CELEX: 51987PC0368
Language: en
Date: 1988-01-04
Title: PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC ) ON A SPECIFIC COMMON MEASURE TO ENCOURAGE THE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE IN CERTAIN REGIONS OF SPAIN

N o C 25/8                              Official Journal of the European Communities                                 30.1.88
                                                               II
                                                       (Preparatory Acts)
                                                 COMMISSION
              Proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) on a specific common measure to encourage the
                                   development of agriculture in certain regions of Spain
                                                      COM(87) 368 final
                              (Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 13 January 1988)
                                                         (88/C 25/11)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,                           1975 on mountain and hill farming and farming in
                                                                   certain less-favoured areas (3), and Council Directive
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European              86/466/EEC of 14 July 1976 concerning the Community
Economic Community, and in particular Article 43                   list of less-favoured farming areas within the meaning of
thereof,                                                           Directive 75/268/EEC (Spain) (4), face major handicaps,
                                                                   in particular in the case of mountain areas and areas
                                                                   qualifying for a 50 % rate of reimbursement from the
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 797/85
                                                                   EAGGF Guidance Section in accordance with Article 26
of 12 March 1985 on improving the efficiency of agri-              (4) of Regulation (EEC) No 797/85;
cultural structures ('), as last amended by Regulation
(EEC) No 1760/87 (2), and in particular Article 18
thereof,
                                                                   Whereas the rural infrastructure of those regions is far
                                                                   from adequate, in particular as regards public amenities
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,                 such as the supply of electricity and potable water and
                                                                   farm and local roads; whereas providing or improving
Having regard to the opinion of the European Par-                  such facilities is a major precondition to bringing about
liament,                                                           an improvement in the agricultural structure and
                                                                   economic situation of rural areas;
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
Social Committee,
                                                                   Whereas the situation in those areas as regards irri-
                                                                   gation, etc., is far from adequate; whereas that situation
Whereas, by virtue of Article 39 (2) (a) of the Treaty,            should therefore be improved by renewing and extending
the social structure of agriculture and the structural and         existing irrigation networks when these are needed to
natural disparities between agricultural regions must be           change over to better types of farming or production;
taken into account in working out the common agri-
cultural policy;
                                                                   Whereas reparcelling consolidates agricultural land and
Whereas, in order to attain the objectives of the common           lowers production costs;
agricultural policy which are set out in Article 39 (1) (a)
and (b) of the Treaty, special measures in keeping with
the situation of less-favoured agricultural areas must be          Whereas, since some farmland is adversely affected by
adopted at Community level;                                        erosion, it is essential to conserve soil and water
                                                                   resources and protect the countryside and its recreational
Whereas specific measures may be adopted pursuant to               potential;
Article 18 of Regulation (EEC) No 797/85 to encourage
agriculture as a whole in the region concerned, in
harmony with any development schemes simultaneously                Whereas a special aid scheme for forestry protection and
undertaken in non-agricultural sectors and with the                 afforestation can play a major role in less-favoured
needs of environmental protection;                                  areas; and whereas forestry can help to ensure the fullest
                                                                   possible use of the agricultural labour force and provide
Whereas in Spain the less-favoured farming areas which              additional farm income;
qualify under Council Directive 75/268/EEC of 28 April
0) OJ No L 93, 30. 3. 1985, p. 1.                                   (») OJ No L 128, 19. 5. 1975, p. 1.
O OJ No L 167, 26. 6. 1987, p. 1.                                   (4) OJ No L 273, 24. 9. 1986, p. 104.
 ---pagebreak--- 30.1. 88                                 Official Journal of the European Communities                                 N o C 25/9
Whereas a special aid scheme should be introduced with              4.    For the purposes of coordination with other
a view to improving farm housing, in particular in order            programmes and/or provisions and in order to ensure
to attract young farmers;                                           effective combined use of the various measures, the
                                                                    programme shall include any particulars which may
Whereas the achievement of these objectives should be               affect agricultural development in the regions concerned.
