WRITTEN QUESTION E-1031/00 by Ulla Sandbæk (EDD) to the Commission. Petrol and MTBE.
13. 2. 2001 EN Official Journal of the European Communities C 46 E/107 the production quota is exceeded at EU level, all Member States are liable to pay a common co- responsibility levy of up to 5 %. Any Member State which has not exceeded its quota (or has not even used it up) is, therefore, financially penalised for other Member Statesí overruns. In the Commissionís view, is this co-responsibility levy appropriate? Will the Commission take measures to amend the common organisation of the market in dried fodder? (1) OJ L 63, 21. 3. 1995, p. 1. Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission (27 April 2000) On the occasion of the market reform Member States accepted a compromise whereby one of the fundamental changes was a general reduction in aid in the event of overrun of the maximum guaranteed quantity. The other changes were national guaranteed quantities (NGQs), fixed aid per tonne and application of the integrated administration and control system (IACs). Under the provision in question the aid rate reduction if the MGQ is exceeded by up to 5 % applies equally in all Member States. This was freely accepted by all Member States as an integral part of the compromise package. In this context the Commission considers it an appropriate provision. It has been applied only once, at the end of the 1998/1999 marketing year, and a proposal to withdraw it would mean reopening discussion among Member States on the other features of the reformed scheme: NGQs, aid rate, control rules etc. in the absence of any valid reason for major readjustment of the sector to meet the wishes of a majority of Member States the Commission has no plans at present for proposing modification of the market organisation to the Council. (2001/C 46 E/113) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1031/00 by Ulla Sandbæk (EDD) to the Commission (4 April 2000) Subject: Petrol and MTBE With reference to the use of MTBE as an additive in petrol to raise the octane after removal of aromatics, benzene and lead, is the Commission aware of the problems created by MTBE in the USA through seepage into ground water? Will the Commission take steps to investigate alternatives to MTBE, such as bioethanol extracted from sugar cane? Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission (31 May 2000) The Commission is well aware of the political and public concern about the contamination of water supplies in the United States and recent statements by the American Environment Protection Agency (EPA) and will keep abreast of developments. C 46 E/108 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 13. 2. 2001 Methyl-tertiary-butylether (MTBE) is on the third priority list, published in 1997, of priority substances for assessment, as foreseen under Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/93 of 23 March 1993 on the evaluation and control of the risks of existing substances (1) (Commission Regulation (EC) No 143/97 of 27 January 1997 concerning the third list of priority substances as foreseen under Council Regulation (EEC) No 793/ 93) (2). The Community risk assessment will address the possible environmental and human health concerns in the Community, taking into account the American findings. When the risk assessment report is finalised, it will be presented to the scientific committee for toxicity, eco-toxicity and the environment for independent peer-review. The Commission addressed in August 1999 a letter to Member States asking for information on whether they have encountered any problems with (water) pollution due to MTBE. As, until now, most Member States have not sent any information at all, the Commission is not in a position to make a firm assessment of the situation. To the Commissionís present knowledge ü based on limited information ü there are no significant problems with MTBE in water at Community level. Concerning drinking water, it should be pointed out that under the new Drinking Water Directive (Council Directive 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption (3)) a Member State is obliged to set values for additional parameters not included in the Directive where the protection of human health within its territory or part of it so requires (Article 5. 3). Risk reduction measures will be recommended in those areas where concerns have been indicated and legislative measures taken, if appropriate. At this stage, the Commission will review the need to investigate alternatives to MTBE. In any case, in the framework of the agricultural non-food set-aside scheme, the production of raw materials like sugarbeet or cereals intended for renewable energy purposes like bio-ethanol is allowed, which offers processors access to raw materials at relatively low prices. (1) OJ L 84, 5. 4. 1993. (2) OJ L 25, 28. 1. 1997. (3) OJ L 330, 5. 12. 1998. (2001/C 46 E/114) WRITTEN QUESTION E-1036/00 by María Sornosa Martínez (PSE) to the Commission (4 April 2000) Subject: Fall in the water table in the Les Marínes region (Valencia, Spain) Residents, landowners and farmers from the municipality of DŁnia in the Les Marínes region (Valencia) have complained that the drainage operations conducted by the Blau Verd S. L. construction company prior to laying the foundations of luxury flats have caused the water table in local wells to fall by more than 1,2 metres. These operations, which have not undergone a standard environmental impact assessment, are under way on a former camping site, where the aforementioned company has installed a number of pumps which work around the clock to draw off the water so that the foundations can then be laid. The water which the system of pumps draws off is channelled directly into a drainage system flowing into the sea, the result being that numerous litres of a resource in short supply are being wasted in an area particularly hard hit by drought. The complainants maintain that this practice has already caused several wells which had never previously lacked water to run dry, the result being that, in addition to the impact on the irrigation of orange trees, which are important to local agriculture, there is the risk of an ecological disaster occurring in the medium term. In fact, the complainants have described the squandering of badly needed water supplies as áan assault on the environmentí