WRITTEN QUESTION E-4064/00 by Giorgio Celli (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Environmental rehabilitation work in Emilia Romagna (Italy).
Date: 2001-01-09
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Emilia-Romagna, biotope, environmental protection, environmental standard, protected species, sugar industry

C 187 E/124

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

3.7.2001

Legislation rightly ensures that this immeasurably valuable heritage is protected, but does not take into
consideration the age-old activities of farmers in the area (rearing buffalo, growing vegetables, etc.).

Will the Commission therefore take action to ensure that the local authorities, while continuing to ensure
that the archaeological and landscape heritage is protected, adopt all measures necessary to allow the
farmers concerned to receive special authorisation to improve their holdings and to gain access to
concessions relating to social security contributions, tax and financing, as well as financial support from
the European Union?

In short, does the Commission intend to ensure that all those concerned benefit from equal opportunities
in comparison with other farmers who do not live in areas subject to constraints?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(16 February 2001)

The Commission considers that compliance with the legislation in force on protecting the archaeological
heritage, the landscape and the environment is a prerequisite for granting any public assistance in the
agricultural sector, whether it be purely national assistance or assistance part-financed at Community level
under the Structural Funds or the Rural Development Plan for the region concerned.

Taking action to ensure that the local authorities give farmers access to special permits for improving their
holdings and to concessions in the field of social security contributions, taxation and national funding is
not considered by the Commission to be a task which falls within its powers. If national aid were
introduced in this context, the Commission would be responsible for guaranteeing compliance with the
State aid rules under Articles 87 to 89 (former Articles 92 to 94) of the EC Treaty.

As regards assistance part-financed by the Community under the programmes referred to above, no
provision is made for specific rural development measures confined to this area in the Objective 1
Operational Programme (ROP) for the Campania region for the period 2000-2006, which was approved
by the Commission Decision of 8 August 2000.

However, it would be within the powers of the regional authorities implementing this assistance to lay
down specific conditions aimed at encouraging application of the measures provided for in the ROP in the
area subject
these conditions complied with the
to the abovementioned constraints, provided that
Community rules on the Structural Funds and rural development.

(2001/C 187 E/131)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-4064/00

by Giorgio Celli (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(9 January 2001)

Subject: Environmental rehabilitation work in Emilia Romagna (Italy)

Can the Commission provide information on the (cid:145)environmental rehabilitation(cid:146) work now completed at the
Mezzano sugar refinery ((cid:145)Vasche dello zuccherificio di Mezzano, cod. IT 4700012(cid:146)) (Ravenna, Italy), a site
which has been designated under the provisions of Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural
habitats and of wild fauna and flora (1) and Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds (2),
given that it was not carried out in full compliance with the recommendations on the protection of the
wildlife living in the area, and has completely altered the entire natural habitat?

Is the Commission aware of this situation?

What action does it intend to take on the matter?

(1) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.
(2) OJ L 103, 25.4.1979.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 187 E/125

Answer given by Mr Wallstr(cid:246)m on behalf of the Commission

(28 February 2001)

The case raised by the Honourable Member has been dealt with by the Commission in the framework of
petition no 238/99. This petition has been last discussed during the meeting of the Committee on Petitions
of the Parliament on 23 May 2000. No infringement of Community legislation on nature conservation had
been identified at the time and the case was consequently closed.

The information given by the Honourable Member does not include any new elements that would justify
the Commission changing its earlier analysis.

(2001/C 187 E/132)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-4066/00

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(10 January 2001)

Subject: Price increases as a result of the introduction of the euro and of rounding up when converting old

prices

According to a study carried out by the Faculty of Economics at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam,
prices for everyday purchases will rise on 1 January 2002 or shortly after by between 5 % and 10 %. Prices
for cars and houses will also rise. The reason for this is that salespeople always use round figures, such as
100, 99,9 or 99,5. Every time the old national currency is converted into euros, they can achieve this by
rounding the price either down or up. It is expected that in nearly every case they will do the latter.
Salespeople nearly always will add something to the old price in order to arrive at an eye-catching amount.

In the light of this:

1. Does the Commission have information from other studies which confirm the results of the Dutch

study?

2. Does the Commission have information from other studies which would contradict this conclusion? If
so, what arguments are used by these studies to conclude that no major price rise above the annual
norm can be expected?

3. What does the Commission propose to do, in cooperation with the national authorities of the 12
Member States concerned, to counteract the emergence of a price discrepancy in the first half of 2002,
e.g. by laying down rules on the rounding up or down of prices to ensure that average prices remain
stable?

4. How does the Commission propose to prevent unusual price increases occurring during 2001 by way

of an advance on rounded-up euro prices in 2002?

5. Has the Commission already developed ideas on what should happen if an abnormal price increase
cannot be avoided? What provision will be made in that case for compensation in terms of pay and
allowances so as to maintain the purchasing power of the great majority of people who are dependent
on these sources of income?

Source: The Dutch newspapers (cid:145)De Telegraaf(cid:146) and (cid:145)Rotterdams Dagblad(cid:146) of 7 December 2000.

Answer given by Mr Solbes Mira on behalf of the Commission

(27 February 2001)

The Commission is not aware of any economic study on the matter. The authors of the Dutch study

1.
have, in any case, formally challenged the way in which their conclusions were presented in the press.