Commission Regulation (EC) No 1727/1999 of 28 July 1999 laying down certain detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92 on protection of the Community's forests against fire
Date: 1999-07-28
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: environmental protection, fire, fire protection, forest

3. 8. 1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 203/41

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1727/1999

of 28 July 1999

laying down certain detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92 on
protection of the Community’s forests against fire

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the ’Meaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92 of
23 July 1992 on protection of the Community’s forests against
fire (1), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 308/97 (2), and in
particular Article 4(4) thereof,

(1) Whereas Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92 provides for a
financial contribution from the Community to measures
to improve the protection of forests against fire;

(2) Whereas Article 4(3) of that Regulation provides that
Community financing is to be granted primarily for
forest-fire protection programmes submitted by the
Member States;

(3) Whereas, in the interests of effectiveness and in order to
simplify and rationalise procedures at national and
Community level,
for which
Community assistance is requested should be brought
together in an annual national plan for each Member
State;

the various measures

(4) Whereas detailed rules should be adopted on how aid
applications under the national programmes should be
presented and the information they must contain in
order to expedite examination thereof;

(5) Whereas a system of advance payments of Community
assistance should be introduced to assist Member States
in the proper financial management of their national
programme;

(6) Whereas applications submitted to the Commission by
the Member States for the payment of advances and
balances under the national programme should contain
certain information to help establish the regularity of
expenditure;

(7) Whereas the Commission should be informed that the
measures are being implemented in accordance with the
conditions and within the time limit laid down in the
decision granting aid;

(8) Whereas the Member States are required to adopt the
provisions necessary to ensure that effective checks are
carried out on the implementation of measures under
the national programme;

(9) Whereas Article 8 of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92 and
Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 of 18 December
1995 on the protection of the European Communities’
financial interests (3) require the Member States to ascer-
tain the effective and regular nature of the operations
financed by the Community and to recover sums lost as
irregularities or negligence; whereas such
a result of
sums
from the
Community budget and must therefore be reimbursed to
the Community;

represent unjustified

expenditure

(10) Whereas, if the Commission’s checks pursuant to Article
8 of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92 reveal an irregularity,
the Member State should have the opportunity to
express its opinion on the-situation noted; whereas,
where the irregularity is confirmed and the sums
concerned represent unjustified expenditure from the
Community budget, they should be reimbursed to the
Community;

(11) Whereas Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1170/93 (4)
as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1460/98 (5), should
therefore be repealed;

(12) Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation
are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing
Forestry Committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article l

1.
The programmes provided for in Article 4 of Regulation
(EEC) No 2158/92 shall’ be drawn up each year at national
level. National programmes shall cover all the applications for
assistance submitted under the aforementioned Article 4. They
shall contain the information and supporting documents indi-
cated in Annex I to this Regulation and relate to the informa-
tion specified in Article 2. The Member States shall forward
their programmes to the Commission in duplicate, in the form
indicated in Annex I.

2.
National programmes as referred to in paragraph 1 shall
run for not more than three years from the date of notification
of the Commission Decision provided for in Article 6 of Regu-
lation (EEC) No 2158/92. They may not be extended.

Article 2

Programmes as referred to in Article l shall comprise:

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

(3) OJ L 312, 23.12.1995, p. 1.
(4) OJ L 118, 14.5.1993, p. 23.
(5) OJ L 193, 9.7.1998, p. 20.

L 203/42

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Official Journal of the European Communities

3. 8. 1999

(a) a schedule of the supporting documents to be provided by
beneficiaries; ‘supporting documents' means any document
drawn up in accordance either with the laws or regulations
of the Member State concerned, or with measures adopted
by the competent authority, which afford evidence that the
conditions attached to each individual application have
been met. The schedule shall give the term applied to each
document and the provisions or measures under which it is
drawn up and a brief description of the content of such
documents;

(b) specimens of

the forms on which beneficiaries are to
submit their applications for payment. Such forms must
include at least a summary of the expenditure incurred and
a comparative table giving a qualitative and quantitative
description of the measures provided for and those imple-
mented;

(c) a description of the checking and management methods set
up to ensure the effective implementation of measures
under the programme, pursuant to Article 8 of Regulation
(EEC) No 2158/92.

Member States shall also notify subsequent updates of the
documentation referred to in the first paragraph.

Article 3

1.
Competent authorities may apply for an advance of up to
30 % on the Community assistance to the national programme
not earlier than 1 January of the year following the date of
notification of the Commission Decision.

2. Member States may apply for a second advance of not
more than 30 % once they have furnished proof that 60 % of
the first advance for the same programme has been utilised.
The second advance may be increased to 50 % if 90 % of the
first advance has been spent.

3.
The balance shall be paid after the Commission has
received and approved the final report, a definitive financial
statement and the application requesting final payment for the
national programme.

Article 4

1.
From 1 July of the year following the date of notification
of the Commission Decision approving the programme, the
competent authorities shall forward six-monthly statements of
the payments made to beneficiaries in accordance with Annex
II, and accompanied by a statement describing the state of
progress of the work.

