Surveillance system
1. Within 18 months of the adoption of the Union list, Member States shall establish a surveillance system of invasive alien species of Union concern, or include it in their existing system, which collects and records data on the occurrence in the environment of invasive alien species by survey, monitoring or other procedures to prevent the spread of invasive alien species into or within the Union.
2. The surveillance system referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall:
(a)
cover the territory, including marine territorial waters, of the Member States to determine the presence and distribution of new as well as already established invasive alien species of Union concern;
(b)
be sufficiently dynamic to detect rapidly the appearance in the environment of the territory or part of the territory of a Member State of any invasive alien species of Union concern, whose presence was previously unknown;
(c)
build upon, be compatible with, and avoid duplication of relevant provisions for assessment and monitoring laid down by Union law or under international agreements and make use of the information provided by the existing systems of surveillance and monitoring set out in Article 11 of Directive 92/43/EEC, Article 8 of Directive 2000/60/EC and Article 11 of Directive 2008/56/EC;
(d)
take into account the relevant transboundary impact and transboundary features, to the extent possible.
Official controls
1. By 2 January 2016, Member States shall have in place fully functioning structures to carry out the official controls necessary to prevent the intentional introduction into the Union of invasive alien species of Union concern. Those official controls shall apply to the categories of goods falling within the Combined Nomenclature codes to which a reference is made in the Union list, pursuant to Article 4(5).
2. Competent authorities shall carry out the appropriate risk-based controls to the goods mentioned in paragraph 1 of this Article verifying that:
(a)
they are not on the Union list; or
(b)
they are covered by a valid permit as referred to in Article 8.
3. The controls referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, consisting of documentary, identity and where necessary, physical checks, shall take place when goods referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article are brought into the Union. Where Union law on official controls already provides for specific official controls at border entities in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 and Directives 91/496/EEC and 97/78/EC or at points of entry in accordance with Directive 2000/29/EC, for categories of goods referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, Member States shall confer the responsibility of carrying out the controls referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article to the competent authorities tasked with those controls in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 or with point (g) of Article 2(1) of Directive 2000/29/EC.
4. The handling in free zones or free warehouses and the placing of goods referred to in paragraph 1 under the customs procedures of release for free circulation, transit, customs warehousing, inward processing, processing under customs control and temporary admission shall be subject to the declaration to the customs authorities of:
(a)
the relevant entry document duly completed by the competent authorities referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article attesting that the conditions referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article are met, in cases where the controls have been carried out at border entities in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 and Directives 91/496/EEC and 97/78/EC or at points of entry in accordance with point (j) of Article 2(1) of Directive 2000/29/EC. The customs procedure indicated therein shall be followed; or
(b)
where goods are not subject to official controls according to Union law, other documentary evidence that the controls have been carried out with satisfactory results and the subsequent entry document.
Those documents may also be submitted electronically.
5. If the controls establish non-compliance with this Regulation:
(a)
customs authorities shall suspend the placing under a customs procedure or detain the goods;
(b)
competent authorities referred to in paragraph 3 shall detain the goods.
Where goods are detained, they shall be entrusted to the competent authority in charge of applying this Regulation. That authority shall act in accordance with national legislation. Member States may delegate specific functions to other authorities.
6. Costs incurred while the verification is carried out and those arising from any non-compliance shall be at the expense of the natural or legal person within the Union who brought the goods into the Union, except where the Member State concerned determines otherwise.
7. Member States shall put in place procedures to ensure the exchange of relevant information and the efficient and effective coordination and cooperation between all authorities involved for the verification referred to in paragraph 2.
8. Based on best practices, the Commission, together with all Member States, shall develop guidelines and training programmes to facilitate the identification and detection of invasive alien species of Union concern and the performance of efficient and effective controls.
9. Where permits have been issued in accordance with Article 8, reference to a valid permit covering the declared goods shall be made in the customs declaration or relevant notifications to the border entity.
Early detection notifications
1. Member States shall use the surveillance system established in accordance with Article 14 and the information collected at official controls provided for by Article 15 to confirm early detection of the introduction or presence of invasive alien species of Union concern.
2. Member States shall without delay notify the Commission, in writing, of the early detection of the introduction or presence of invasive alien species of Union concern and inform the other Member States, in particular of:
(a)
the appearance on their territory or part of their territory of any species included on the Union list whose presence was previously unknown in their territory or in part of their territory;
(b)
the re-appearance on their territory or part of their territory of any species included on the Union list after it has been reported as eradicated.
Rapid eradication at an early stage of invasion
1. After early detection and within three months after the transmission of the early detection notification referred to in Article 16, Member States shall apply eradication measures and notify those measures to the Commission and inform the other Member States.
2. When applying eradication measures, Member States shall ensure that the methods used are effective in achieving the complete and permanent removal of the population of the invasive alien species concerned, with due regard to human health and the environment, especially non-targeted species and their habitats, and ensuring that animals are spared any avoidable pain, distress or suffering.
3. Member States shall monitor the effectiveness of the eradication. Member States may use the surveillance system provided for in Article 14 to this effect. The monitoring shall also assess the impact on non-targeted species, as appropriate.
4. Member States shall inform the Commission of the effectiveness of the measures taken and notify the Commission when a population of an invasive alien species of Union concern has been eradicated. They shall also provide that information to other Member States.
Derogations from the obligation of rapid eradication
1. A Member State may, based on robust scientific evidence, decide, within two months of the detection of an invasive alien species referred to in Article 16, not to apply eradication measures if at least one of the following conditions is met:
(a)
eradication is demonstrated to be technically unfeasible because the eradication methods available cannot be applied in the environment where the invasive alien species is established;
(b)
a cost-benefit analysis demonstrates on the basis of the available data with reasonable certainty that the costs will, in the long term, be exceptionally high and disproportionate to the benefits of eradication;
(c)
eradication methods are not available or are available but have very serious adverse impact on human health, the environment or other species.
The Member State concerned shall without delay notify the Commission of its decision in writing. The notification shall be accompanied by all the evidence referred to in points (a), (b) and (c) of the first subparagraph.
2. The Commission may decide, by means of implementing acts, to reject the decision notified in accordance with the second subparagraph of paragraph 1 where the conditions set out therein are not met.
3. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 27(2). The draft implementing acts shall be submitted to the Committee referred to in Article 27(1) within two months of receipt of the Member State's notification.
4. Member States shall ensure that containment measures are in place to avoid further spread of the invasive alien species to other Member States when, pursuant to paragraph 1, no eradication measures are applied.
5. Where the Commission rejects a decision notified in accordance with the second subparagraph of paragraph 1 of this Article, the Member State concerned shall apply the eradication measures referred to in Article 17 without delay.
6. Where the Commission does not reject a decision notified in accordance with the second subparagraph of paragraph 1 of this Article, the invasive alien species shall be subject to the management measures referred to in Article 19.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
