Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/659 of 3 April 2025 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as regards the requirements for the introduction into the Union territory of veneer from several species of Acer L. originating in Canada and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072

Official Journal EN of the European Union L series 2025/659 4.4.2025 COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2025/659 of 3 April 2025 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as regards the requirements for the introduction into the Union territory of veneer from several species of Acer L. originating in Canada and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2016 on protective measures against pests of plants, amending Regulations (EU) No 228/2013, (EU) No 652/2014 and (EU) No 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 69/464/EEC, 74/647/EEC, 93/85/EEC, 98/57/EC, 2000/29/EC, 2006/91/EC and 2007/33/EC(1), and in particular Article 42a(1) thereof, Whereas: (1) In order to prevent the introduction into the Union territory of Davidsoniella virescens (R.W. Davidson) Z.W. de Beer, T.A. Duong & M.J. Wingfield, the pathogen causing sapstreak disease of maple, of the tea shot-hole borer Euwallacea fornicatus sensu lato, and of Phytophthora ramorum Werres, De Cock & Man in ‘t Veld (non-EU isolates) (‘the specified pests’), wood of several species of Acer L., originating in Canada (‘the specified wood’), may only be introduced into the Union territory if it fulfils the special requirements of points 85, 86, 102 and 111 of Annex VII to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072(2). The species of the specified wood concerned are Acer saccharum Marsh, Acer macrophyllum Pursh, Acer buergerianum Miq., Acer negundo L., Acer palmatum Thunb., Acer paxii Franch., and Acer pseudoplatanus L., as referred to in the respective points of that Annex. (2) In June 2021, Canada submitted to the Commission a request for a derogation from the special requirements laid down in Annex VII to Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 for the introduction of the specified wood in the form of veneer into the Union territory. This request was accompanied by a dossier containing technical and scientific information about the production process of veneer, including maple veneer, in that country and its impact on pests relevant to the specified wood, and in particular on the specified pests. That process includes steps such as heat treatment of the round wood, debarking, trimming, cutting and high-heat drying. That dossier was supplemented by additional information in January 2022. (3) Canada submitted the dossier to the European Food Safety Authority (‘the Authority’) in January 2022. The Authority analysed the dossier and concluded in its opinion(3)that the measures described in it are able to reduce the presence of Union quarantine pests associated with maple veneer in the specified wood to a very low level or to completely remove the specified pests. The production process for wood intended for the production of veneer in Canada therefore provides for the same level of protection against the introduction of the specified pests as the specific requirements provided for in Annex VII to Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 for the introduction into the Union territory of the specified wood originating from Canada. (1) OJ L 317, 23.11.2016, p. 4, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/2031/oj. (2) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 of 28 November 2019 establishing uniform conditions for the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and the Council, as regards protective measures against pests of plants, and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 690/2008 and amending Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 (OJ L 319, 10.12.2019, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2019/2072/oj). (3) Commodity risk assessment of maple veneer sheets from Canada. EFSA Journal 2024;22:e8892. https://doi.org/10.2903/ j.efsa.2024.8892. ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/oj 1/6EN OJ L, 4.4.2025 (4) Given that the production process of the specified wood intended for the production of veneer can effectively reduce the risk of introduction of the specified pests and other Union quarantine pests into the Union territory to an acceptable level, the specified wood should be allowed to be introduced into the Union territory under certain requirements. Those requirements should include examinations and treatments of both the logs used for the production of veneer and the veneer itself. (5) As no introduction of the specified wood from Canada, produced following the production process mentioned above, into the Union territory has taken place to date and there is no experience with that trade yet, the specified wood presents a phytosanitary risk which is not yet fully assessed. Therefore, this Regulation should have a temporary duration to allow for a full assessment of the respective risk. (6) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed, HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: Article 1 Subject matter This Regulation sets out specific measures for the introduction into the Union territory of maple (Acer L.) wood in the form of veneer of a thickness of 6 mm or less, originating in Canada. Article 2 Definitions For the purpose of this Regulation, the following definitions apply: (a) ‘specified wood’ means wood of Acer saccharum Marsh, Acer macrophyllum Pursh, Acer buergerianum