WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1833/96 by Antonio GRAZIANI to the Commission. Storm in the Italian province of Lucca
Date: 1996-06-28
Institutions: European Parliament, GRAZIANI ANTONIO
Subjects: Community budget, Tuscany, aid to disaster victims, degradation of the environment, emergency aid, financing method, natural disaster, terms for aid













EUR-Lex - 91996E1833 - EN






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91996E1833

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1833/96 by Antonio GRAZIANI to the Commission. Storm in the Italian province of Lucca  


Official Journal C 345 , 15/11/1996 P. 0108 





WRITTEN QUESTION P-1833/96 by Antonio Graziani (PPE) to the Commission (28 June 1996)Subject: Storm in the Italian province of LuccaWhat action within its powers does the Commission intend to take in the light of the severe storm which hit the Versilia and Garfagnana areas, in the Italian province of Lucca, on 19 June 1996?A whole geographical area has become unrecognizable.The damage, which it is difficult to assess as yet, is estimated at approximately several hundred billion Lire.The death-toll so far is nine, although this figure is unfortunately provisional.Joint answer to Written Questions P-1833/96 and P-1898/96 given by Mr Santer on behalf of the Commission (30 July 1996)The Commission wishes to express its full sympathy to the families of the victims and to the Italian people severely hit by the storm which devastated the province of Lucca on 19 June 1996.With regard to the sources of Community financing which might be utilized in this case, the specific aim of the Community action 'emergency aid to disaster victims in the Community' is the provision of such aid for European citizens most seriously affected by such exceptionally large scale and serious events. However, the Commission regrets that there are no appropriations at the relevant budget heading (B4-3400) this year as only a token entry was made when Parliament adopted the 1996 budget. Recently the Commission proposed to the budgetary authority that ECU 1 million be transferred by way of exception. Parliament's Committee on Budgets preferred to reduce the amount to ECU 300 000.With regard to possible Structural Fund assistance for Objective 5b regions, it should be noted that Community resources have been allocated definitively for the period 1994-99. The single programming document (SDP) for the objective 5b areas in the Tuscany region, which have been allocated ECU 133 million for the period 1994-99, can only receive additional resources resulting from the index-linking of Community resources, which at present amount to ECU 2.8 million. In order to repair the damage caused to 5b areas in the province of Lucca, the Commission is prepared in the partnership context, and notably in the SPD monitoring committee, to consider the proposals put forward by the Italian authorities to finance the renewal of the damaged agricultural and forestry resources, the protection of the environment and the improvement of the rural infrastructure by allocating all or part of the resources resulting from index-linking or by amending the SDP so as to transfer resources from the amount allocated to existing measures.Where the damage occurred in objective 2 areas eligible for the Structural Funds (municipalities of Carrara, Massa and Montignoso), the Commission would be willing, in partnership with the Italian authorities, to consider providing assistance as part of the programmes in question, depending on the funds available.