31999D0328

COMMISSION DECISION

of 7 May 1999

derogating, for the 1998/1999 marketing year, from certain provisions of Regulation (EEC) No 1201/89 as regards aid applications and applications for supervised storage of unginned cotton originating in certain Greek prefectures

(notified under document number C(1999) 1179)

(Only the Greek text is authentic)

(1999/328/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Protocol No 4 on cotton annexed to the Act of Accession of Greece, as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1553/95(1),

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1554/95 of 29 June 1995 laying down the general rules for the system of aid for cotton and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 2169/81(2), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1419/98(3), and in particular Article 11(1) thereof,

(1) Whereas Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1201/89 of 3 May 1989 laying down rules implementing the system of aid for cotton(4), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1664/98(5), lays down 31 March as the time limit for lodging applications for supervised storage of unginned cotton but allows the Member State to set a later time limit under certain conditions; whereas for the 1998/1999 marketing year Greece used that provision by setting the time limit for lodging applications for supervised storage at 31 January 1999; whereas, as a result of exceptional weather conditions, it proved impossible to harvest the unginned cotton until the beginning of March 1999 in certain Greek prefectures; whereas, therefore, the start of supervised storage and the lodging of the corresponding aid applications should be accepted without penalty for the unginned cotton originating in those prefectures up to a date allowing for the other time limits in the rules to be complied with;

(2) Whereas the measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Flax and Hemp,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

1. Notwithstanding Article 5(3), Article 7(1), the first subparagraph of Article 9(2) and Article 11 of Regulation (EEC) No 1201/89, the following conditions shall apply for the 1998/1999 marketing year to unginned cotton harvested in the Greek prefectures indicated in paragraph 2:

(a) aid applications lodged by 28 April at the latest may be accepted;

(b) if the aid applications are lodged between 1 April and 28 April, the aid granted shall be that valid on the previous 31 March;

(c) applications for supervised storage lodged by 28 April at the latest may be accepted;

(d) the quantity of ginned cotton produced from the quantity of unginned cotton under supervised storage shall be notified before 5 May.

2. The Greek prefectures referred to in paragraph 1 are:

Drame, Serres and Evros.

Article 2

This Decision is addressed to the Hellenic Republic.

Done at Brussels, 7 May 1999.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 148, 30.6.1995, p. 45.

(2) OJ L 148, 30.6.1995, p. 48.

(3) OJ L 190, 4.7.1998, p. 4.

(4) OJ L 123, 4.5.1989, p. 23.

(5) OJ L 211, 29.7.1998, p. 9.