WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3373/98 by Concepció FERRER to the Commission. Afforestation
Date: 1998-11-17
Institutions: European Parliament, FERRER
Subjects: Catalonia, EU financing, Spain, afforestation, financial aid, fire protection, forest conservation, information, public awareness campaign, vocational training

C 207/60

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

21.7.1999

With regard to any improvements to be made to alleviate the discomfort which this plant seems to cause to a
constituent of the Honourable Member, these fall within the competence of the regional or local authorities,
whether or not the said assessment made provision for any follow-up measures relating to the installation. The
Commission has no competence in this matter.

(1) OJ L 175, 5.7.1985.

(1999/C 207/076)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3373/98

by Concepció Ferrer (PPE) to the Commission

(17 November 1998)

Subject: Afforestation

The purpose of Regulation 2158/92 (1) and its subsequent extension through Regulation 308/97 (2) is to
develop measures to protect the Community’s forests against fire, particularly with regard to the rationalisa-
tion of forest resources.

Can the Commission say what measures have been adopted under this Regulation?

Can it further specify what amount has been disbursed to date for Spain as a whole, and what amount has been
set aside for the protection of forests in Catalonia?

(1) OJ L 217, 31.7.1992, p. 3.
(2) OJ L 51, 21.2.1997, p. 11.

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(3 December 1998)

Between 1992 and 1998, under Council Regulation (EC) 308/97 of 17 February 1997 amending Regulation
(EEC) 2158/92 on protection of the Community’s forests against fire (1), 700 fire-prevention projects
submitted by Member States were approved and received Community support totalling ECU 84 million.
The projects cover information campaigns, preventive management
(e.g. scrub clearance), protective
infrastructure (e.g. forestry roads, firebreaks and water points), and monitoring (e.g. introducing summer
patrols and building lookout towers). Support was also granted for training specialised personnel and setting
up geographical information systems.

During that period, Spain received ECU 15 million in aid as follows < national government (Directorate-
General for nature conservation): ECU 10 million; Basque Country: ECU 3 million; Andalusia: ECU 0,7 million;
Asturia: ECU 0,6 million; Navarre: ECU 0,3 million; Balearic Islands: ECU 0,3 million; Murcia: ECU 0,1 million.
Since the Commission did not receive an aid application from Catalonia during that period, the region did not
enjoy direct support under the Regulation; however, the measures implemented by the national government
no doubt benefited the region to some extent.

The Commission would nevertheless point out to the Honourable Member that Spain recently submitted seven
aid applications in respect of 1999, for support totalling ECU 3 million. One of those applications (for
ECU 30 000) relates to the municipality of Solsona in Catalonia.

(1) OJ L 51, 21.2.1997.

(1999/C 207/077)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3374/98

by Ernesto Caccavale (UPE) to the Commission

(17 November 1998)

Subject: The threat to the designated protected origin status of buffalo-milk mozzarella in Italy

On 15 September the Italian Ministry responsible for agricultural policy issued a decree to liberalise the
production of buffalo-milk mozzarella throughout the national territory. The decree authorised the extension