The competent authorities must submit applications for
the national
in accordance

2.
the payment of advances and balances
programme to the Commission,
with Annex III.

for
in duplicate,

Article 5

If a Member State recovers any amounts lost through
it shall reimburse them to the

1.
irregularities or negligence,
Community.

Should the Commission, within four years following
2.
payment of the balance, note any irregularity in an operation
financed by the Community where the amount concerned has
not been reimbursed to the Community under paragraph 1, it
shall inform the Member State thereof and give it an oppor-
tunity to comment.

3.
If, having examined the situation and considered any
comments from the Member State; the Commission confirms
the irregularity, the Member State shall reimburse the amounts
concerned.

Regulation (EEC) No 1170/93 is hereby repealed.

Article 6

However,
submitted before 1 November 1998.

it

shall continue to apply to aid applications

Article 7

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

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

Done at Brussels, 28 July 1999.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

3. 8. 1999

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 203/43

ANNEX I

Presentation of programmes

Information on the national programme for 200..

1. Contact of the competent authority: (name, address, telephone and fax numbers, e-mail address of the contact

person/body)

2. Description of the programme and location of the planned measures

3. Fire-risks zones concerned (within the meaning of Article 2 of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92)

4. Contribution of the programme to the implementation of the forest-fire protection plan or plans (within the meaning

of Article 3 of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92) for the zones concerned

5. Duration of the programme, starting and closing dates for implementation of the programme and provisional

scheduling of implementation

6. Total cost of the programme and aid applied for (percentage of total cost)

7. Breakdown of costs by measure (complete Table 1)

8. Description of the different applications included in the national programme (complete Table 2, using one form per

applicant) and summary of the applications (complete Table 3)

9. Financial programming of the national programme (complete Table 4)

10. Confirmation that work will not commence before the programme has been submitted: No/Yes (delete as appro-

priate)

11. Body to which aid is to be paid and bank details

12. Schedule of the supporting documents to be provided by beneficiaries; specimens of the forms on which beneficiaries
are to submit their applications for payment; description of the checking and management methods put in place to
ensure the effective implementation of measures under the programme

13. Confirmation that no applications under the programme will be submitted to other Community Funds

Date

Signature and stamp

National programme

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 . .

Table 1: Breakdown of costs by measure

Type of measure

Units

Quantity

Total cost

Non-Community participation

Public sector contribution

Member State

Region

Other public
funds

Private sector
contribution

Assistance requested

1.

1.1.

1.2.

Identification of
mination of means of combating them

the causes of

forest

fires and deter-

Studies to identify the causes of
background thereto

fire and the

Studies
to devise proposals
eliminate the causes and background

for

schemes

to

1.3.

Campaigns to inform and educate the public

2.

Setting-up or improvement of systems of prevention:

2.1.

Establishment of protective infrastructures:

2.1.1. Forest paths

2.1.2. Tracks

2.1.3. Water supply points

2.1.4. Firebreaks, cleared and felled areas

2.2.

Launching of operations to maintain firebreaks
and cleared and felled areas

2.3.

Preventive forestry measures

3.

Setting-up or improvement of monitoring systems:

3.1.

Fixed facilities

3.2. Mobile facilities

3.3.

Communications equipment

4.

5.

Training of highly specialised personnel

Analytical
projects
technologies.

studies, pilot projects and demonstration
techniques and

relating to new methods,

Total

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4

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N

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9
9
9

National programme

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 . .

Table 2: Description of individual applications
(One form per applicant)

1. Application No:

Title:

2. Applicant (name/address)

3. Type of measure concerned and compatibility with the plan

Protection plan number (1):

Medium/high-risk area (2)

4. Description of measures and breakdown on costs per measure (using the same numbering as in Table 1)

example:

— measure No 2.1.1 (forest paths):

quantity: 3 km

total cost: EUR xxx

— measure 2.1.3 (water supply points):

quantity: 2

total cost: EUR xxx

etc.

5. Location (with map)

6. Total cost of application and aid requested

(1) The number of the plan for the protection of forests against fire approved by the Commission pursuant to Article 3 of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92.
(2) Delete as appropriate. Specify whether the area covered by the application is in a medium or high fire-risk zone within the meaning of Article 2 of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92.

3

.

8

.

1
9
9
9

E
N

O

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4
5

National programme

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 . .

Table 3: Summary of applications under the programme

Application
No

Title

Applicant

Total cost

Eligible cost

Assistance requested

EUR

%
of the eligible
costs

Priority (1)

Classification
of risk (2)

(1) Priority 1, 2 or 3.
(2) 1 for high-risk area, 2 for medium-risk area, 3 for mixed-risk area.

Table 4: Financial programming of the national programme

Year n+1 (1)

Year n+2

Year n+3

1st half

2nd half

1st half

2nd half

1st half

2nd half

Amount of first advance

Amount of second advance

Payment of balance

(1) The national programme is deemed to have been submitted in year n; the payment of the first advance could therefore be applied for from 1 January in year n + 1.

