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International Health Treaties Vegetal-Plagas Of The Agricultura-Control Fitosanitario-Certifices Phytosanitary - Full Text Of The Norm

Original Language Title: TRATADOS INTERNACIONALES SANIDAD VEGETAL-PLAGAS DE LA AGRICULTURA-CONTROL FITOSANITARIO-CERTIFICADOS FITOSANITARIOS - Texto completo de la norma

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image inicio sitio infoleg MInisterio de Justicia y Derechos Humanos

Law 14.251

INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION OF FITOSANITARIAN PROTECTION.

BUENOS AIRES, September 29, 1953



The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Nation,
in Congress, etc.
SANCIONA WITH FORCE OF LEY

Article 1.- Approve the accession to the International Plant Protection Convention, recommended at the sixth session of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, by decree 4325, issued by the Executive Power on 18 August 1952.

Art. 2.- Contact the Executive.

CORREA. BENITEZ.

Annex A: International Plant Protection Convention, recommended at the sixth session of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Purposes and responsibilities

ARTICLE I 1. In order to act effectively and jointly to prevent the introduction and dissemination of plant and plant pests and diseases and to promote measures to combat them, contracting Governments undertake to adopt the legislative, technical and administrative measures specified in this Convention or in the supplementary agreements concluded in accordance with article 2. III. 2.- Each contracting government shall assume the responsibility of enforcing all the requirements of this Convention within its territory.

Scope

ARTICLE II 1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "Plants" designates living plants and parts of them, including seeds, in cases where contracting governments consider it necessary to monitor their importation or issue the corresponding health certificates, in accordance with art. VI, with the inc.

(a), (iv) of art. IV and art. V of this Convention and the term "plant products" designates unmanufactured and ground products of vegetable origin, including seeds that are not included in the definition of the term "plants". 2.- The provisions of this Convention may also apply, if the contracting governments consider it appropriate, to storage sites, containers, vehicles, packaging materials and all other materials that accompany the plants, including land that enters the international transport of plants and plant products. 3.- This Convention refers especially to pests and diseases of relevance to international trade.

Supplementary agreements

ARTICLE III 1. The organization of the United Nations for agriculture and food (hereafter referred to as FAO) may, on the recommendation of a contracting Government or on its own initiative, propose supplementary agreements concerning specific regions to certain pests or diseases, certain plant and plant products, to certain methods of international transport of plant and plant products, or agreements that, in any other way, supplement the provisions of this Convention, with the aim of solving special plant care problems. 2.- Any supplementary agreement of this kind shall enter into force, for each contracting government, after its acceptance, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and the FAO internal regulations.

National Plant Protection Organization

ARTICLE IV 1. Each contracting government shall make the necessary arrangements to organize as soon as possible, and in the best possible manner: (a) An official plant protection organization, primarily responsible for (i) The inspection of plants in cultivation, of cultivated lands (including fields, plantations, nurseries, gardens and greenhouses) and of plant and plant products in warehouses and in transit, particularly with a view to pointing out the existence or spread of pests and plant diseases and to combat them (ii) The inspection of plant and plant products items that circulate in international traffic and, to the extent possible, the inspection of items of other goods or products that circulate in international traffic in conditions in which they may act incidentally as carriers of pests and plant and plant diseases, and the inspection and monitoring of all types of storage and transport facilities that are used in international traffic, whether from plant and plant products The disinfectation or disinfection of plant and plant products that circulate international traffic and its containers, storage sites and all kinds of means of transport (iv) The issuance of certificates (hereinafter referred to as "phytosanitary certificates") concerning the state of health and the origin of plant and plant products parts (b) An information service responsible for the distribution within the country, reports on pests and diseases of plant and plant products and on ways to prevent and combat them (c) A research facility in the field of phytosanitary protection. 2.- Each contracting government will present a description of all the activities of its national plant protection organization to the Director-General of FAO, who will provide such information to all contracting Governments.

