle of proportionalityis observed in exercising the option of destruction or return andprovided also that, in any event, the charges so levied do notexceed the costs incurred;
(16) Whereas the provisions enacted below conform to the interna-tional obligations of the European Community, in particular thoseresulting from the agreements establishing the World TradeOrganisation, taking into account the right of the Community toadopt and apply measures that are necessary to achieve the levelof sanitary protection chosen in the territory of its Member States;
(17) Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are inaccordance with the opinion of the ad hoc committee referred to
in Article 7 of Regulation (EEC) No 737/90,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
1. Checks on the radiocaesium content referred to in Article 3 of
Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 of products referred to in Article 1 of thesame Regulation, to ensure that the maximum permitted levels laiddown by the said Regulation are observed shall be carried out by theMember States in which the products are released for free circulationand at the latest at that time.
2. Checks shall be carried out by sampling in accordance with the
following minimum standards:
(a) Without prejudice to paragraph 3(b), the choice of the Member State
as to the intensity of controls to be carried out shall be made takingaccount in particular of the degree of contamination of the countryof origin, the characteristics of the products in question, the results
of the previous checks and the export certificates referred to in
Article 3.
(b) Without prejudice to the further measures provided for in Articles 5
and 6 of Regulation (EEC) No 737/90, where a product originatingin a third country is recorded as exceeding the maximum permittedlevels, checks shall be intensified for all products of the same typeoriginating in the third country in question.1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 3
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3. Checks on specific products shall be carried out in accordance with
the following rules:
(a) For animals for slaughter, the checks shall be carried out without
prejudice to the customs rules laid down in Council Regulation(EEC) No 2913/92 (
1) and Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/
93 (2) and to animal health requirements. Clearance of release for
free circulation shall be subject to the presentation of a certificateissued by the competent authorities responsible for controls to the
effect that the meat in question has undergone the system of checks
and that those checks have shown that the maximum permittedlevels have not been exceeded.
(b) For products listed in Annex I, originating in third countries listed in
Annex IV, documentary checks shall be performed on the basis ofthe duly completed export certificates referred to in Article 3accompanying each consignment. Each consignment exceeding10 kg of fresh product or the equivalent thereof shall be subject to
systematic sampling and analysis, taking appropriate account of the
information contained in the export certificate. These products mayonly be declared for free circulation in the Member State ofdestination in a restricted number of customs offices listed in AnnexIII.
4. Where failure to comply with the maximum permitted levels is
observed in respect of a given product, the competent authorities of theMember State may require the imported product to be destroyed orreturned to the country of origin. In the latter case, written evidence thatthe product has left the territory of the European Community will beforwarded to the customs authority which refused the release for free
circulation.
5. For the products referred to in Article 1(1), the competent
authorities may, at their sole discretion, levy charges on the importerfor the sampling and analysis of products for compliance withRegulation (EEC) No 737/90. For consignments which exceed the
maximum permitted levels, the competent authorities may also recover
from their intended importer costs associated with either the destructionof the consignment or its return to the country of origin.
Article 2
1. Each Member State shall by analogy apply Article 8 of Directive
No 92/59/EEC to notify the Commission without delay of recorded
cases of non-compliance with the provisions on maximum permittedlevels, set out in Regulation (EEC) No 737/90, stating the country oforigin, the description and degree of contamination of the goods, themeans of transport, the exporter and the decision taken in respect of thelots in question.
2. Member States shall inform the Commission of the bodies
assigned to implement checks.
3. The Commission shall inform the Member States without delay of
recorded cases of non-compliance with the maximum permitted levels
through the Community Rapid Alert System laid down in Directive No
92/59/EEC.
Article 3
1. The Member States shall ensure that the export certificates issued
by the competent authorities of third countries listed in Annex IV shallattest that the products that they accompany comply with the maximum
permitted levels laid down in Article 3 of Regulation (EEC) No 737/90.
The export certificates shall be compiled using a form printed on whitepaper in accordance with the specimen in Annex II.1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 4
(1) OJ L 302, 13.10.1992, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 253, 11.10.1993, p. 1.
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2. The Commission shall communicate to the Member States the
details received concerning the authorities authorised in the thirdcountries in question to issue export certificates.
Article 4
This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the
Official Journal of the European Communities .
