Commission Directive 2004/102/EC of 5 October 2004 amending Annexes II, III, IV and V to Council Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Directive 2000/29/EC of 8 May 2000 on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community(1), and in particular points (c) and (d) of the second paragraph of Article 14 thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Directive 2000/29/EC stipulates that wood of conifers (Coniferales), except that of Thuja L., in the form of packing cases, crates, drums, pallets, box pallets or other load boards, dunnage, spacers and bearers including that which has not kept its natural round surface, originating in Canada, China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and the USA shall be stripped of its bark, and shall be free from grub holes larger than 3 mm across, and shall have a moisture content expressed as a percentage of dry matter, of less than 20 %, achieved at the time of manufacture.

(2) The FAO International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures No 15 on Guidelines for regulating wood packaging material in international trade (2) contains phytosanitary measures in respect of movement of wood packaging material in the form of packing cases, crates, drums, pallets, load boards, pallet collars and dunnage, aiming at reducing the risk of introduction and/or spread of quarantine pests associated with wood packaging material, made of coniferous and non-coniferous raw wood, in use in international trade. The relevant provisions of Directive 2000/29/EC on wood packaging material should be brought in line with the provisions of the said Guidelines.

(3) The provisions for wood originating in countries where Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Steiner et B眉hrer) Nickle et al. is known to occur should be modified as new technical treatments against this pathogen became available.

(4) The provisions for wood originating in Russia, Kazakhstan, and Turkey and other third countries should be improved and adjusted to better protect the Community against the introduction of wood affecting harmful organisms and to take into account new technical treatments, which recently became available against wood affecting harmful organisms.

(5) These improved measures should include the use of a 芦phytosanitary certificate禄 for wood products originating in third countries.

(6) The provisions as regards Cryphonectria parasitica (Murrill.) Barr. should be modified to take into account the updated information on its presence in the Community and its risk of introduction into and spread within the Community with wood and isolated bark of Castanea Mill., by restricting them to protected zones in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Sweden and the United Kingdom where it has been determined that this organism is not present.

(7) The provisions as regards wood products which must be subjected to a plant health inspection in the country of origin or the consignor country, if originating outside the Community, before being permitted to enter the Community or moved within the Community, should be modified in the light of the changes made to the technical requirements on such wood and changes in the tariff and statistical nomenclature and the Common Customs Tariff.

(8) The provisions as regards the risk of introduction of harmful organisms with isolated bark of conifers (Coniferales) originating in certain third countries should be modified, as new information became available on treatment of such isolated bark, obviating the above risk.

(9) The harmful organism Ceratocystis virescens (Davidson) Moreau is likely to become the generally accepted name for the organism Ceratocystis coerulescens (M眉nch) Bakshi.

(10) The relevant annexes to Directive 2000/29/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.

(11) The measures provided for in this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plant Health,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Annexes II, III, IV and V to Directive 2000/29/EC are amended in accordance with the Annex to this Directive.

Article 2

1. Member States shall adopt and publish by 28 February 2005 at the latest, the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive. They shall forthwith communicate to the Commission the text of those provisions and a correlation table between those provisions and this Directive.

They shall apply those provisions from 1 March 2005 .

When Member States adopt those provisions, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or be accompanied by such a reference on the occasion of their official publication. Member States shall determine how such reference is to be made.

2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of the main provisions of national law, which they adopt in the field governed by this Directive.

Article 3

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union .

Article 4

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 5 October 2004 .

For the Commission

David Byrne

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 169, 10.7.2000, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Commission Directive 2004/70/EC (OJ L 127, 29.4.2004, p. 97).

(2) ISPM No 15, March 2002, FAO, Rome.

ANNEX

1. In Annex II, Part A, Section I, point (c) 4 is replaced by the following:

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2. In Annex II, Part A, Section II, point (c) 3, the text of the right hand column is replaced by the following:

芦Plants of Castanea Mill and Quercus L., intended for planting, other than seeds禄 .

3. In Annex II, Part B(c), the following point is added before point 1:

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4. In Annex III, Part A, point 4 is deleted.

