29.1.2008 Official Journal of the European Union L 24[45 COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 21 December 2007 concerning national provisions notified by the Republic of Austria on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases (notified under document number C(2007) 6646) (Only the German text is authentic) (Text with EEA relevance) (2008/80/EC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 95(6) thereof, Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases (1), and in particular Article 9(3) thereof, Whereas: I. FACTS AND PROCEDURE (1) On 29 June 2007, the Republic of Austria informed the Commission, pursuant to Article 9(3)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases, about national measures adopted in 2002 (BGBL. II No 447/2002 — Ordinance of the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management on bans and restrictions for partly fluorinated and fully fluorinated hydrocarbons and sulphur  hexafluoride ~ (HFC-PFC-SFs  Ordinance), published in the Federal Law Gazette on 10 December 2002) as subsequently amended by Ordinance BGBL. II No 139/2007, 21.6.2007. In this letter the Austrian Government points out that the Republic of Austria intends to maintain its national provisions which are more stringent than the Regulation, in accordance with Article 9(3)(a) of Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 until 31 December 2012. () O] L 161, 14.6.2006, p. 1. ©) 1. COMMUNITY LEGISLATION 1.1. ARTICLE 95(4), (5) AND (6) OF THE EC TREATY Article 95(4) of the EC Treaty provides that ‘If, after the adoption by the Council or by the Commission of a harmonisation measure, a Member State deems it necessary to maintain national provisions on grounds of major needs referred to in Article 30, or relating to the protection of the environment or the working envi- ronment, it shall notify the Commission of these provisions as well as the grounds for maintaining them. Article 95(5) of the EC Treaty provides that [...], without prejudice to paragraph 4, if, after the adoption by the Council or by the Commission of a harmonisation measure, a Member State deems it necessary to introduce national provisions based on new scientific evidence relating to the protection of the environment or the working environment on grounds of a problem specific to that Member State arising after the adoption of the harmonisation measure, it shall notify the Commission of the envisaged provisions as well as the grounds for introducing them’. According to Article 95(6), the Commission shall, within six months of the notification, approve or reject the national provisions involved after having verified whether or not they are a means of arbitrary discrimi- nation or a disguised restriction on trade between Member States and whether or not they shall constitute an obstacle to the functioning of the internal market. 1.2. REGULATION (EC) No 842/2006 Regulation (EC) No 842/2006 on certain fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases) aims at preventing and containing the emissions of certain F-gases (HFCs, PFCs and SFg) covered by the Kyoto Protocol.