WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3638/98 by John McCARTIN to the Commission. Fisheries inspectors
C 182/114 Official Journal of the European Communities EN 28. 6. 1999 (1999/C 182/154) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3638/98 by John McCartin (PPE) to the Commission (3 December 1998) Subject: Fisheries inspectors Can the Commission state how many inspectors are employed to monitor fish catches landed at ports in each of the following three countries: Spain, the UK and Ireland? Answer given by Mrs Bonino on behalf of the Commission (21 December 1998) The figures on employment of fishery inspectors which the three Member States in question provided for 1997 are as follows: , Spain: 42 national fishery inspectors (of whom 32 are based in the main fishing ports) and 238 regional fishery inspectors , United Kingdom: 155 fishery inspectors (of whom 12 are assigned to the headquarters) , Ireland: 24 fishery inspectors (of whom 20 are based in the main fishing ports). It will be a duty of these inspectors to monitor fish landings. (1999/C 182/155) WRITTEN QUESTION E-3643/98 by Ernesto Caccavale (UPE) to the Council (4 December 1998) Subject: Electromagnetic pollution and limits to be adopted Italy has recently adopted legislation placing limits on electromagnetic emissions which allows a specific absorption rate (SAR) for radio frequencies of 0,04 W/kg, corresponding to a value of 20V/m as regards thermal effects. Environmental and consumer associations believe that the Italian delegation to the next meeting of the Council on 12 November 1998 will supply the other members of the Council with data that far exceed these limits. At the same time, there have been a large number of complaints from Italian citizens about the constant growth in the number of radio transmitters, particularly since the two existing mobile phone operators have recently been joined by a third operator which does not have access to the existing relay systems and transmission signals. This effectively encourages the installation of new transmitters in the immediate vicinity of urban areas, schools, markets (as is the case in Pianura, a working-class district of Naples), without any kind of precaution being taken to avoid the lethal public health consequences, such as an increase in cases of childhood leukemia and many types of tumour. Can the Council say: 1. whether the Italian delegation has submitted studies whose conclusions differ from those that form the basis of the European legislation, from the recommendations of the European Parliament, or which have not been properly thought through; 2. whether the uncontrolled installation of GSM and other radio-frequency transmitters constitutes a threat to the health of the local populations; 3. what the Council intends to do to prevent electromagnetic pollution in the European Union becoming even worse?