COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 411/98 of 16 February 1998 on additional animal protection standards applicable to road vehicles used for the carriage of livestock on journeys exceeding eight hours
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
,
Having regard to Council Directive 91/628/EEC of 19 November 1991 on the protection of animals during transport (1), and in particular Article 13(1) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas under Article 5(A)(1)(c) of Directive 91/628/EEC it is necessary to lay down the requirements applicable to means of transport that will ensure compliance with Community requirements concerning animal welfare and in particular those to be laid down in accordance with Article 13(1);
Whereas it is necessary, when domestic solipeds and domestic animals of the bovine, ovine, caprine and porcine species are transported on journeys exceeding eight hours, to lay down standards applicable to the type of transport covered by this Regulation additional to those laid down in Chapter VII(3) of the Annex to Directive 91/628/EEC for the means of transport used;
Whereas animals of the species concerned are mostly transported by road; whereas it is therefore appropriate in an initial stage to lay down the additional standards with which road vehicles must comply if they are to be used for carriage of animals of the species concerned on journeys exceeding eight hours;
Whereas, however, these additional standards with which road vehicles must comply are laid down without prejudice to measures likely to be adopted subsequently concerning additional standards applicable to the carriage of livestock by other means of transport, in particular transport by train and by sea; whereas pending the adoption of such future measures, the provisions of Chapter VII(3) of the Annex to Directive 91/628/EEC continue to apply to the carriage of livestock by such other means of transport;
Whereas to ensure the welfare of the animals concerned, the additional standards must lay down certain specific obligations with regard notably to access to the vehicle, separation of animals by moveable partition, detailed arrangements concerning feeding and watering and adequate ventilation based either on a forced ventilation system or on a system which will ensure compliance with a prescribed temperature range;
Whereas the choice of one or the other of the above systems must not prejudice the principle of the free movement of the animals,
Where the journey time of eight hours laid down in Chapter VII(2) of the Annex to Directive 91/628/EEC is exceeded, road vehicles used for the transportation of domestic solipeds and animals of the bovine, ovine, caprine and porcine species within the Community must comply with the additional requirements set out in the Annex to this Regulation.
By 31 December 2003 at the latest, the Commission shall submit to the Council a report drawn up on the basis of the opinion of the Scientific Veterinary Committee on the implementation of this Regulation and more particularly on the application of the different ventilation systems, together with any appropriate proposals which take account of the conclusions of that report.
The Council shall act by a qualified majority on these proposals no later than six months after their submission.
This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.
It shall apply as from 1 July 1999.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.