Article 5
Regulation (EEC) No 1983/88 is repealed.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in
all Member States.1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 5
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ANNEX I
LIST OF PRODUCTS FOR WHICH THE PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE
1(3)(b)SHALLBEFULFILLED
CN Codes
ex 0709 51 Mushrooms, fresh or chilled, other than cultivated
mushrooms
ex 0710 80 69 Mushrooms (uncooked or cooked by steaming or boiling
in water), frozen, other than cultivated mushrooms
ex 0711 90 60 Mushrooms provisionally preserved (for example, by
sulphur dioxide gas, in brine, in sulphur water or in other
preservative solutions), but unsuitable in that state for
immediate consumption, other than cultivated mush-
rooms
ex 0712 30 00 Dried mushrooms, whole, cut, sliced, broken or in
powder, but not further prepared, other than cultivated
mushrooms
ex 2001 90 50 Mushrooms, prepared or preserved by vinegar or acetic
acid, other than cultivated mushrooms
ex 2003 10 80 Mushrooms, prepared or preserved otherwise than by
vinegar or acetic acid, other than cultivated mushrooms1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 6
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ANNEX II
1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 7
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ANNEX III
LIST OF CUSTOMS OFFICES IN WHICH PRODUCTS LISTED IN ANNEX I MAY BE
DECLAREDFORFREECIRCULATIONINTHEEUROPEANCOMMUNITY
Member State Customs offices
BELGIQUE/BELGIË Anvers D.E. — voie maritime
Bierset (Grâce-Hollogne) D.E. — voies aérienne et/ou terrestre
Bruxelles D.E. — voie aérienne
Zaventem D. — voie aérienne
DANMARK Every port and airport in Denmark
DEUTSCHLAND Baden-Württemberg HZA Lörrach — ZA Weilam Rhein-Autobahn
HZA Stuttgart — ZA Flughafen
HZA Ulm — ZA Aalen
Bayern HZA München-Flughafen
HZA Hof — ZA Schirnding-Landstraße
HZA Weiden — ZA Furth im Wald-Schafberg
HZA Weiden — ZA Waldhaus-Autobahn
HZA Bamberg — ZA Kulmbach
HZA Nürnberg-Fürth — ZA Neustadt-Aisch
HZA Passau — ZA Phillipsreut
HZA Regensburg — ZA Hafen
HZA Regensburg — ZA Amberg
HZA Schweinfurt — ZA Kitzingen
Berlin HZA Berlin-Packhof — ZA Marzahn, Abferti-
gungsstelle Großmarkthallen
HZA Berlin-Packhof — ZA Tegel-Flughafen
Brandenburg HZA Frankfurt (Oder) — ZA Autobahn
HZA Cottbus — ZA Forst-Autobahn
Bremen HZA Bremen-ZA Neustädter Hafen
HZA Bremerhaven — ZA Container-Terminal
HZA Bremerhaven — ZA Rotersand
Hamburg HZA Hamburg-Freihafen — Abfertigungsstelle
HZA Hamburg-Freihafen — ZA Ericus-Abferti-
gungsstelle Südbahnhof
HZA Hamburg-Harburg — ZA Köhlfleetdamm
HZA Hamburg-St. Annen — ZA Altona
HZA Hamburg-St. Annen — ZA Oberelbe
HZA Hamburg-Waltershof — Abfertigungsstelle
HZA Hamburg-Waltershof — ZA Flughafen
Hessen HZA Frankfurt am Main-FlughafenMecklenburg-
VorpommernHZA Neubrandenburg — ZA Pomellen —
Grenzkontrollstelle Pomellen
HZA Schwerin — ZA Rostock-Seehafen —
Grenzkontrollstelle Rostock-Seehafen
HZA Stralsund — ZA Mukran Grenzkontroll-
stelle Rügen/Mukran, Im Fährhafen
Niedersachsen HZA Lüneburg — Abfertigungsstelle
HZA Göttingen — Abfertigungsstelle
HZA Hannover — Abfertigungsstelle
Nordrhein-Westfalen HZA Dortmund — ZA Ost
Rheinland-Pfalz HZA Trier — ZA Idar-Oberstein, Grenzkontroll-
stelle Flughafen Hahn
Sachsen HZA Dresden — ZA Friedrichstadt,
Grenzkontrollstelle Dresdenfriedrichstadt (für
Eisenbahntransport)
HZA Pirna — ZA Zinnwald, Grenzkontrollstelle
Zinnwald (für Straßentransport)
HZA Löbau — ZA Ludwigsdorf-Autobahn,
Grenzkontrollstelle Ludwigsdorf (für Straßentran-