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8

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1
9
9
9

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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ANNEX II

Introductory remarks

Applications for advances and payment, six-monthly statements and progress reports must be submitted in duplicate to:

European Commission
Directorate-General for Agriculture
Unit VI FII 2
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 200,
B-1049 Brussels

Use the form in Table 1.

Use the form in Table 2.

Statement of six-monthly payments made to beneficiaries

State of progress of the work

National programme

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200..

Table 1: Six-monthly statement for the national programme for 200 . .

Period from 1./ . ./200 . . to 1./ . ./200 . . (period t)

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)=(c)+(d)

Total assistance granted

Total advances received to date from the
Commission for the 200 . . programme

Total payments made on behalf of the
Commission to beneficiaries up to the end
of period t-1 (1)

Payments made on behalf of the
Commission to beneficiaries during
period t (2)

Total payments made on behalf of the
Commission to beneficiaries up to the end
of period t

(1) Column taken over from the previous statement.
(2) Payment made during the six months indicated in the title.

Application
No

Title

Applicant

Implementation (1)

Implementation
rate

Remarks

Table 2: State of progress of work

Period from 1./ . ./200 . . to 1./ . ./200 . .

(1) 1: being implemented; 2: completed; 3: abandoned.

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9
9
9

3. 8. 1999

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Application for the first advance payment for national programme . . . approved in 200 . . pursuant to Article 4
of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92

ANNEX III

Number of national programme:

Amount of the advance requested (1):

. . . . . . EUR

Bank details:

Name of the bank:

Address of branch/code:

Telephone/fax, telex, e-mail address:

Account No:

Account name:

Done at . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date:

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

For the competent authority
(Signature and stamp)

(1) Maximum 30 % of assistance granted to the national programme in the Commission Decision.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Application for the second advance payment for national programme . . . approved in 200.. pursuant to Article 4
of Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92

Number of national programme:

Amount of the advance requested (1):

. . . . . . EUR

Declaration:

The competent authority hereby confirms that:

1. 60 % of the eligible aid for the first instalment has been paid to the beneficiaries on the basis of the supporting

documents referred to in Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 1727/1999/EC

2.

the checks have been carried out in accordance with the checking methods notified to the Commission.

Bank details:

Name of the bank:

Address of branch/code:

Telephone/fax, telex, e-mail address:

Account No:

Account name:

Done at . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date:

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

For the competent authority
(Signature and stamp)

(1) Not more than 30 % of the aid granted to the national programme in the Commission Decision (may be increased to 50 % if 90 % of the

first advance has been spent).

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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Certificate for payment of the balance for national programme for . . . of 200..

Number of national programme:

Total payments made to date to beneficiaries on behalf of the Commission:

. . . . . . EUR

Total payments received from the Commission:. . . . . . EUR

Amount of balance requested:

The competent authority responsible for implementing the measures adopted pursuant to Regulation (EEC) No 2158/92
on protection of the Community’s forests against fire, in accordance with Article 7 of that Regulation, hereby certifies
that:

Declaration concerning the balance

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

the supporting documents indicated in the schedule sent to the Commission pursuant to Article 2 of Regulation (EC)
No . . . have been checked;

the work provided for by the programme commenced on . . . at the scheduled site;

the overall programme was completed on . . .

;

the actual costs of the eligible expenditure incurred total EUR . . . ;

the abovementioned costs are broken down by type of measure as specified in the Table, annexed hereto;

it has been noted on the spot by . . . that the work carried out is as specified in the dossier attached to the application
for assistance on which the Commission Decision was based;

7.

the amount of recoverable value-added tax included in the declared expenditure is: EUR . . .

;

8. Bank details:

Name of the bank:

Address of branch/code:

Telephone/fax, telex, e-mail address:

Account No:

Account name:

Done at . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

For the competent authority
(Signature and stamp)

National programme

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 . .

Comparative table

Type of measure

Units

Remarks

Quantity

Cost EUR

Quantity

Cost EUR

Planned work

Work done

1.

1.1.

1.2.

Identification of
combating them:

the causes of

forest

fires and determination of means of

Studies to identify the causes of fire and the background thereto

Studies to devise proposals for schemes to eliminate the causes and
background

1.3.

Campaigns to inform and educate the public

2.

Setting-up or improvement of systems of prevention:

2.1.

Establishment of protective infrastructures:

2.1.1. Forest paths

2.1.2. Tracks

2.1.3. Water supply points

2.1.4. Firebreaks, cleared and felled areas

2.2.

Launching of operations
felled areas

to maintain firebreaks and cleared and

2.3.

Preventive forestry measures

3.

Setting-up or improvement of monitoring systems:

3.1.

Fixed facilities

3.2. Mobile facilities

3.3.

Communications equipment

4.

5.

Training of highly specialised personnel

Analytical studies, pilot projects and demonstration projects relating to new
methods, techniques and technologies

Total

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