Council Regulation (EC) No 1624/98 of 20 July 1998 amending Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 establishing a support system for producers of certain arable crops
Date: 1998-07-20
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: aid per hectare, cereals, leguminous vegetable, oleaginous plant, regional aid, set-aside

28. 7. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 210/3

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1624/98

of 20 July 1998

amending Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 establishing a support system for produ-
cers of certain arable crops

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Articles 42 and 43 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parlia-
ment (2),

for

the purpose of applying the penalties
Whereas
provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 (3), Member
States may apply one or more national base areas;
whereas, in this case, Member States may opt to subdivide
each national base area into sub-base areas and to concen-
trate all or part of the measures to be taken on those
sub-base areas for which an overshoot has been noted;

Whereas Member States are required to notify producers
and the Commission before 15 May if they plan to avail
themselves of this option, stating how they intend to
apply the measures;

Whereas experience gained in 1997 has shown that 15
May is not an appropriate notification date;

Whereas Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 provides that
producers are required to set aside a predetermined
percentage of their arable land each year; whereas produ-
cers are eligible for compensatory payments for land set
aside beyond their obligation; whereas the area fallowed
may not, however, exceed that intended for arable crops
for which a compensatory payment is requested; whereas
the areas set aside in the form of compulsory or voluntary
fallowing may be put to non-food uses, of which the
planting of multiannual crops with a view to biomass
production offers, in certain regions, attractive possibili-
ties for diversification;

Whereas national authorities should be allowed to accord
more favourable treatment to production of this type by
adjusting the national aid systems so as to cover, in part,
the costs associated with establishing these multiannual
crops;

Whereas an adequate area per holding is necessary for
cultivation of
these energy crops to be at all viable;
whereas in this case it should be made possible for the
area put out to fallow, bearing multiannual crops intended
for biomass production, to exceed the area intended for
arable crops;

(1) OJ C 87, 23. 3. 1998, p. 3.
(2) OJ C 210, 6. 7. 1998.
(3) OJ L 181, 1. 7. 1992, p. 12. Regulation as last amended by
Regulation (EC) No 2309/97 (OJ L 321, 22. 11. 1997, p. 3).

Whereas it is advisable to extend by 12 months the 60-
month period during which producers having set aside
land under Regulation (EEC) No 2328/91 (4) were entitled
to continue with that set-aside,
in order to avoid the
recultivation of such land or to prevent producers who
had started cultivating certain energy crops on such land
from being placed in difficulty;

Whereas Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 should therefore
be amended accordingly,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 is amended as follows:

1. The fifth subparagraph of Article 2(7) shall be replaced

by the following:

‘Any Member State which has decided to apply the
possibilities provided for in this paragraph shall notify
producers and the Commission by 15 September of its
choices and the detailed rules for their application.';

2. Article 7 shall be amended as follows:

(a)

the second subparagraph of paragraph 4 shall be
replaced by the following:

‘Member States shall be authorised to pay national
aid of up to 50 % of the costs associated with
establishing multiannual
for
biomass production on set-aside land.';

intended

crops

(b) the following shall be added to the first subpara-

graph of paragraph 6:

‘However, when the fallow area is used for multi-
intended for biomass-production,
annual crops
Member States may authorise producers to set aside
an area greater than that intended for arable crops
for which a compensatory payment is requested.';

(c)

in the second subparagraph of paragraph 6,
months' shall be replaced by ‘72 months'.

‘60

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter
into force on the day
following its publication in the Official Journal of the
European Communities.

It shall apply from the 1998/1999 marketing year.

(4) OJ L 218, 6. 8. 1991, p. 1. Regulation repealed by Regulation

(EC) No 950/97 (OJ L 142, 2. 6. 1997, p. 1).

L 210/4

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Official Journal of the European Communities

28. 7. 98

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member
States.

Done at Brussels, 20 July 1998.

For the Council

The President

W. MOLTERER