WRITTEN QUESTION E-0544/96 by Gianni Tamino (V) to the Commission (11 March 1996)

Subject: The failure by Italy to comply with the Euratom Treaty in respect of the Maddalena Archipelago military base and nature park

A US military base, with nuclear-powered submarines, is stationed in the Maddalena Archipelago (Sardinia).

For many years now the local inhabitants have criticized the lack of adequate evacuation plans in the event of accidents, the lack of environmental impact assessments of the base and the lack of investigation into any links it may have with the high number of deaths through tumours and the high number of children born with deformities in the region.

Moreover, the Maddalena Archipelago, including the site of the military base, was recently declared a Nature Park, and the Italian minister, Mr Mozzo, has said that the secret agreement between Italy and the USA on transferring the area used by the base is unconstitutional under Italian law in that a portion of territory belonging to an EU Member State is thereby not subjected to the controls provided for by the Euratom Treaty.

1. Does the Commission consider the existence of a base for nuclear submarines to be compatible with the designation of a nature park, as provided for inter alia by the Community Interreg programme?

2. Does the Commission not agree that it is unacceptable that an area of Italian, and hence EU, territory should be exempt from the controls provided for by the Euratom Treaty, particularly since, in breach of the provisions of the IAEA, the landing stage for the base's nuclear submarines is near the munitions depot on the San Stefano wharf?

Answer given by Mr Papoutsis on behalf of the Commission (2 May 1996)

1. The international marine park of the Strait of Bonifacio-Lavezzi-Maddalena is a project jointly submitted by the regions of Corsica and Sardinia under the Interreg I and II programmes concerning southern Corsica and the province of Sassari. According to the information available to the Commission, this marine park project does not include the areas where the military bases are stationed which are a long way from the area in question.

2. The Commission is not aware of the terms on which that part of Italian territory which now forms the United States submarine base in the Maddalena Archipelago was assigned for that purpose. However, in terms of the Euratom Treaty and to the extent that the territory affected remains under Italian authority, Chapter III of the Euratom Treaty comprising Articles 30-39 and entitled 'Health and Safety' applies, as does Community legislation enacted on the basis of these articles, in particular Article 31, referring to the establishment of Community basic safety standards for the protection of the health of workers and the general public against the dangers of ionizing radiation.

This is without prejudice to Article 84, third paragraph, of Chapter VII of the Treaty, entitled 'Safeguards', whereby for the attainment of the objectives stated in that chapter, 'safeguards may not extend to materials intended to meet defence requirements which are in the course of being specially processed for this purpose or which, after being so processed, are, in accordance with an operational plan, placed or stored in a military establishment'.

The Commission does not consider that any part of Community territory is exempt from the controls provided for by the Euratom Treaty, and has received no evidence to indicate that the Euratom Treaty has not been applied in Italian territory.