5. Annex IV, Part A, Section I, points 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4 and 1.5 are replaced by the following:

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6. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, a new point 2 is added:

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7. In Annex IV, part A, Section I, point 2.1. is replaced by the following:

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8. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 2.2. is replaced by the following:

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9. In Annex IV, part A, Section I, point 3 is replaced by the following:

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10. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 4, is deleted.

11. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 5 is replaced by the following:

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12. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 6 is replaced by the following:

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13. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 7, is replaced by the following:

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14. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, a new point 7.3. is added:

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15. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, a new point 8 is added:

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16. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 11.1., is replaced by the following:

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17. In Annex IV, Part A, Section I, point 12, the text in the left hand column is replaced by the following:

芦12. Plants of Platanus L., intended for planting, other than seeds, originating in the USA or Armenia.禄

18. In Annex IV, Part A, Section II, points 1 and 3 are deleted.

19. In Annex IV, Part B, a new point 6.3. is added:

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20. In Annex IV, Part B, point 14.1, the words 芦without prejudice to the prohibitions applicable to the bark listed in Annex III(a)(4)禄 in the middle column are deleted.

21. In Annex IV, Part B, points 14.2, 14.3, 14.4, 14.5 and 14.6 the words 芦Annex III(A)(4),禄 in the middle column are deleted.

22. In Annex IV, Part B, a new point 14.9. is added:

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23. In Annex V, Part A, Section I, shall be amended as follows:

(a) Point 1.7. is replaced by the following:

芦1.7. Wood within the meaning of the first subparagraph of Article 2(2), where it:

(a) has been obtained in whole or part from Platanus L., including wood which has not kept its natural round surface;

and

(b) meets one of the following descriptions laid down in Annex I, Part two to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 of 23 July 1987 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff(1):

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(b) point 1.8. is deleted

24. Annex V, Part A, Section II, shall be amended as follows:

(a) point 1.10. is replaced by the following:

芦1.10. Wood within the meaning of the first subparagraph of Article 2(2), where it

(a) has been obtained in whole or part from

conifers (Coniferales), excluding wood which is bark-free,

Castanea Mill., excluding wood which is bark-free;

and

(b) meets one of the following descriptions laid down in Annex I, Part two to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87:

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(b) point 1.11. is replaced by the following:

芦1.11. Isolated bark of Castanea Mill, and conifers (Coniferales)禄 .

25. In Annex V, Part B, Section I, point 2, third indent is replaced by the following:

芦- Acer saccharum Marsh., originating in the USA and Canada.禄

26. In Annex V, Part B, Section I, point 5, the first indent is replaced by the following:

芦- conifers (Coniferales), originating in non-European countries.禄

27. In Annex V, Part B, Section I, point 6, is replaced by the following:

芦6. Wood within the meaning of the first subparagraph of Article 2(2), where it:

(a) has been obtained in whole or part from one of the order, genera or species as described hereafter, except wood packaging material defined in Annex IV, Part A, Section I, Point 2:

Quercus L., including wood which has not kept its natural round surface, originating in the USA, except wood which meets the description referred to in (b) of CN code 44160000 and where there is documented evidence that the wood has been processed or manufactured using a heat treatment to achieve a minimum temperature of 176 掳C for 20 minutes,

Platanus , including wood which has not kept its natural round surface, originating in the USA or Armenia,

Populus L., including wood which has not kept its natural round surface, originating in countries of the American continent,

Acer saccharum Marsh., including wood which has not kept its natural round surface, originating in the USA and Canada,

Conifers (Coniferales), including wood which has not kept its natural round surface, originating in non-European countries, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkey;

and

(b) meets one of the following descriptions laid down in Annex I, Part two to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87:

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28. In Annex V, Part B, Section II, point 7, is replaced by the following:

芦7. Wood within the meaning of the first subparagraph of Article 2(2), where it:

(a) has been obtained in whole or part from conifers (Coniferales), excluding wood which is bark-free originating in European third countries, and Castanea Mill., excluding wood which is bark-free

and

(b) meets one of the following descriptions laid down in Annex I, Part two to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87:

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29. In Annex V, Part B, Section II, a new point 9 is added:

芦9. Isolated bark of conifers (Coniferales) originating in European third countries.禄 .

(1) OJ L 256, 7.9.1987, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1558/2004 (OJ L 283, 2.9.2004, p. 7).