Miq., Acer negundo L., Acer palmatum Thunb., Acer paxii Franch. or Acer pseudoplatanus L., in the form of veneer of a thickness of 6 mm or less and originating in Canada; (b) ‘specified pests’ means Davidsoniella virescens (R.W. Davidson) Z.W. de Beer, T.A. Duong & M.J. Wingfield, Euwallacea fornicatus sensu lato and Phytophthora ramorum Werres, De Cock & Man in ‘t Veld (non-EU isolates). Article 3 Derogation from Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 By way of derogation from the special requirements set out in points 85, 86, 102 and 111 of Annex VII to Regulation (EU) 2019/2072, the specified wood may be introduced into the Union territory if both of the following conditions are fulfilled: (a) the requirements laid down in point 1 of Annex I to this Regulation are fulfilled; (b) the National Plant Protection Organisation of Canada has submitted to the Commission, by 31 March of each year, an annual report on the activities carried out during the previous calendar year, containing all the elements set out in point 2 of Annex I to this Regulation. Article 4 Phytosanitary certificate The specified wood shall be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate bearing the following statement under the heading ‘Additional declaration’: ‘This consignment complies with the European Union requirements laid down in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/659’. 2/6 ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/ojEN OJ L, 4.4.2025 Article 5 Amendment to Annex VII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 Annex VII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 is amended in accordance with the text set out in Annex II. Article 6 Entry into force and period of application This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. It shall apply until 30 September 2029. This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 3 April 2025. For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/oj 3/6EN OJ L, 4.4.2025 ANNEX I REQUIREMENTS RELATED TO THE PRODUCTION OF THE SPECIFIED WOOD AS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 3 1. The specified wood may only be introduced into the Union territory, after the National Plant Protection Organisation of Canada has confirmed on the phytosanitary certificate issued in accordance with Article 4 that it complies with all of the following conditions concerning its harvest, treatment, and identification in Canada: (a) the logs used for the production of the specified wood have been harvested in naturally regenerated, mixed stands with no symptoms of Union quarantine pests, and in particular of the specified pests; (b) the logs have remained in the forest no longer than 2 months after felling; (c) the logs have been subject to visual examination for detecting the presence of the specified pests; (d) visual examination has shown that the logs are free from the symptoms of Union quarantine pests; (e) the logs have been heated in a water bath for at least 20 minutes up to a core temperature of 50 °C; (f) bark and cambium have been completely removed from the logs; (g) the logs have been cut into veneer sheets of a thickness of 6 mm or less; (h) the veneer sheets have been heat-dried in a way that the moisture content of the sheets after drying is 12 % or less; (i) the relevant competent authority of Canada has systematically supervised the procedure of heating referred to in point (e) and of heat-drying referred to in point (h) at the production site in such a way as to guarantee compliance with those points. 2. The annual report on the activities of the preceding calendar year shall include for each processing site: (a) the amount of specified wood exported to the Union; (b) the overview of the official inspections carried out prior to export on the specified wood; (c) the findings of the presence of the specified pests; and (d) in case of findings according to point (c), an analysis on the reasons for the presence of those pests, and the actions taken to prevent their recurrence. 4/6 ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/ojEN OJ L, 4.4.2025 ANNEX II Annex VII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 is amended as follows: (1) In point 85, the text of the first column is replaced by the following: ‘Wood of Acer saccharum Marsh., including wood which has not kept its natural round surface, other than in the form of: — wood intended for the production of veneer sheets, — chips, particles, sawdust, shavings, wood waste and scrap, — wood packaging material, in the form of packing cases, boxes, crates, drums and similar packings, pallets, box pallets and other load boards, pallet collars, dunnage, whether or not actually in use in the transport of objects of all kinds, except dunnage supporting consignments of wood, which is constructed from wood of the same type and quality as the wood in the consignment and which meets the same Union phytosanitary requirements as the wood in the consignment* * except for wood in the form of veneer of a thickness of 6 mm or less and originating in Canada, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/659 of 3 April 2025 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as regards the requirements for the introduction into the Union territory of veneer from several species of Acer L. originating in Canada and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 (OJ L, 2025/659, 4.4.