(2004/C 70 E/006)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2637/02

by Rosa Miguélez Ramos (PSE) to the Commission

(18 September 2002)

Subject:   Protection of forests against atmospheric pollution in Galicia (Spain)

The value of the forests of southern Europe and the risks to which they are exposed have led the European Community to take steps to protect them against atmospheric contamination by promoting surveillance and the study of forest ecosystems.

Council Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 (1) of 17 November 1986 on the protection of the Community's forests against atmospheric pollution established a Community scheme for the protection of forests for the period 1987-2001. It set out the five principal objectives of establishing a forest observation network, drawing up a periodic inventory of the damage caused to forests (especially by atmospheric pollution), implementing continuous and intensive surveillance of forest ecosystems, carrying out experiments to further understanding of the effects of atmospheric pollution and of methods of observing and measuring it, and devising methods of maintaining and restoring the forests affected via pilot projects.

The financial allocation for the period 1997-2001 was EUR 35,1 million.

Could the Commission give details of the measures that the European Community has funded in connection with this Regulation in the Autonomous Community of Galicia?

Has the Spanish Government presented any other plans for the future implementation of measures to protect the forests of Galicia against atmospheric pollution?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(16 October 2002)

The Commission wishes to indicate that the Council Regulation (EEC) No 3528/86 of 17 November 1986 on the protection of the Community's forests against atmospheric pollution (2) was last amended by Regulation (EC) No 804/2002 of the Parliament and the Council of 15 April 2002 (3). The latter Regulation extended the duration of the former by one year and adjusted the Community financial allocation for the period 1997-2002 to EUR 42,6 million, in line with the amount entered in the budget for 2002.

The Commission can not provide a detailed account of the measures funded in Galicia, as they were included among those proposed every year by the Spanish Administration for the country as a whole. During the period 1987-2002, the Community has funded measures in Spain for a total amount of EUR 4 498 010.

The breakdown of this amount according to the types of measures is the following:

At present, the Spanish forest condition monitoring network is made up of 620 systematic monitoring plots (Level I) and 53 intensive monitoring plots (Level II), out of which 52 Level I plots (8,4 %) and 3 Level II plots (4,5 %) are located in Galicia.

With regard to the future, the Commission has presented a proposal for a new Regulation concerning the monitoring of forest and environmental interactions in the Community (4). The purpose of the proposal is the establishment of a new Community scheme on monitoring of forests and environmental interactions to protect the Community's forests. The scheme will be built on the achievements of the two Council Regulations (EEC) No 3528/86 of 17 November 1986 on the protection of the Community's forest against atmospheric pollution (5) and (EEC) No 2158/92 of 23 July 1992 on protection of the Community's forests against fire (6) and it will incorporate new elements in order to assess forest ecosystems conditions in a broader context. The proposal foresees that the monitoring activities to be carried out by the Member States, in particular the collection of data, studies, experiments and demonstration projects will be implemented under multi-annual national programmes. The new proposal provides a multi-annual framework covering initially a six-year period from 2003 to 2008.

(1)  OJ L 326, 21.11.1986, p. 2.

(2)  OJ L 326, 21.11.1986.

(3)  OJ L 132, 17.5.2002.

(4)  COM(2002) 404 final.

(5)  OJ L 326, 21.11.1986.

(6)  OJ L 217, 31.7.1992.