Verbatim report of proceedings

Thursday, 7 September 2000 - Strasbourg

9. Fires in Europe

  President. – The next item is the joint debate on the following motions for resolution:

- B5-0703/2000 by Mrs Malliori and others, on behalf of the Group of the Party of European Socialists, on the forest fires in Europe;

- B5-0724/2000 by Mr Hatzidakis and others, on behalf of the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats, on the fires in the south of the European Union;

- B5-0723/2000 by Mrs Isler Béguin and Mrs Frassoni, on behalf of the Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance, on the forest fires in Europe;

- B5-0737/2000 by Mrs Muscardini and others, on behalf of the Union for Europe of the Nations Group, on the fires in Europe;

- B5-0746/2000 by Mrs Ainardi and others, on behalf of the Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left, on the fires in the Mediterranean regions;

- B5-0747/2000 by Mr Korakas and others, on behalf of the Confederal Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left, on the fires in Greece.

  Μalliori (PSE). – (EL) Mr President, the fires which again destroyed huge tracts of forest in the Mediterranean this summer are mainly the result of the rise in temperature and prolonged dry weather, not to mention of course criminal cases of arson.

Climatic changes, which are happening more and more rapidly, impact on the entire ecosystem. Scientists have pointed out the risks inherent in our inconsiderate treatment of the planet, one of the results of which is extreme meteorological phenomena. Southern Europe has been set alight more and more frequently over recent years. The Mediterranean has become a high risk area and needs special measures. In my country, Greece, more than 500 fires broke out this year, most of which were dealt with minimal disruption. However, there were, unfortunately, also occasions on which the fires got out of control, causing death and destruction. I should like to express my sympathy to the families of the victims and the injured in all the countries which faced similar problems.

I think, Mr President, that a European strategy on the conservation of forests is our political responsibility and an immediate priority. I also think it essential that we reinstate the budget line for natural disasters. The Commission should exert its influence to ensure that Member States introduce stricter legislation on changes of land use, compulsory reforestation following fires, suitable training on fire-fighting for those in positions of local and regional responsibility and a public awareness campaign on the benefits of forests and how they can be protected and to encourage volunteers fire-fighters.

  Τrakatellis (PPE-DE). – (EL) Mr President, every September we return to the House and take tragic stock of the number of victims and the extent of the damage to forests as the result of fires. The fires are, of course, the result of climatic changes and the weather which prevails in the Mediterranean during the summer; they are also the result of criminal offences. There may also be other causes, such as refuse tips and, of course, the lack of certain administrative structures, especially the lack of an overall, coordinated approach to fires, exacerbates the damage which they cause.

So what proposals can we make? First and foremost, both the Member States and the Commission need to update the regional development programmes and action to prevent, restore and reforest. They could use the Interreg Community initiative, for example. Similarly, forest registers are desperately needed; this will help to protect and recover our ecological heritage and fight land speculation.

However, what we need is coordination and cooperation at European level and I call on the Commission to propose that a European fire prevention centre be set up in order to conduct systematic studies and introduce new technical methods to prevent and fight fires. And to go one step further: the time has come for the Commission to draw up an integrated defence strategy to coordinate national action and measures against natural and man-made disasters, in line, of course, with the principle of subsidiarity.

I trust that these proposals will elicit a positive response from the Commission so that we can protect our forests more efficiently.

  Isler Béguin (Verts/ALE). – (FR) Mr President, indeed, like a chronic recurrent disease, the summer of 2000 will once again have suffered the ravages of fires raging through millions of hectares in our country and our continent and even causing the tragic death of a number of firemen and local residents.

This scourge is the result of criminal action: the blame lies with irresponsible arsonists who should face deterrent penalties, and with unscrupulous developers prepared to use any means possible to get hold of land on which building is forbidden, who ought to be deterred by a whole range of legal means to prosecute them. But there are also other reasons for this affliction: they include the lack of any inventories of economic activities, such as agro-pastoral activities in Corsica, and the lack of any real approach, on the basis of geographical databases, to a kind of rural planning that makes the most of natural resources and reduces the risk of fires spreading. Lastly, and above all, there is the lack of any genuine environmental education that goes well beyond the necessary prevention and awareness-raising campaigns.

So this summer epidemic is curable, Mr President. It is vital to bring a new balance into some of the land-use policies, such as stock farming in Corsica, and to allocate subsidies on the basis of economic and preventive factors. These upstream provisions cannot replace the need for downstream investment in adequate fire-fighting equipment in sufficient quantity to be deployed in all the EU countries. The citizens concerned are counting on the Commission to take practical action.

  Papayannakis (GUE/NGL). – (EL) Mr President, this year, the fires in the Mediterranean, and in Greece in particular, broke all previous records. I believe that the area destroyed by the fires was twice as large as at any other time and a great many people were killed despite the fact, of course, that the Greek Government was well prepared and despite the fact that Greece now has some of the best fire-fighting equipment, aeroplanes and human resources in the world. What it has proved is that reaction is not enough. We need to be pro-active. That is what we all say, but none of us does anything. It is a complicated issue and, of course, it concerns local authorities and the national government.

