Regulation (EC) No 1484/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2001 amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 on the protection of the Community's forests against atmospheric pollution
Date: 2001-06-27
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: EU financing, action programme, air quality, environmental monitoring, forest conservation

20.7.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 196/1

I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

REGULATION (EC) No 1484/2001 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 27 June 2001

amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 on the protection of the Community's forests
against atmospheric pollution

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 175(1) thereof,

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

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (2),

Having consulted the Committee of the Regions,

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article
251 of the Treaty (3),

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

The period of application of Regulation (EEC) No 3528/
86 (4) expired on 31 December 1996. The said Regula-
tion was amended by Regulation (EC) No 307/97 (5). In
its judgment of 25 February 1999 in Joined Cases C-
164/97 and C-165/97 (6) the Court of Justice of the
European Communities annulled Council Regulation
(EC) No 307/97 but preserved its legal effects pending
the adoption of a new Regulation which replaces the
Regulation annulled.
legal
In order
certainty, the validity of the measures taken in applica-
tion of the annulled Regulation should be ensured.

to guarantee

Forests play an essential part
in maintaining funda-
mental ecological balances, particularly as regards the
soil, water resources, climate, fauna and flora. Those
ecological balances are indispensable for sustainable
agriculture and the management of rural areas.

(1) OJ C 307 E, 26.10.1999, p. 32 and
OJ C 96 E, 27.3.2001, p. 362.

(2) OJ C 51, 23.2.2000, p. 24.
(3) European Parliament Opinion of 6 July 2000 (OJ C 121,
24.4.2001, p. 176), Council common position of 26 February 2001
(OJ C 97, 27.3.2001, p. 1) and European Parliament Decision of 13
June 2001.

(4) OJ L 326, 21.11.1986, p. 2. Regulation as last amended by Regula-

tion (EEC) No 2157/92 (OJ L 217, 31.7.1992, p. 1).

(5) OJ L 51, 21.2.1997, p. 9.
(6) [1999] ECR I — 1139.

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

the
The importance of
Member States of the Community should be taken into
account.

forests in the ecosystems of

the forest ecosystems

The conservation of
reflects
economic, ecological and social concerns and contri-
butes,
towards safeguarding the social
function of those working in agriculture and in rural
areas.

in particular,

The Community and the Member States committed
themselves at international level at the three pan-Euro-
pean Ministerial Conferences on the Protection of
Forests in Europe, held in Strasbourg in 1990,
in
Helsinki in 1993 and in Lisbon in 1998, to continuous
surveillance of forest damage. The Community scheme
provided for by Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 contri-
butes to the fulfilment of this commitment.

from the systematic survey network show
Results
obvious trends in spatial and temporal distribution of
forest damage over the entire area of the Community.

Plots for the intensive and continuous monitoring of
forest ecosystems have been set up by the Member
States. A continuation of this monitoring activity over a
longer period will improve understanding of the causal
relationship between changes in forest ecosystems and
the factors influencing them.

Damage caused to forests by various factors, especially
atmospheric pollution and certain unfavourable meteor-
ological factors, hampers the development of sustainable
agricultural activity and the management of rural areas.

The protection of forests against atmospheric pollution
and other unfavourable meteorological factors therefore
contributes directly to the achievement of the aims set
out in Article 33(1)(b) of the Treaty.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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(10)

(11)

(12)

Consequently the scheme provided for by Regulation
(EEC) No 3528/86 should be continued and its duration
extended for five years, its period of application thereby
being extended to 15 years as from 1 January 1987.

The measures necessary for the implementation of Regu-
lation (EEC) No 3528/86 should be adopted in accord-
ance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June
1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of
implementing powers conferred on the Commission (1).

This Regulation establishes for the entire duration of the
measure a financial framework which is to be the prin-
cipal point of reference, within the meaning of point 33
the Interinstitutional Agreement of 6 May 1999
of
between the European Parliament, the Council and the
Commission on budgetary discipline and improvement
the budgetary
of
authority under the annual budgetary procedure.

the budgetary procedure (2),

for

(c) the development of the coordination and monitoring

activities referred to in Article 5;

(d) the establishment of a programme for the synoptic
processing of information on knowledge of atmospheric
pollution in woodland and its effects.

In accordance with the same procedure the Committee may
examine any other question within the scope of this Regula-
tion.

2.
The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Regulation relating to the matters referred to below shall be
adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure
referred to in Article 7(3):

(a) the detailed rules for the implementation of Article 2
and in particular those relating to the gathering, type,
comparability and transmission of the data collected;

(b) the detailed rules for implementing Article 3;

(13)

Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 should accordingly be
amended,

(c) the detailed rules and criteria for implementing Article

4.’

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 is hereby amended as follows:

1. Articles 7, 8 and 9 shall be replaced by Articles 7 and 8 as

follows:

‘Article 7

The Commission shall be assisted by the Standing
“the

referred to as

(hereinafter

1.
Forestry Committee
Committee”).

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 3
and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard
to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5
and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard
to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

2. Article 11 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 11

The scheme shall run for 15 years from 1 January

1.
1987.

2.
The financial allocation for the implementation of the
scheme shall be EUR 35,1 million for the period 1997 to
2001.

Annual appropriations shall be authorised by the budgetary
authority within the limits of the financial perspective.

3.
Before expiry of the period referred to in paragraph 1,
the Commission shall submit to the European Parliament
and to the Council a report on the application of this
Regulation and a proposal for revision covering in particular
the ecological, economic and social aspects (qualitative
assessment) and the results of a cost-benefit analysis
(quantitative assessment).’

3. In Article 2(3), Article 3(2) and Article 4(4) the words
‘procedure provided for in Article 7’ or ‘procedure laid
down in Article 7’ shall be replaced by ‘procedure provided
for in Article 7(3)’.

The period provided for in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/
468/EC shall be set at three months.

4. In Article 4a(3) the words ‘procedure laid down in Article 8’
shall be replaced by ‘procedure laid down in Article 7(2).’.

4.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

Article 8

Article 2

1.
The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Regulation relating to the matters referred to below shall be
adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred
to in Article 7(2):

Any reference to a measure taken in application of Regulation
(EC) No 307/97 shall be taken as a reference to a measure
taken in application of this Regulation from the day of the
latter's entry into force.

(a) the periodic reports referred to in Article 3;

(b) the experiments and projects referred to in Article 4,
before any Commission decision on their financing;

(1) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.
(2) OJ C 172, 18.6.1999, p. 1.

Article 3

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day following that
of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communi-
ties.

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

Done at Luxembourg, 27 June 2001.

For the European Parliament

The President

N. FONTAINE

For the Council

The President

B. ROSENGREN