encouraged by a measure which combines these various
elements within one or more programmes;                                                     . Article 2
Whereas the funds available in Spain are fairly limited;            The common measure shall concern:
whereas provision should therefore be made for a
Community co-financing rate of 40 % for expenditure                 1. The improvement of the agricultural infrastructure, in
incurred in implementing irrigation measures and 50 %                   particular:
for expenditure incurred in implementing other
measures;                                                               — the supply of electricity and potable water to
                                                                            farms, villages and parts of villages whose
Whereas the measures in question therefore constitute a                     inhabitants are primarily dependent on agriculture
common measure within the meaning of Article 6 of                           and/or forestry;
Council Regulation (EEC) N o 729/70 of 21 April 1970
on the financing of the common agricultural policy ('),                 — the construction and improvement of farm roads
as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3769/85 (2),                         and local roads used for agriculture and/or
                                                                            forestry;
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:                                        2. Irrigation works, including:
                                                                        — renewing and improving existing collective irri-
                            TITLE I
                                                                            gation and drainage networks;
       Measures to accelerate development in Spain's
                      less-favoured areas                               — installing collective irrigation networks and
                                                                            carrying out drainage operations in cases where
                                                                            those networks and operations are needed to
                            Article 1
                                                                            channel production towards non-surplus products
 1.   In order to accelerate the development of agri-                       in accordance with Article la (1) (a) of Regulation
culture in certain Spanish regions and thus improve                         (EEC) No 797/85;
economic and social cohesion a common measure within
the meaning of Article 18 of Regulation (EEC) No                    3. The reparcelling of agricultural land, involving:
797/85 is hereby introduced which Spain shall implement
with a view to bringing about a significant improvement                 — a lasting increase in the size of parcels so that, in
in agricultural structures, the aim being to reduce                         general, they increase by a factor of at least three;
production costs and maintain agriculture in the regions
concerned, all of which face major socio-structural                     — related operations;
handicaps.
                                                                    4. The prevention of soil erosion involving:
2.    The common measure shall be applicable to less-
favoured areas within the meaning of Directive 75/268/
                                                                        — the construction of small dams, dykes, retaining
EEC, with priority given to mountain areas within the
                                                                            walls, breakwaters and windbreaks;
meaning of Article 3 (3) of the said Directive and areas
qualifying for a rate of reimbursement from the EAGGF
                                                                        — the improvement of streams and gullies;
Guidance Section of 50 % in accordance with Article 26
(4) of Regulation (EEC) N o 797/85.
                                                                        — the construction or repair of banks;
3.    The Community may make a contribution towards                     — planting with suitable varieties along water courses
the common measure by financing, via the Guidance                           to improve the soil's retaining capacity;
Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and
Guarantee Fund, hereinafter referred to as 'the Fund',
measures in support of agriculture which are set out in              5. Improving privately-owned farmland as part of an
one or more programmes drawn up by the Spanish                          overall scheme, including:
Government or by other authorities designated by the
 Spanish Government for that purpose.                                   — drainage;
                                                                        — other soil-improvement measures such as the
 (') OJ No L 94, 28. 4. 1970, p. 13.                                         clearing of stones, the levelling and sowing of
 O OJ No L 362, 31. 12. 1985, p. 17.                                         pastures, and base dressing;
 ---pagebreak--- No C 25/10                                Official Journal of the European Communities                                  30.1. 88
6. Forestry, including:                                              3.     Programmes and any amendments thereto shall be
                                                                     adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in >
    — afforestation, including        the planting    of   fast-     Article 10 after the Fund Committee has been consulted
         growing species;                                            on the financial aspects.
    — improvement of deteriorated woodlands;
                                                                     4.     When approving programmes the Commission
    — other supporting measures, including measures to               shall, jointly with the Spanish Government, decide on
         prevent and combat forest fires, but not including          the arrangments regarding submission to the Commission
         measures for which aid is paid under Council                of regular progress reports on the programmes, and the
         Regulation (EEC) No 3529/86 on protection of                Spanish Government shall, where appropriate, designate
         the Community's forests against fires (*);                  the agency or the regions responsible for the actual
                                                                     implementation of the programmes.
7. The improvement of farm housing, especially for
    young farmers newly installed on the farm concerned,
    via investment aid not exceeding 20 000 ECU per                                            TITLE II
    holding; however, the investment aid shall not exceed
    the limits laid down in the second subparagraph of                             General and financial provisions
    Article 4 (2) of Regulation (EEC) No 797/85.
                                                                                               Article 5
                           Article 3
                                                                     Investment qualifying for Community aid under other
1.     The programmes referred to in Article 1 (3) shall             common measures within the meaning of Article 6 (1) of
include the following particulars:                                   Regulation (EEC) No 729/70 and in particular under
                                                                     Articles 17 or 20 of Regulation (EEC) No 797/85 or
(a) the definition of the geographical area concerned;               Regulation (EEC) No 3529/86, shall not be eligible for
(b) a description of the problems in each sector, the                 aid from the Fund under this Regulation.
     areas affected and the various measures to be
     adopted under the common measure in order to                                              Article 6
     solve them, together with an estimate of the cost
     involved and the method of financing;                            1.    The maximum duration of the common measure
                                                                      shall be five years from the approval of the first
(c) the expected timetable for completion of the various              programme.
     measures;
(d) an indication of the additional effect attributable to            2.    During the fourth year the Commission shall report
     the planned measures at national and Community                   to the Council on the progress of the common measure.
     level;
                                                                      3.    Before the expiry of the period referred to in
(e) the arrangements to coordinate the programme with                 paragraph 1, the Council, acting by qualified majority on
      any other programmes or measures which may                      a proposal from the Commission, may extend the
      influence the development of agriculture in the                 common measure's period of validity.
      regions concerned;
 (f) evidence that the measures contemplated are                      4.    The estimated cost of the common measure to the
      compatible with the protection of the environment.              Fund is 420 million ECU.
