WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2565/98 by Undine-Uta BLOCH von BLOTTNITZ to the Commission. Shortcomings in the transposition of Directive 79/409/EEC in the Lombardy region and the Brescia Province in Upper Italy
C 135/72 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 14. 5. 1999 the limit values are entirely harmless given that the limit values are conservative in nature. If the limit values are exceeded, the recipient should inform the sender of this so that the latter can take remedial action. 1. Does the Commission believe that the IAEA’s findings are still appropriate? 2. What action does the Commission intend to take, given that it has become known that limit values have been exceeded by up to 5000 times in the case of shipments of nuclear waste? Joint answer to Written Questions E-2547/98 and E-2548/98 given by Mrs Bjerregaard on behalf of the Commission (30 September 1998) The Commission accepts that the statements taken from the International atomic energy agency (IAEA) safety series 37 are still appropriate. The conservative nature of the limits is well illustrated by the results of the enquiries carried out by the French and German authorities, which although yet to be completed, already clearly show that there has been no overexposure of workers or members of the public despite the excess contamination levels and the number of such events now communicated. However, the frequency with which such events have occurred and the late recognition of the situation clearly calls for further action. In the first instance such action is the responsibility of the national authorities which have quite properly been carrying out an extensive review of current practices with the aim of taking corrective action to ensure not only that individual events are indeed no more than ‘occasional’ but also that when they do occur all appropriate parties are duly informed in keeping with the IAEA statements. Equally, the Commission recognizes that lessons learned in France and Germany can also be relevant to ensuring good practices in other Member States. As stated in its declaration to Parliament on 17 June 1998, therefore, the Commission foresees examining the French and German final reports from the point of view of the situation not only in these Member States but also in other relevant Member States. For this purpose it will be consulting with all such Member States as a matter of urgency. (1999/C 135/085) WRITTEN QUESTION E-2565/98 by Undine-Uta Bloch von Blottnitz (V) to the Commission (1 September 1998) Subject: Shortcomings in the transposition of Directive 79/409/EEC in the Lombardy region and the Brescia Province in Upper Italy To date, the Upper Italian region of Lombardy, and, in particular, the Brescia Province which forms part thereof, have not transposed in full the Directive referred to above. In particular, with a few exceptions, the Lombardy Regional Council (Giunta Regionale Lombardia) and the Brescia Province have, to date, not designated as protected areas the passes through the Brescia Alps which are important for bird migration and which, according to a study drawn up in April 1997 by the State Forestry Corps (Corpo Forestale dello Stato), constitute some of the most significant autumn migration routes for European songbirds and birds of prey across the Alps; capturing birds with nets has still been authorized year after year, although actions brought on the basis of Directive 79/409/EEC (1) by Italian nature protection societies against such authorizations regularly succeed before the region’s administrative courts; in 1997 alone, the shooting of more than eight million sparrows, starlings, chaffinches and bramblings was permitted, although those birds are protected under EU law. 1. What is the Commission intending to do in order to persuade the Lombardy Regional Council and the Brescia Province to fulfil their obligations under Articles 3 and 4 of Directive 79/409/EEC and to designate as protected areas the passes through the Brescia Alps which are so important for bird migration?