Phytosanitary certificates

ARTICLE V 1. Contracting Governments shall make appropriate arrangements for the issuance of phytosanitary certificates in accordance with the phytosanitary protection regulations of other contracting Governments, and in accordance with the following stipulations: (a) The inspection shall be carried out and the certificates issued only by technically competent and duly authorized officials, or under their responsibility, and in such circumstances and in possession of such knowledge and information, that the authorities of the importing countries may accept them with the confidence that they are fruitful documents (b) Certificates that endorse the planting or propagation material shall be drafted in the form indicated in the Annex to this Convention and shall include all additional declarations required by the importing country. The certificate model may also be used for other plants or plant products when deemed appropriate and provided that such a procedure is not in line with the requirements imposed by the importing country (c) Certificates should not present alterations or scrapes. 2.- Contracting Governments undertake not to require that plant remittances for planting or propagation, which are imported into their territories, be accompanied by phytosanitary certificates issued differently to the model set out in the Annex to this Convention.

Import requirements

ARTICLE VI 1. In order to prevent the introduction of plant diseases and pests in their respective territories, contracting Governments shall have full authority to regulate the entry of plant and plant products and, to this end, may: (a) To impose restrictions or requirements on the import of plant and plant products (b) To prohibit the importation of certain plants or plant products or of certain items of plant or plant products (c) to require or retain certain remittances of plants or plant products (d) 2.- In order to minimize the difficulties that may arise in international trade, contracting Governments undertake to implement the provisions referred to in paragraph 1 of this article, in accordance with the following conditions: (a) The contracting Governments, in implementing their phytosanitary protection regulations, shall not take any of the measures specified in paragraph 1 of this article, unless necessary due to phytosanitary considerations (b) If a contracting government establishes restrictions or requirements on the import of plant and plant products within its territory, it must make such restrictions or requirements public and immediately communicate them to the phytosanitary protection services of the other contracting Governments and FAO (c) If a contracting government, in accordance with the provisions of its phytosanitary protection legislation, prohibits the importation of any plant or vegetable product, shall publish its decision, together with the reasons on which it is based, and immediately inform the phytosanitary protection services of other contracting Governments and FAO (d) If a contracting government requires remittances from certain plants or plant products to be imported only through certain entry points, such points should be selected so that international trade is not impeded without need. The respective contracting government will publish a list of such entry points, which will be transmitted to the phytosanitary protection services of the other contracting Governments and FAO. These restrictions on entry points shall not be established, unless the plants or plant products in question need to be covered by phytosanitary certificates or be subject to inspection or treatment (e) Any inspection of the phytosanitary protection service of a contracting government, with respect to the plant remittances offered for import, shall be carried out as soon as possible, taking due account of the alteration of the respective products. If it is found that a remesa does not conform to the requirements of the phytosanitary protection legislation of the importing country, the phytosanitary protection service of the exporting country should be informed. If the remittance is destroyed, an official report must be sent immediately to the phytosanitary protection service of the exporting country f) Contracting Governments should take measures that, without endangering their own plants, minimize the number of cases in which a phytosanitary certificate is required for the entry of plants or plant products not intended for plantation, such as cereals, fruits, vegetables and flowers in stem (g) Contracting Governments shall make the necessary arrangements to permit the importation, for scientific purposes, of plant and plant products, as well as of specimens of diseases and pests, in conditions that facilitate the adoption of extensive precautions against the risk of spreading such diseases and pests. 3.- The measures specified in this article shall not apply to goods in transit through the territory of each Contracting Government, unless such measures are necessary for the protection of their own plants.

International cooperation

ARTICLE VII Contracting Governments shall cooperate to the greatest extent possible for the purposes of this Convention, and in particular: (a) All Contracting Governments agree to cooperate with FAO in the establishment of a global phytosanitary information service, using fully the means and services of organizations that already exist for this purpose, and, once established, to provide FAO with the following information on a regular basis: (i) Data on the existence, appearance and dissemination of pests and diseases of plant and plant products that are considered economically important and which may constitute an immediate or potential hazard (ii) Data on ways and means considered effective in combating plant and plant diseases and pests. (b) Contracting Governments shall, to the extent possible, participate in all special campaigns to combat certain pests or destructive diseases that may seriously threaten crops and require international measures to address emergencies.

Regional plant protection organizations

ARTICLE VIII 1. Contracting Governments undertake to cooperate in themselves to establish regional phytosanitary protection organizations in appropriate areas. 2.- Regional phytosanitary protection organizations will function as coordinating agencies in the areas of their jurisdiction and will participate in the various activities aimed at achieving the objectives of this Convention.