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/oj)’; (2) In point 86, the text of the first column is replaced by the following: ‘Wood of Acer saccharum Marsh., intended for the production of veneer sheets* * except for wood in the form of veneer of a thickness of 6 mm or less and originating in Canada, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/659 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as regards the requirements for the introduction into the Union territory of veneer from several species of Acer L. originating in Canada and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072’; (3) In point 102, the text of the first column is replaced by the following: ‘Wood of Acacia Mill., Acer buergerianum Miq., Acer macrophyllum Pursh, Acer negundo L., Acer palmatum Thunb., Acer paxii Franch., Acer pseudoplatanus L., Aesculus californica (Spach) Nutt., Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle, Albizia falcate Backer ex Merr., Albizia julibrissin Durazz., Alectryon excelsus Gärtn., Alnus rhombifolia Nutt., Archontophoenix cunninghamiana H. Wendl. & Drude, Artocarpus integer (Thunb.) Merr., Azadirachta indica A. Juss., Baccharis salicina Torr. & A.Gray, Bauhinia variegata L., Brachychiton discolor F.Muell., Brachychiton populneus R.Br., Camellia semiserrata C.W.Chi, Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze, Canarium commune L., Castanospermum australe A.Cunningham & C.Fraser, Cercidium floridum Benth. ex A.Gray, Cercidium sonorae Rose & I.M.Johnst., Cocculus laurifolius DC., Combretum kraussii Hochst., Cupaniopsis anacardioides (A.Rich.) Radlk., Dombeya cacuminum Hochr., Erythrina corallodendron L., Erythrina coralloides Moc. & Sessé ex DC., Erythrina falcata Benth., Erythrina fusca Lour., Eucalyptus ficifolia F.Müll., Fagus crenata Blume, Ficus L., Gleditsia triacanthos L., Hevea brasiliensis (Willd. ex A.Juss) Muell.Arg., Howea forsteriana (F.Müller) Becc., Ilex cornuta Lindl. & Paxton, Inga vera Willd., Jacaranda mimosifolia D.Don, Koelreuteria bipinnata Franch., Liquidambar styraciflua L., Magnolia grandiflora L., Magnolia virginiana L., Mimosa bracaatinga Hoehne, Morus alba L., Parkinsonia aculeata L., Persea americana Mill., Pithecellobium lobatum Benth., Platanus x hispanica Mill. ex Münchh., Platanus mexicana Torr., Platanus occidentalis L., Platanus orientalis L., Platanus racemosa Nutt., Podalyria calyptrata Willd., Populus fremontii S.Watson, Populus nigra L., Populus trichocarpa Torr. & A.Gray ex Hook., Prosopis articulata S.Watson, Protium serratum Engl., Psoralea pinnata L., Pterocarya stenoptera C.DC., Quercus agrifolia Née, Quercus calliprinos Webb., Quercus chrysolepis Liebm, Quercus engelmannii Greene, Quercus ithaburensis Dence. Quercus lobata Née, Quercus palustris Marshall, Quercus robur L., Quercus suber L., Ricinus communis L., Salix alba L., Salix babylonica L., Salix gooddingii C.R.Ball, Salix laevigata Bebb, Salix mucronata Thnb., Shorea robusta C.F.Gaertn., Spathodea campanulata P.Beauv., Spondias dulcis Parkinson, Tamarix ramosissima Kar. ex Boiss., Virgilia oroboides subsp. ferrugine B.-E.van Wyk, Wisteria floribunda (Willd.) DC. and Xylosma avilae Sleumer, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/oj 5/6EN OJ L, 4.4.2025 other than in the form of: — chips, sawdust, shavings and wood waste, obtained in whole or part from these plants, — wood packaging material, in the form of packing cases, boxes, crates, drums and similar packings, pallets, box pallets and other load boards, pallet collars, dunnage, whether or not actually in use in the transport of objects of all kinds, except dunnage supporting consignments of wood, which is constructed from wood of the same type and quality as the wood in the consignment and which meets the same Union phytosanitary requirements as the wood in the consignment, but including that which has not kept its natural round surface* * except for wood of Acer macrophyllum Pursh, Acer buergerianum Miq., Acer negundo L., Acer palmatum Thunb., Acer paxii Franch. or Acer pseudoplatanus L., in the form of veneer of a thickness of 6 mm or less and originating in Canada, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/659 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as regards the requirements for the introduction into the Union territory of veneer from several species of Acer L. originating in Canada and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072’; (4) In point 111, the text of the first column is replaced by the following: ‘Wood of Acer macrophyllum Pursh, Aesculus californica (Spach) Nutt., Lithocarpus densiflorus (Hook. & Arn.) Rehd., Quercus L. and Taxus brevifolia Nutt., other than in the form of: — wood packaging material, in the form of packing cases, boxes, crates, drums and similar packings, pallets, box pallets and other load boards, pallet collars, dunnage, whether or not actually in use in the transport of objects of all kinds, except dunnage supporting consignments of wood, which is constructed from wood of the same type and quality as the wood in the consignment and which meets the same Union phytosanitary requirements as the wood in the consignment, but including that which has not kept its natural round surface* * except for wood of Acer macrophyllum Pursh in the form of veneer of a thickness of 6 mm or less and originating in Canada, which may be introduced into the Union subject to the requirements set out in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/659 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 as regards the requirements for the introduction into the Union territory of veneer from several species of Acer L. originating in Canada and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072’. 6/6 ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/659/oj