L 312/28 Official Journal of the European Communities 15.11.2002 COMMISSION DECISION of 14 November 2002 amending Decision 96/301/EC by renewing the Member States' authorisation to take emergency measures against the dissemination of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith as regards Egypt (notified under document number C(2002) 4416) (2002/903EC) 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 (!), as last amended by Directive 2002/36/EC (3), and in particular Article 16(3) thereof, Whereas: (1)  Where a Member State considers that there is an immi- nent danger of the introduction into its territory of Pseu- domonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith, the cause of potato brown rot, from a third country, it should be able to take temporarily any additional measures necessary to protect itself from that danger. 20 In 1996, on the basis of continued interceptions of Pseu- domonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith in potatoes origi- nating in Egypt, several Member States (France, Finland, Spain and Denmark) adopted measures to implement a ban on potatoes originating in Egypt, with a view to ensuring more efficient protection against the introduc- tion of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith from Egypt into their respective territories. (3)  The Commission responded by adopting Commission Decision 96/301/EC of 3 May 1996 authorising Member States temporarily to take additional measures against the dissemination of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith as regards Egypt (). (4)  That Decision was subsequently strengthened by amending Decisions 98/105/EC () and 98/503/EC () authorising the Member States temporarily to take emer- gency measures against the dissemination of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith as regards Egypt: the import into the Community of potatoes originating in Egypt was banned except where the potatoes originated in pest-free areas established in accordance with the FAO International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures Part 4: Pest Surveillance — Requirements of the Establishment of Pest-Free Area. 1 () OJ L 169, 10.7.2000, p. 1. () OJ L 116, 3.5.2002, p. 16. () OJ L 115,9.5.1996, p. 47. () OJ L 25,31.1.1998, p. 101. () OJ L 225,12.8.1998, p. 34. 5 Cases of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith continued to be found in imports of potatoes originating in Egypt during 1998/1999, and as a consequence the import into the territory of the Community of tubers of Solanum tuberosum L. originating in Egypt was prohibited from 3 April 1999 to the beginning of the 1999/2000 import season. The situation was then reassessed. The Commission considered it appropriate to remove the prohibition on the import of potatoes from officially approved pest-free areas for the 1999/2000 import season and therefore adopted Decision 1999/842/EC (9). During the 1999/2000 season the situation improved significantly, and the Commission, adopted Decision 2000/568/EC () reauthorising, for the 2000/2001 import season, the entry into the territory of the Community of tubers of Solanum tuberosum L. originating in pest-free areas of Egypt approved in accordance with the said FAO International Standard. However, during the 2000/2001 season, a number of interceptions of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith were recorded and the Commission adopted Decision 2000/568EC prohibiting imports into the territory of the Community of tubers of Solanum tuberosum L. origi- nating in Egypt from 5 May 2001 to the beginning of the 2001/2002 import season. The situation was again reassessed. Egypt submitted a detailed contingency plan explaining the measures applied when brown rot is found in Egypt and/or it is notified that consignments of potatoes originating in Egypt have been found to contain brown rot on inspec- tion at entry in the EU. The Commission therefore considered it appropriate to remove the prohibition on the import of potatoes from Egypt for the 2001/2002 import season, which it did by adopting Decision 2001/ 664/EC (9. During the 2001/2002 season, a number of intercep- tions of Pseudomonas solanacearum (Smith) Smith were recorded and Egypt itself decided to ban all exports of Egyptian potatoes to the Community as of 16 April 2002. () OJ L 326, 18.12.1999, p. 68. L 238, 22.9.2000, p. 59. L 233, 31.8.2001, p. 49.