Difference adjustment

ARTICLE IX 1. If any dispute arises with respect to the interpretation or application of this Convention, or if one of the contracting Governments considers that the attitude of another contracting Government is in conflict with the obligations imposed on it by articles V and VI of the Convention and, in particular, with regard to the reasons for prohibiting or restricting the imports of plant or plant products from their territories, the Government or Governments concerned may request the FAO Director-General to designate a committee for consideration. 2.- The Director-General of FAO, having consulted with the Governments concerned, shall appoint an expert committee which shall be part of representatives of those Governments. The Committee will consider the issue in dispute taking into account all documents and other credible evidence submitted by the Governments concerned. The committee shall submit a report to the Director-General of FAO, who, in turn, shall transmit it to interested Governments and other contracting Governments. 3.- The contracting Governments agree that the recommendations of that committee, although not binding, will provide the basis for the interested Governments to reconsider the issues that gave rise to disagreement. 4.- The cost of the experts shall be borne equally by the Governments concerned.

Substitution of previous agreements

ARTICLE X This Convention shall terminate and replace, among the Contracting Governments, the International Convention with respect to measures to be taken against the vast Phylloxera, signed on 3 November 1881, and the additional Convention signed at Bern on 15 April 1889, and the International Plant Protection Convention signed at Rome on 16 April 1929.

Territorial implementation

ARTICLE XI 1. Any Government may, at the time of ratification or accession, or thereafter, send to the Director-General of FAO the declaration that this Convention shall be extended to all or some of the territories of which international relations is responsible, and this Convention shall apply to all the territories specialized in that declaration, beginning on the thirtieth day on which it has been received by the Director-General. 2.- Any government that has sent to the Director-General of FAO a declaration in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article may, at any time, send a new declaration by modifying the scope of any previous declaration or terminating the application of the provisions of this Convention in any of its territories.

Ratification and accession

ARTICLE XII 1. This Convention shall be open for signature by Governments until 1 May 1952 and shall be ratified as soon as possible. Instruments of ratification shall be deposited in the office of the Director-General of FAO, who shall notify all signatory Governments of the date on which the deposit has been verified. 2.- As soon as this Convention has entered into force, in accordance with the provisions of art. XIV. It will be open to non-signatory Governments. Accession will be made through the delivery of the instrument of accession to the Director-General of FAO, who will notify all signatory and adhered Governments.

Amendments

ARTICLE XIII 1. Any proposal made by a contracting government to amend this Convention shall be communicated to the Director-General of FAO. 2.- Any proposed amendment to this Convention, which is received by the FAO Director-General of a Contracting Government, shall be submitted at a regular or special session of the FAO conference for approval and, if the amendment involves major technical changes, or imposes additional obligations on contracting Governments, it shall be considered by a consultative committee of specialists convened by FAO prior to the conference. 3.- The Director-General of FAO shall notify the Contracting Governments of any draft amendment to this Convention, before the agenda of the session of the Conference in which such amendment shall be considered has been circulated. 4.- Any of the amendments to the Convention, as proposed, will require approval of the FAO conference and will enter into force after thirty days of acceptance by the two thirds of the contracting Governments. Amendments involving new obligations to contracting Governments shall enter into force, for each of those Governments, only after they have accepted it and for thirty days after such acceptance. 5.- Instruments of acceptance of amendments involving new obligations should be deposited with the dispatch of the Director-General of FAO who in turn should inform all Contracting Governments of the receipt of acceptances and the entry into force of the amendments.

Vigilance

ARTICLE XIV As soon as this Convention has been ratified by three of the signatory governments will enter into force among them. For each government ratifying or acceding to it, it will enter into force from the date of deposit of its instrument of ratification or accession.

Complaint

ARTICLE XV 1. Any contracting government may at any time denounce this Convention by notification addressed to the Director-General of FAO. The Director-General shall immediately inform all signatory and acceding Governments. 2.- The complaint shall take effect one year after the date on which the FAO Director-General has received the notification.

Annex B: Phytosanitary Certificate Model

LIST (NM)