What can the European Union do? What it can do, Mr President, is to apply a more active basic policy with more coordination and increased intervention. It can examine the weaknesses of the common agricultural policy, which to all intents and purposes destroys the motivation of people living in and from forests and drives them away. The common agricultural policy subsidises pasturing on burnt ground, subsidises animals which graze on burnt ground, at the same time as our forests are trying to reproduce naturally. The European Union should also, of course, review its approach to and priorities for investments. We have been crying for a land register for a long time now, especially a forest register and forest maps, which need to be supported as a matter of priority over everything else and, of course, any other development and investment measures which boost the development of forests as forests rather than a commodity and which enable people who live off the forest to stay there. That is the best form of prevention and the best form of protection.

Of course we shall still have fires and, with what is happening to the climate, we shall no doubt be unfortunate enough to witness more and more serious phenomena. But it is in our hands to try and do what we can to forestall the known causes at least.

  Coelho (PPE-DE). – (PT) Mr President, Portugal has also been affected by these tragic forest fires which have been the result either of natural causes or of criminal acts motivated by base economic interests.

We know that this matter is primarily the responsibility of the Member States, which need to organise themselves and build up their own control and prevention resources. We also know that they should give priority to actions of this kind, and to national afforestation projects, under their national regional development programmes. It is also necessary, however, to back a European forest strategy with technical and financial resources in order to strengthen and complement national resources. With this in mind, I would like to highlight the proposal contained in paragraph 12 of our resolution, which aims to create a European Fire Prevention Centre, and I would like to take the liberty of suggesting that it should be located in Portugal.

  Nielson, Commission. – The Commission deeply regrets the loss of human life as well as the ecological and economic damage caused by the recent forest fires in Europe.

The principle of subsidiarity has been mentioned in this debate. We have to avoid raising too many expectations and overloading the Commission with tasks. We must be careful not to promise things we cannot deliver. Frankly, there has been enough of that in the past. We should be careful, when entering into discussions such as this, not to automatically assume that the Commission will solve the problem. We can and should do something, but I wanted to make that cautionary remark.

To get to the core of this discussion, the question of an emergency aid budget line, the Commission is considering proposing a legal basis for such a line at the moment.

However, the Commission might consider financial support for the restoration of the forestry production potential on the basis of the rural development regulation, No 1257/1999. According to the Greek authorities, the financial contributions from the agricultural funds are not sufficient for a substantial contribution to be made to the restoration work.

The Commission therefore invites the Greek authorities to present proposals for the amendment of the development programme so that the necessary appropriations can be considered.

I should like to draw your attention to EC Regulation No 2158/1992, under which preventive action in relation to forest fires may be financed. Each Member State should verify that all the necessary steps have been taken to reduce the risk of fires to a minimum. New Commission initiatives are already in effect, or will shortly become effective. A proposal for a Council decision establishing a Community mechanism for the coordination of emergency civil protection action will be considered by the college in the near future. This will aim to improve the mutual assistance between Member States. It will also have an important side effect in that it will help third countries to manage unexpected emergencies or disasters they would not be able to handle by themselves. Through this coordination mechanism Member States will be invited to identify groups which can intervene at short notice at the scene.

The Commission recently initiated a satellite-based project to improve information on operational fire fighting centres in the Mediterranean region, with the aim of determining the levels of risk from day to day. We will consider whether this could lead to a system for early detection of forest fires. The Commission is also encouraging Member States to reinforce their intervention capacities. The Regional Fund and the Cohesion Fund have already contributed substantially in the period 1994-99. The national authorities should provide for the necessary financial resources to consolidate this action for the period 2000-06.

In general, the decision on the acquisition of such fire-fighting equipment will remain the responsibility of the Member States. Self-tuition workshops on fighting forest fires are also planned. However the Commission does not have enough resources to extend its activities beyond that. The Structural Funds can be used for restoration after natural disasters and advantage has been taken of this possibility in recent years.

  President. – Thank you, Commissioner.

The joint debate is closed.

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The debate on topical and urgent subjects of major importance is closed.

We shall now proceed to the vote.

IN THE CHAIR: MR FRIEDRICH
Vice-President

  Morillon (PPE-DE). – (FR) Mr President, like some other Members of the House, I have just been alerted to developments in the situation in northern Afghanistan where, after two months of relentless offensives, the Taliban apparently took the town of Taloqan last night, with a heavy toll of military and civilian victims. It is obviously too late to table an urgent resolution on this issue. But I would ask you, Mr President, to forward to the Conference of Presidents a request that the Council and the Commission make a statement to the House at our forthcoming mini-session in Brussels on what action the European Union could envisage to help find a political solution in Afghanistan and put an end to these senseless bloodbaths.

  President. – Thank you very much, Mr Morillon, we will pass on that request.

  Sakellariou (PSE). – (DE) Mr President, I would like to support Mr Morillon's suggestion. I would like to emphasise – and I am now speaking on behalf of my group also – that we consider the Council Declaration on this subject to be very important, and I request you to forward it to the Conference of Presidents.

  President. – I will gladly do that, Mr Sakellariou⁽¹⁾

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  Sakellariou (PSE). – (DE) Mr President, following the vote, I would like to ask the Chairman of the Committee on Budgets to tell us whether he has at his disposal the appropriations called for in paragraphs 12 and 14 of the motion for a resolution on fires in Europe for which we have just voted.

  Wynn (PSE). Chairman of the Committee on Budgets. – Mr President, this shows the folly of making policy on the hoof. This has never gone through any committee. There have been requests for money, which does not exist and no one has said where it is going to come from. It is an urgency which has been voted by this Parliament – so be it, but it is quite ludicrous.

(Applause)

  President. – I got the message very well, Mr Wynn.

(1) For the outcome of the vote: see Minutes.