WRITTEN QUESTION E-2059/03 by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. One-year delay by the Spanish government in extracting fuel oil from the wreck of the Prestige off the Galician coast.
Date: 2003-06-20
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Galicia, environmental risk prevention, fuel oil, oil pollution, pollution control, tanker, transport accident

27.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 78 E/73

Can the Commission confirm that, since the 1970s, average values of ethylene in the atmosphere

1.
have increased from some 5 ppb to 30-50 ppb?

2.
Does the Commission have any emission data for ethylene and measurements of ethylene in the
ambient air which give a clear picture of the order of magnitude and the breadth of this problem in
Europe, of the differences between rural and urban areas and of the possible peak values in certain areas,
such as in the vicinity of petrochemical plants or other emission sources?

3.
Does the Commission intend to initiate a more targeted programme for monitoring ethylene, lay
down a critical threshold value, take specific measures and establish standards for industrial processes,
possibly doing so as part of the review of the Clean Air For Europe Programme (CAFE) in 2004?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(29 July 2003)

Alongside its role as a plant hormone and the possible consequent effects of ambient levels on vegetation,
ethylene (ethene) is one of the substances known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which favour the
formation of ozone pollution. It is therefore covered by emission controls aimed at reducing VOCs,
although standards are based on a weighted average based on photo-oxidisation potential, rather than
being specifically targeted at individual substances.

Community legislation provides a mechanism for Member States to exchange data on air quality, but data
exchange on ethylene (ethene) concentrations is not mandatory and almost no data has been exchanged so
far. For this reason the Commission can neither confirm nor contradict the figures quoted by the
Honourable Member concerning average values of ethylene in the atmosphere. This situation may improve
in the future as a result of the Directive 2002/3/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 12 February
2002 relating to ozone in ambient air (1), which requires Member States to set up ambient air monitoring
stations for volatile organic compounds as ozone precursors. Ethylene is one of
the substances
recommended to be monitored in this context.

The picture is similar as regards emission data, since Member States generally report emissions of volatile
organic compounds as a whole, rather than substance by substance.

At the moment the Commission is not aware of any convincing evidence that current levels of ethylene in
the atmosphere give rise to significant effects on vegetation, and there is, consequently, no current
intention to initiate a more targeted monitoring programme.

(1) OJ L 67, 9.3.2002.

(2004/C 78 E/0072)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2059/03

by Camilo Nogueira Román (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(20 June 2003)

Subject: One-year delay by the Spanish government in extracting fuel oil from the wreck of the ‘Prestige’

off the Galician coast

The Spanish government has just stated that the extraction operations (entrusted to the Repsol company)
for the 35 000 tonnes of fuel oil that still have to be removed from the wreck of the ‘Prestige’ off the
Galician coast will be delayed for a year, i.e. until spring 2004. This serious delay contradicts the Spanish
government’s earlier promises, and will increase the risks generated by the presence of the wreck at almost
4 000 metres underwater.

The Commission has declared that the presence of this vessel, still with one-half of its original load, is a
matter of European concern, and has expressed its willingness to cooperate with the Spanish government
to deal with the problem.

C 78 E/74

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

27.3.2004

Is the Commission aware of the Spanish government’s decision? Does it consider it justified? What action
will it take to hold the Spanish government to its promise to remove the fuel oil remaining in the hold of
the ‘Prestige’ during 2003? Has it contacted the Spanish government on the matter? What contacts has it
established with the Galician regional government to resolve the problem?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(31 July 2003)

The Honourable Member is invited to refer to his previous Written Questions E-3595/02 (1), E-1259/03 (2)
and his oral question H-69/03 during question time at Parliament’s March 2003 session (3).

The measures to be taken concerning the extraction of the fuel oil still on board the Prestige fall primarily
under the competence of the Spanish authorities.

A delegation from the Spanish ministry for development and representatives from Repsol have recently
presented to the Commission services and to the Director of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA)
the details of the plan for the extraction of the fuel from the wreck of the Prestige.

The Commission understands that the same information was made available by the Spanish authorities to
the Parliament’s rapporteur on the Prestige accident.

A copy of the CD-rom presented by the Spanish authorities is sent directly to the Honourable Member.

(1) OJ C 242 E, 9.10.2003, p. 63.
(2) OJ C 280 E, 21.11.2003, p. 121.
(3) Written reply, 11.3.2003.

(2004/C 78 E/0073)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-2080/03

by Jonas Sjöstedt (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(17 June 2003)

Subject: Summary of subsidies to undertakings

I understand that varying amounts of subsidies both from the Member States and from the EU’s structural
funds are constantly being transferred to a variety of undertakings in the EU.

Does the Commission possess a summary of how much money the different undertakings receive, on the
one hand in the form of state aid approved by the EU, and on the other hand in the form of contributions
from the EU’s structural funds?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(18 July 2003)

The Commission publishes a State aid Scoreboard twice each year. The spring version contains detailed
information on annual State aid expenditure for each Member State including the objective of the aid and
the sector for which it is earmarked. The Scoreboard covers State aid as defined under Article 87(1) of the
EC Treaty that is granted by the fifteen Member States and has been examined by the Commission.
Accordingly, general measures are not included in the figures. For example, a general tax break for
expenditure on research and development is not considered as State aid although it may well appear in
Member States national budgets as public support for research and development. Community funds and
instruments are not specifically identified in the scoreboard, although the figures include aid granted by
national and /or regional authorities which are co-financed by structural funds. The Scoreboard can be
consulted on the Commission’s website: http://europa.eu.int/comm/competition/state_aid/scoreboard/.