RE-EXAMINED PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DIRECTIVE AMENDING FOR THE 11TH TIME DIRECTIVE 76/769/EEC ON THE APPROXIMATION OF THE LAWS, REGULATIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS OF THE MEMBER STATES RELATING TO RESTRICTIONS ON THE MARKETING AND USE OF CERTAIN DANGEROUS SUBSTANCES AND PREPARATIONS
Date: 1991-06-04
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: approximation of laws, chemical product, dangerous substance, marketing, toxic substance

COMVIISSION  OF  THE  EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

C0M(91) 186 flnal " SYN 239 

Brussels, 4  June 1991 

Re-examined proposal  for a 

COUNCIL PIRECTIVE 

amending  for the 11th  time  Directive  76/769/EEC 
on  the approximation  of the laws,  regulations and 
administrative  provisions  of the  Member  States 
relating  to restrictions  on the  marketing 
use of certain  dangerous  substances  and préparât I 

and 

ons 

(presented by the Commission pursuant  to Article  149.2(d) 
of the EEC treaty) 

EXPLANATORY  MEMORANDUM 

On  17 April  1991  the  European  Parliament  amended  the  common 
position  adopted  by  the  Council  on  5 February  1991  on  the 
abovementioned  proposal. 

Pursuant  to  Article  149(2)(d)  of  the  EEC  Treaty,  the 
Commission  has  re-examined  its proposal  and  decided: 

to accept  the  first  part  of  amendment  No  3; 

not  to  accept  amendment  No  1  and  the  second  part  of 
amendment  No  3, as  annexed. 

The Commission  is of  the opinion  that: 

amendment  No  1,  a  recital  referring  to  the  Sixth 
Luxembourg  Report,  Is out  of  place  In such  a proposal; 

the  second  part  of  amendment  No  3 referring  to  disposal 
plans  fpr  UGILEC  141  Is unnecessary.  There  Is  already 
a  proposal  for  a Council  Directive  on  this  subject. 

This  proposal  takes  account  of  the  amendment  requested  by 
the  European  Parliament  which  the  Commission  has  been  able 
to accept. 

RE-EXAMINED  PROPOSAL  FOR  A  COUNCIL  DIRECTIVE 

amending  for  the  11th  time  Directive  76/769/EEC 
on  the  approximation  of  the  laws,  regulations  and 
administrative  provisions  of  the  Member  States 
relating  to  restrictions  on  the  marketing 
and  use  of  certain  dangerous  substances  and  preparations 

In  Article  1  of  Annex  I,  paragraph  1  in  the  right-hand 
column  of  point  25  is  hereby  amended  as  follows: 

"In  the  case  of  plant  and  machinery  already  in  service  three 
years  after  the  date  of  adoption  of  this  Directive,  until 
such  plant  and  machinery  is  disposed  of  or  until  It  reaches 
the  end  of  its  service  life,  which  shall  be  no  later  than 
eight  years  after  adoption  of  this  Directive  for  mining 
machinery  and  fifteen  years  for  transformers." 

z 

ANNEX 

(Amendments  not  accepted  by  the  Commission) 

Amendment  No  1  Introducing  a  new  recital  9a  worded  as 
fOIlOWS: 

"Whereas  substitutes  for  use  as  hydraulic  fluids  In  mining 
that  satisfy  all  the  provisions  of  the  Sixth  Luxembourg 
Report  on  requirements  and  tests  for  non-flammable  hydraulic 
fluids  for  hydrostatic  and  hydrokinetlc  transmission  and 
steering  In  mining  operations,  particularly  the  fire  test 
and  the  thermal  decomposition  test,  are  not  currently 
available  In  all  Member  States  owing  to  varying  national 
interpretations  of  the  Luxembourg  Report;  whereas  the  only 
other  solution  In  these  cases  Is  to  convert  the  technology 
in  question,  which  for  technical  and  economic  reasons 
requires  a  transitional  period  or  derogations;  whereas,  In 
the  light  of  the  requirements  both  to  reduce  the  risk  to  the 
environment  and  to  increase  the  safety  of  miners,  the 
Luxembourg  Report  should  be  amended  in  order  to  permit  the 
use  as  hydraulic  fluids  (e.g.  on  a  polyglycol  basis)  in  all 
Member  States  of  the  fluids  currently  being  tested  as 
subst I tutes-, " 

Commission  proposal 

Such  an  amendment  is out  of  place  In  this  proposal,  the  sole 
purpose  of  which  Is  to  prohibit  the  marketing  of  these  three 
substances.  This  new  recital  Is  concerned,  above  all,  with 
protection  at  the  workplace. 

Amendment  Hp  3  (second  part)  adding  to  paragraph  1  in 
right-hand  column  of  point  25  of  Article  1  of  Annex I 
word Ing: 

the 
the 

"Disposal  plans  shall  be drawn  up  to  this end;" 

Commission  position 

Although  the Commission  has no  fundamental  disagreement  with 
Parliament  on  the  Introduction  of  disposal  plans  for 
UGILEC  141,  it  cannot  accept  this  amendment  In  the  context 
of  this  Directive,  where  the  sole  objective  Is  to  prohibit 
the marketing  and  use of  the substance. 

Moreover,  there  is  already  a  proposal  for  a  Council 
Directive en  this subject  (C0M(88)559 of  18 October  1988). 

r 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM(91) 186 final 

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