No C 56/6 Official Journal of the European Communities 6. 3. 89 
to bring it into line with the other languages and the 
original Directive of 20 March 1978. 
Article 9 
The Committee feels that the original version of the 
Directive of 20 March 1978 (Article 11) is more satisfac­
tory, since its provisions on costs are more clearly 
worded. 
The Committee nevertheless believes that particular 
attention should be paid to situations where the party 
obliged to bear the costs no longer exists (waste dating 
back a long time) or is in no position to bear them. 
What Member States need is a provision along the lines 
of the original Article 11(2). 
Article 10 
The Committee doubts whether Article 10 provides an 
adequate basis for harmonizing Member States' pro­
visions on hazardous waste. The harmonization of 
Done at Brussels, 14 December 1988. 
Alberto MASPRONE 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 80/779/EEC on air 
quality limit values and guide values for sulphur dioxide and suspended particulates (!) 
(89/C 56/03) 
On 5 October 1988, the Council of the European Communities decided to consult the 
Economic and Social Committee, under Article 130 s of the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, on the abovementioned proposal. 
The Section for Protection of the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Affairs, which 
was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 
29 November 1988. The Rapporteur was Mr Boisseree, with Mr de Normann and Mr Murphy 
acting as Co-Rapporteurs. 
At its 261st plenary session (meeting of 14 December 1988), the Economic and Social 
Committee adopted the following Opinion unanimously. 
1. General comments ments in respect of sulphur dioxide and suspended 
particulates and contains provisions governing the 
1.1. Directive 80/779/EEC of 15 July 1980 monitoring of these emissions. 
(implemented in 1982) lays down air quality require-
1.2. Annexes I and IV to that Directive fix various 
limit values for sulphur dioxide and suspended particu-
(!) OJ No. C 254, 30. 9. 1988, p. 6. lates. legislation on hazardous waste in particular would seem 
to be a matter of great urgency. 
A new indent worded more or less as follows should 
also be added to Article 10: 
'— Possibilities for preventing or reducing the 
quantities of waste; the waste plans should also 
have an active influence on the relationship between 
disposal capacity, the use made thereof and the 
quantities of waste to be disposed of.' 
Where the monitoring of hazardous waste is concerned, 
steps should also be taken to ensure that the supervisory 
authorities are not the same as those responsible for 
waste-management measures, as there might be a con­
flict of interests. 
Article 12 
The information to be sent to the Commission under 
Article 12(3) should also be made available to the 
Committee. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
6. 3. 89 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 56/7 
1.3. The Directive allows a choice between the limit 
values and measuring methods laid down in these two 
Annexes, subject to the following conditions: 
— the provisions of Annex I remain fully applicable, 
— if a Member State wishes to apply the provisions of 
Annex IV [Article 10(2)], it must also conduct paral­
lel measurements in order to check whether the limit 
values laid down in that Annex are as stringent as 
those fixed in Annex I [Article 10(3)]. 
1.4. With the exception of the Federal Republic of 
Germany, Denmark and Italy, all the Member States 
apply Annex I. Comparative measurements were 
accordingly conducted and these revealed that the pro­
visions of Annexes I and IV are not equally stringent. 
The Committee notes with interest the results set out 
in the report on the parallel measurements performed 
under the terms of Article 10(3). 
1.5. These measurements showed that, whereas in 
Annex I some the sulphur dioxide limits are more 
stringent, in Annex IV the limits for suspended particu­
lates are more stringent. 
1.6. Article 10(4) of Directive 80/779/EEC requires 
the Commission to submit a proposal designed to 
ensure greater uniformity on the basis of its evaluation 
of the parallel measurements. The Commission has 
since put forward the current proposal amending the 
original Directive 80/779/EEC. This draft appears to 
meet the requirements of Article 10(4) of Directive 80/ 
779/EEC. 
Done at Brussels, 14 December 1988. 2. Specific comments 
2.1. The Committee welcomes the proposal as a 
harmonization measure in respect of Annexes I and IV 
to the Directive, and believes that it meets the clean-air 
objectives of the Communities' fourth programme of 
action on the environment. 
2.2. Whilst welcoming the individual provisions of 
the proposal, the Committee would point out that 
certain Member States face difficulties in fully satisfying 
the requirements of Article 10(3) in conjunction with 
Table A (S02 limit values as the median of daily mean 
values) in temporary smog conditions resulting from 
air pollution originating outside the Community. 
In such situations, even stringent and harmonized Com­
munity provisions will be of no avail. The Member 
State(s) concerned can prevent neither the creation of 
air pollution outside the area subject to Community 
law, nor the meteorological conditions which give rise 
to such temporary conditions. The proposed Directive 
should take account of this fact. 
The Council of Ministers and the Commission should 
also take the opportunity offered by the Directive's 
adoption to enter into negotiations with the govern­
ments of the countries in question outside the Com­
munity for the purpose of getting them to also take 
measures to combat air pollution. 
2.3. The Committee welcomes the Commission's 
intention to conduct a more thorough review of the air-
quality Directive in the foreseeable future. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Alberto MASPRONE