sport)1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 8
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Member State Customs offices
Schleswig-Holstein HZA Kiel — ZA Wik, Grenzkontrollstelle Kiel
Ostuferhafen
HZA Lübeck — ZA Travemünde Grenzkontroll-
stelle
ΕΛΛΑ∆Α Αθηνών, Πειραιά, Κρατικού Αερολιµένα Αθηνών, Θεσσαλονίκης,
Αερολιµένα Μίκρας, Βόλου, Πατρών, Ηρακλείου, Αερολιµένα
ΗρακλείουΚρήτης,Καβάλας,Ιωαννίνων,Ναυπλίου
ESPAÑA Algeciras (puerto), Alicante (aeropuerto, puerto), Almería (aeropuerto,
puerto), Barcelona (aeropuerto, puerto), Bilbao (aeropuerto, puerto), Cádiz
(puerto), Cartagena (puerto), Gijón (aeropuerto, puerto), Huelva (puerto), A
Coruña-Santiago de Compostela (aeropuerto, puerto), Las Palmas de Gran
Canaria (aeropuerto, puerto), Madrid-Barajas (aeropuerto), Málaga (aero-
puerto, puerto), Palma de Mallorca (aeropuerto), Pasajes-Irún (aeropuerto,
puerto), Santa Cruz de Tenerife (aeropuerto, puerto), Santander (aeropuerto,
puerto), Sevilla (aeropuerto, puerto), Tarragona (puerto), Valencia (aero-
puerto, puerto), Vigo-Villagareia (aeropuerto), Marín (puerto), Vitoria
(aeropuerto), Zaragoza (aeropuerto)
FRANCE Dunkerque (transport maritime)
Lille (transport aérien et terrestre)
Marseille (transport aérien, terrestre et maritime)
Roissy (transport aérien et terrestre)
Saint-Louis/Bâle (transport aérien et terrestre)
Strasbourg (transport terrestre)
Orly (transport aérien)
Bordeaux (transport aérien)
Lyon-Satolas (transport aérien)
Nice-aéroport (transport aérien)
Toulouse-Blagnac (transport aérien)
Thionville (transport terrestre)
Saint-Julien-en-Genevois (transport terrestre)
IRELAND All customs officesITALIA Ufficio di Sanità marittima ed aerea di Trieste
Ufficio di Sanità aerea di Torino-Caselle
Ufficio di Sanità aerea di Roma — Fiumicino
Ufficio di Sanità marittima ed aerea di Venezia
Ufficio di Sanità marittima ed aerea di Genova
Ufficio di Sanità marittima di Livorno
Ufficio di Sanità marittima ed aerea di Ancona
Ufficio di Sanità marittima ed aerea di Brindisi
Ufficio di Sanità aerea di Varese — MalpensaUfficio di Sanità aerea di Bologna — Panicale
Ufficio di Sanità marittima ed aerea di Bari
Posto d'Ispezione frontaliera di Chiasso
LUXEMBOURG Bureau des douanes et accises, Centre douanier — Luxembourg
Bureau des douanes et accises, Luxembourg-Aéroport — Niederanven
NEDERLAND All customs offices
ÖSTERREICH Drasenhofen (Czech Republic)
Berg (Slovakia)
Nickelsdorf (Hungary)
Heiligenkreuz (Hungary)
Spielfeld (Slovenia)
Tisis (Switzerland)
Wien, Flughafen Schwechat
PORTUGAL Airports of Lisbon, Porto and Faro
Ports of Lisbon and Leixões.
SUOMI-FINLAND Helsinki, Vaalimaa, Niirala, Vartius, Raja-Jooseppi, Utsjoki, Kilpisjärvi
SVERIGE Arlanda, Göteborg, Landvetter, Helsingborg, Karlskrona, Stockholm, Ystad,
Wallhamn, Varberg1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 9
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Member State Customs offices
UNITED KINGDOM Belfast International Airport, Port of Belfast, Port of Dover, Port of
Falmouth, Port of Felixstowe, Gatwick Airport, Port of Hull, Port of Larne,
Port of London, Port of Southampton1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 10
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ANNEX IV
LISTOFTHIRDCOUNTRIESREFERREDTOINARTICLE3
Albania
Belarus
Bosnia and HerzegovinaBulgariaCroatia
Czech Republic
EstoniaHungary
Latvia
LiechtensteinLithuaniaFormer Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
Moldova
NorwayPoland
Romania
RussiaSlovak RepublicSlovenia
Switzerland
TurkeyUkraineFederal Republic of Yugoslavia1999R1661 — EN — 12.08.2001 — 002.001 — 11