 2.     In the case of the installation of new irrigation
 networks as referred to in the second indent of Article 2                                     Article 7
 (2), programmes shall include information showing that               1.    Expenditure by the Spanish Government in respect
production on the land concerned will be in conformity                of the common measure shall be eligible for assistance
with the list of products towards which a reorientation of            from the Fund up to the amounts and percentages
production is acceptable within the meaning of Article                specified in paragraph 2.
 la (1) (a) of Regulation (EEC) No 797/85.
                                                                      2.    The actual expenditure incurred by the Spanish
                           Article 4                                  Government shall be reimbursed by the Fund up to the
                                                                      following limits:
 1.     All programmes shall be forwarded               to   the
 Commission by the Spanish Government.
                                                                      — 50 % for improvements to the agricultural infra-
 2.     The     Spanish    Government        shall,    at    the          structure as referred to in Article 2 (1), subject to a
 Commission's request, provide any background infor-                      maximum eligible amount of 190 million ECU;
 mation required in addition to the particulars supplied
                                                                      — 40 % for irrigation works as referred to in Article
 pursuant to Article 3.
                                                                          2 (2), subject to a maximum eligible amount of 5 000
                                                                          ECU per irrigated hectare, and an overall limit of
 (') OJ No L 326, 21. 11. 1986, p. 5.                                     70 000 hectares and 224 million ECU;
 ---pagebreak--- 30.1. 88                              Official Journal of the European Communities                              No C 25/11
— 50 °/o for reparcelling as referred to in Article 2 (3),       2.    Aid from the Fund shall be granted in accordance
    subject to a maximum eligible amount of 600 ECU              with Article 7 (1) of Regulation-(EEC) N o 729/70.
    per hectare concerned, and an overall limit of
    245 000 hectares and 122 million ECU;                        3.    The Fund may make advance payments on the basis
                                                                 of the financing arrangements adopted by Spain and in
— 50 % for measures to combat soil erosion as referred           the light of the progress of the programme.
    to in Article 2 (4), subject to a maximum eligible
    amount of 100 million ECU;                                   4.    Detailed rules for the application of this Article
                                                                 shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid
— 50 % for farmland improvements as referred to in               down in Article 13 of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70.
    Article 2 (5), within an overall limit of 125 000
    hectares and maximum total expenditure of 29                                           Article 10
    million ECU, and provided the recipient's contri-
    bution is not less than 20 % ;                               1.    In cases where recourse is had to the procedure laid
                                                                 down in this Article, the matter shall be referred to the
— 50 °/o for forestry as referred to in Article 2 (6),           Standing Committee on Agricultural Structure by its
    subject to a maximum eligible amount of 2 300 ECU            chairman either on his own initiative or at the request of
    per hectare in the case of afforestation and 2 000           the representative of a Member State.
    ECU per hectare in the case of the improvement of
    deteriorated woodlands, and an overall limit of 194          2.    The chairman shall submit a draft of the measures
    million ECU;                                                 to be taken. The Standing Committee on Agricultural
                                                                 Structure shall deliver an opinion on the said draft
— 50 % for the investment aid referred to in Article
                                                                 measures within a time-limit set -by the chairman
    2 (7), subject to a maximum eligible amount of 25
                                                                 according to the urgency of the matter. It shall act by a
    million ECU.                                                 majority of 54 votes, the votes of the Member States
                                                                 being weighted as laid down in Article 148 (2) of the
3.    When approving the updating of a programme the
                                                                 Treaty. The chairman shall not vote.
Commission may, at Spain's request and on the basis of
data provided by the latter, alter the limits specified in       3.    The Commission shall adopt measures which shall
paragraph 2, without, however, exceeding the estimated           apply immediately. However, if the said measures are not
cost given in Article 6 (4).                                     in accordance with the opinion of the Standing
                                                                 Committee on Agricultural Structure, they shall be
                           Article 8                             communicated forthwith by the Commission to the
                                                                 Council. In that case, the Commission may defer
For the purposes of the common measure, a Monitoring
                                                                 application of the measures which it has adopted by not
Committee shall be set up by mutual agreement between
                                                                 more than one month from the date of such communi-
the Commission and the Spanish Government.
                                                                 cation.
The Monitoring Committee shall assist the Spanish                The Council, acting by a qualified majority, may adopt a
Government or, where applicable, the authority                   different decision within one month.
appointed by the latter to undertake               effective
implementation of the common measure.                                                      Article 11
                           Article 9                             This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day
                                                                 following that of its publication in the Official Journal of
1.    Applications for reimbursement shall relate to              the European Communities.
expenditure incurred by Spain during one calendar year
and shall be submitted to the Commission before 1 July           This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and
of the following year.                                           directly applicable in all Member States.