Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the contained use of genetically modified micro-organisms (codified version) COM(2006) 286 final — 2006/0100 (COD)
Date: 2006-10-26
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: codification of EU law, environmental impact, environmental risk prevention, exchange of information, genetically modified organism, microorganism, public health

30.12.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 324/27

Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the Proposal for a Directive of the
European Parliament and of the Council on the contained use of genetically modified micro-organ-
isms (codified version)

COM(2006) 286 final — 2006/0100 (COD)

(2006/C 324/12)

On 4 September 2006, the Council decided to consult the European Economic and Social Committee,
under Article 37 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the abovementioned proposal.

The Section for Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, which was responsible for preparing
the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 8 September 2006. The rapporteur was
Franco Chiriaco.

In view of the renewal of the Committee's term of office, the Plenary Assembly has decided to vote on this
opinion at its October plenary session and has adopted Mr Chiriaco as rapporteur-general under Rule 20 of
the Rules of Procedure.

At its 430th plenary session, held on 26 October 2006, the European Economic and Social Committee
adopted the following opinion by 97 votes with three abstentions.

1. Introduction

1.1
The purpose of this proposal is to undertake a codifica-
tion of Council Directive 90/219/EEC of 23 April 1990 on the
contained use of genetically modified micro-organisms. The new
Directive will supersede the various Directives incorporated in
it; their content is fully preserved, and they are brought together
with only such formal amendments as are required by the codi-
fication exercise itself.

2. General comments

2.1
The Committee considers it extremely helpful that all the
legislation on this matter is being consolidated into a single
directive. Keeping in mind the goal of a people's Europe, the
Committee agrees with the Commission on the importance of
simplifying and clarifying Community legislation so as to make
it clearer and more accessible to ordinary people, thus opening
up new opportunities to them and enabling them to benefit
from the rights that legislation gives them.

To protect human health and the environment, all
2.2
measures to ensure the optimum use of biotechnology, in par-

ticular for human foodstuffs, need to be taken, and all use of
be
genetically-modified micro-organisms
contained so as to avoid any negative consequences.

(GMMs) must

2.3
The EESC emphasises that the control of GMMs can only
be effective if it is applied consistently in all Member States of
the Community, as GMMs, once used, can reproduce across
borders.

The EESC recalls that a genetically modified micro-
2.4
is ‘a micro-organism in which the genetic
organism (GMM)
material has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally’
and agrees with the Commission's stated position relating to
occupational safety and hygiene and to prevention of accidents
and control of dissemination.

2.5
The Committee has satisfied itself that this codification
does not involve any substantive change to the provisions it
consolidates and simply serves to present Community legislation
in a clear format. The Committee fully supports this aim, and,
the
having satisfied itself as stated above,
proposal under consideration.

is in favour of

Brussels, 26 October 2006.

The President

of the European Economic and Social Committee

Dimitris DIMITRIADIS