WRITTEN QUESTION E-0416/02 by Sérgio Marques (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Galileo.
Date: 2002-02-21
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU research policy, United States, harmonisation of standards, project management, research project, satellite navigation, scientific cooperation, technical standard

29.8.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 205 E/135

In 1997, the Commission already challenged Italian legislation which excluded, at Article 8, paragraph 2,
letter c, of Decreto Legislativo 5 febbraio 1997 No 22 (first version) transposing waste Community
directives, the ‘non hazardous materials derived from digging activity’ from the scope of application of
Italian waste legislation. This exclusion has then been repealed by the next version of the Italian decree.

In the light of the above, the Italian law No 443 of 21 December 2001, which prohibits excavated soil and
stones from being defined as waste, even if it is contaminated, could be in breach of the Community waste
legislation.

The Commission will take the appropriate steps in order to verify the compliance with Community law in
the specific case. Should the Commission identify a breach of Community law, it would not hesitate, as the
guardian of the EC Treaty, to take all necessary measures conferred on it by the EC Treaty, including
infringement procedures under Article 226 of the EC Treaty,
in order to ensure the compliance with
relevant Community law.

(1) OJ L 194, 25.7.1975.
(2) OJ L 78, 26.3.1991.
(3) OJ L 47, 16.2.2001.

(2002/C 205 E/144)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0416/02

by Sérgio Marques (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(21 February 2002)

Subject: Galileo

forward an independent satellite
In its communication of 10 February 1999 the Commission put
navigation programme, called Galileo, which it proposed to pursue in four phases, namely the definition
phase, the test and validation phase, the deployment phase, and the operation phase.

Given that the definition phase has already been completed and the Commission sees no financial,
economic, or technical reasons to postpone the start of the test phase again, is the Galileo programme
likely to proceed according to the timetable initially laid down?

The fact that there are two independent space systems, GPS and Galileo, which, however, are compatible,
will give rise to new applications and uses and also speed up the introduction of satellite navigation
systems in many fields.

The Commission has been conducting bilateral negotiations with the United States in accordance with the
brief given by the Member States. What progress have the negotiations made to date, and what are the
prospects for effective coordination of the two systems to guarantee the high levels of safety required in
order to implement satellite navigation services?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(17 April 2002)

The total cost of the Galileo satellite navigation programme is estimated at between € 3,2 and 3,4 billion.

The programme is in three phases:

? a development and validation phase (2001-2005):

? development of the satellites and ground components;

? validation of the system ‘in orbit’;

C 205 E/136

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

29.8.2002

? a deployment phase (2006-2007):

? building and launch of the satellites;

? establishment of the complete ground sector;

? a commercial operating phase (from 2008).

The initial definition phase has already been completed (1999-2001).

The Commission’s proposals were accepted by the Transport Council of 26 March 2002 and the timetable
can be respected. It is essential for commercial reasons that the services become operational in 2008.

Galileo has superior performance but is complementary to the global positioning system (GPS) in that:

? harmonious use of the two infrastructures (double source) provides real advantages for users in terms

of precision, security and cost;

? the existence of two independent systems will benefit all users, who will be able to receive GPS and

Galileo signals on a single receiver;

? the signals transmitted by the Galileo satellites will be relayed by ground transmitters, enabling a

service to be offered inside buildings or underground, including in tunnels.

Compared with GPS, which is essentially military in character, Galileo is a civil system that will guarantee
a high level of service continuity for certain applications. The system is more precise thanks to its more
advanced architecture and the integrity messages added to the signal.

The Commission was given a mandate to negotiate with the USA in September 1999 and several meetings
have taken place.

the two systems,

frequencies,
The negotiations essentially cover the interoperability of
standardisation and marketing. A number of meetings have taken place, the most recent in October 2001.
The European negotiators submitted various documents relating to the definition of the Galileo frequencies
and signals, security aspects and US/European coordination, and calculations showing the level of
interference between Galileo signals and GPS signals to be acceptable. The USA is currently verifying the
technical analyses carried out by European experts on the absence of radiofrequency interference between
the two systems. The interoperability of the signals from the two systems could lead to a new international
navigation and positioning standard, GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System); this standard could meet a
common objective. The two parties hope to reach an agreement soon. Negotiations will resume in the next
few weeks.

the use of

(2002/C 205 E/145)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0418/02

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(21 February 2002)

Subject: Livestock export refunds

What was the Commission’s total expenditure in 2001 on refunds for the export of livestock to non-
Community countries?