WRITTEN QUESTION E-2418/00 by María Sornosa Martínez (PSE) to the Commission. Establishment of an EU network of sites of cultural and historic interest.
Date: 2000-07-18
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Community of Valencia, architectural heritage, cultural policy, heritage protection, urban road

8.5.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 136 E/33

(2001/C 136 E/036)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2418/00

by Mar(cid:237)a Sornosa Mart(cid:237)nez (PSE) to the Commission

(18 July 2000)

Subject: Establishment of an EU network of sites of cultural and historic interest

The district of Cabanyal-Canyamelar in the city of Valencia, which the autonomous government, the
Generalitat, has declared a site of cultural interest, is currently under threat from a project approved by the
city council to extend Blasco IbÆæez Avenue to the sea. Were the project to go ahead, its route would lead
to the demolition of 1 500 19th-century buildings in the historic centre hitherto afforded protection by the
Valencian Government owing to their (cid:145)unique characteristics and cultural relevance(cid:146). For instance, one of
the buildings earmarked for demolition, the Lonja de los Pescadores (fish market), the oldest of its kind in
Spain and one of the oldest in Europe, ranks amongst the most symbolic examples of European cultural
heritage.

Several local bodies, cultural associations and universities have condemned this attempted assault on the
district, which they have dubbed an (cid:145)open-air museum(cid:146); they maintain that the city council has allowed the
area to fall into disrepair in order to be able to press ahead with the plan to extend the avenue. In
addition, local bodies have shown that the ESP 9 billion set aside for compulsory purchases and rehousing
would be sufficient to renovate the entire district and thus afford it the official protection established by
the Generalitat.

The case of Cabanyal-Canyamelar is representative of the many urban planning schemes currently under
way in the EU which have an impact on its historic and cultural heritage and thus run counter to the
provisions of Article 151 of the EC Treaty.

In order to guard against situations in which a combination of isolated cases may lead to the loss of
innumerable treasures forming part of the cultural heritage of the peoples of the European Union, would
the Commission be prepared to look into the possibility of setting up an EU network of sites of cultural
and historic interest similar to that established by Unesco, which would receive the appropriate Commu-
nity funding and contribute towards the upkeep and renovation of those historic buildings and sites that
are most symbolic and representative of Europe and its peoples?

Joint answer
to Written Questions E-2416/00, E-2417/00 and E-2418/00
given by Ms Reding on behalf of the Commission

(11 October 2000)

Article 151 (ex Article 128) of the EC Treaty gives the Community only limited powers in the area of
culture. Community action must be aimed at encouraging cooperation between Member States and, if
necessary, supporting and supplementing their action in a certain number of areas.

Against this background, the Commission would draw the Honourable Member(cid:146)s attention to the fact that
it cannot adopt legislation in an area that is, and remains, the exclusive responsibility of the Member
States.

As regards the drafting of a directive to make Recommendation No 75/65/EEC (1)
in 1974,
recommended that Member States sign the convention on the protection of the world cultural and natural
heritage, adopted by Unesco in 1972) compulsory, it should be noted that all the Member States have
already ratified or agreed to this convention.

(which,

Mention should also be made of the existence of Council Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the
assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment, amended by Council
Directive 97/11/EC of 3 March 1997, which obliges Member States to assess the effects on the cultural
heritage of projects for the construction of motorways and expressways (see Article 3 and Annex I of the
Directive). The construction of other types of road and town planning work are subject to an impact
assessment whenever the Member States determine, through a case-by-case examination or using thresh-
olds or criteria set by the Member State, whether the project is to be made subject to an assessment
(Article 4 (2) and Annex II of the Directive). When determining whether this assessment is to be carried
out, Member States must take account of the relevant selection criteria (Article 4 (3) and Annex III of the
Directive).

C 136 E/34

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

8.5.2001

Lastly, as far as the possibility of setting up a network of sites of cultural and historic interest throughout
the Community is concerned, the Culture 2000 cultural cooperation programme, adopted by the European
institutions for the period 2000-2004, provides for support for cooperation projects in the area of cultural
heritage, inter alia support for projects to conserve and protect exceptional cultural heritage that can be
described as (cid:145)European heritage laboratories(cid:146).

(1) OJ L 21, 28.1.1975.

(2001/C 136 E/037)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2419/00

by Francesco Turchi (UEN) to the Commission

(18 July 2000)

Subject: Safety of sea shipping

In breach of the provisions of the SOLAS 74 Convention for ships built before 1995 and Presidential
Decrees 432/91 and 156/73, the Italian Ministry for Transport and Shipping has not only allowed radio
rooms to be shut down, seriously undermining the privacy and safety of radio operators, but has also
permitted radio posts to be set up on the bridge of passenger ships, ferries and merchant ships.

In addition, for some passenger ships, ferries and merchant ships, the maritime authority has abolished the
RT GMDSS/GOC officer without any form of replacement and without introducing a safety equipment
table, while at the same time assigning responsibility for the radio service to the deck officer who is
required to fulfil this function during his watch with passengers and crew members on the bridge, in
breach of the rules on this matter and with only a five-day course as preparation.

Lastly, international, European Union and national laws do not allow a sovereign state to grant derogations
and/or exemptions which result in reduced maritime safety or a danger to the safety of persons and goods.
The authorities responsible for this matter, which are aware of these failings, have a duty to adopt
additional preventive safety measures in order to avert any danger.

Will the Commission say what grounds might justify the above situation and what measures it intends to
take?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(26 September 2000)

It must be noted that the maritime radio communication issue is internationally regulated by the 1974
Solas Convention, the Radiocommunication regulation of the International Telecommunication Union
(ITU) and the 1978 Convention on standards of training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers
(STCW) as amended.

In accordance with the Solas Convention the traditional radio installations have been replaced, since
1 February 1999, with equipment complying with the international standards as set out in the global
maritime distress and safety system (GMDSS). The traditional post of radio officer may, in line with these
new rules, be taken over by another deck officer with the required qualifications.

There are no specific Community provisions on this aspect of the maritime radio communications issue.

The concrete questions of the Honourable Member are related to the implementation of the GMDSS and
this specific issue is solely the responsibility of the individual States, as contracting party of the Solas
Convention.