Commission Directive 2010/2/EU of 27 January 2010 amending Council Directive 91/414/EEC as regards an extension of the use of the active substance chlormequat (Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Directive 91/414/EEC of 15 July 1991 concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market⁽¹⁾, and in particular the second indent of the second subparagraph of Article 6(1) thereof,

Whereas:

1. By Commission Directive 2009/37/EC⁽²⁾ chlormequat was included as active substance in Annex I to Directive 91/414/CEE.

2. When applying for the inclusion of chlormequat its notifier the CCC Task Force submitted data on uses as plant growth regulator which supported the overall conclusion that it may be expected that plant protection products containing chlormequat will fulfil the safety requirements laid down in Article 5(1)(a) and (b) of Directive 91/414/EEC. However, chlormequat was included in Annex I to that Directive with the specific provision that Member States may only authorise uses on cereals.

3. In addition to that use, Belgium and Sweden now have applied for an amendment to this specific provision to allow chlormequat to be used on ornamentals and grass for seed, respectively. These Member States informed the Commission on 29 October 2009 and 4 November 2009 about their conclusions that the requested extensions of use do not cause any risks in addition to those already taken into account in the specific provisions for chlormequat in Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC and in the Commission review report for that substance. In particular, the extensions concern applications on non-edible crops and, as a consequence, no residues in food will occur. Furthermore, the other application parameters, as set out in the specific provisions of Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC, remain unchanged.

4. Therefore it is justified to modify the specific provisions for chlormequat.

5. It is therefore appropriate to amend Directive 91/414/EEC accordingly.

6. The measures provided for in this Directive are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: