No L 174/32 Official Journal -of the European Communities 6. 7. 88 COMMISSION REGULATION (EEC) No 1983/88 of 5 July 1988 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87 on the conditions governing imports of agricultural-products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power-station THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing .the European Economic . Community, ~ Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87 of 22 December 1987 on the conditions governing imports of agricultural - products- originating in third countries.following the -accident at the Chernoby! nuclear power-station ('), and in particular Article 6 thereof, Whereas, in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87, the Member States must carry out checks on " products originating in third countries ; whereas provision should be made for such checks to be performed by sampling and -under the responsibility of the. Member States in which the products in question are the subject of declarations of release for free circulation ; - Whereas, following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power-station, the Council adopted on 30 May 1986 a first Regulation (EEC) No 1707/86(*) on the conditions governing imports of agricultural products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power-station ; whereas the detailed rules for the application of that Regulation were adopted in Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1762/86 (°); whereas both these Regulations' expired on 31 October 1987 ; Whereas it is-necessary to lay down detailed rules for the application of Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87 ; Whereas, in order to ensure maximum effectiveness of the checks, provision must be made for objective criteria to be used by the Member States in applying controls ; whereas provision should:also be made for products produced or harvested before 26 April 1986, the date of the Chernobyl nuclear accident, to be exempted from the checks; Whereas the Commission must be notified regularly of the results of checks carried out by the Member States ; whereas such notifications must include precise details, in particular of the country of origin, the product concerned and its degree of contamination ; whereas it is for the Commission to inform the other Member States of such notifications ; Whereas, in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87, export certificates may be presented at the time of checks; whereas the purpose of the export certificates is to show, on the basis of a uniform () OJ No L 371, 30. 12. 1987, p. 14. ().OJ No L 146, 31. 5. 1986, p. 88. () OJ No L 152, 6. 6. 1986, p. 41. specimen, that the products which they accompany do not exceed the maximum permitted levels laid down in Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87 ; Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the ad hoc committee, HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION : Article 1 1. Checks on the products referred to in Article 1 of Regulation (EEC) No 3955/87 to ensure that the maximum permitted levels laid down by the said Regulation are observed shall be carried out by the Member States in which release for free circulation of the products takes place. Checks shall be carried out either prior or subsequent to acceptance of the declaration of release for free circulation, and in any case before the goods are given clearance. 2.  Checks shall be carried out by sampling in accordance with the following minimum standards.- The choice of the Member State as to the intensity of controls to be carried out shall be made taking account in particular of the degree of contamination of the country of origin, the characteristics of the products in question, the results of the checks and any export certificate presented. Member States need not require checks for products which present, to the satisfaction of the competent authorities, no risk .of contamination owing to the fact that their date of production or harvest is prior to 26 April 1986. \ 3. For animals for slaughter, the checks shall be carried out at the border or at the time of slaughter. Clearance of release for free circulation shall be subject to the presen- - tation of a certificate issued by the competent authorities responsible for controls in the slaughterhouse to the effect that the meat in question has undergone the system of checks and that those checks have not shown that the maximum permitted levels have been exceeded. ' . To that end and on arrival in the country of destination, the animals for slaughter must be taken directly to a slaughterhouse and, in accordance with animal health requirements, they must be slaughtered within three working days at the latest following their entry into that slaughterhouse.