Obsah (4)

Article 4Article 7Article 9Article 14

Official Translation Official Translation REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAW ON

October 9,

1. No IX – 533 Vilnius SECTION I GENERAL PROVISIONS Article
2. Purpose and Goal of the Law
3. This Law shall regulate the collection, conservation and use of the

. 2. The objective of this Law is to ensure a sustainable use of the

, protect them from ravage, decline and total destruction and to preserve biological diversity. Article

1. Basic Definitions of this Law
2. Plant Genetic Material is a complex of plant cell component parts, determining the preservation and transfer of the genetic information.
3. Plant Genetic Resources are actually and potentially useful plants and their parts distinguishing by functional generative or vegetative reproduction features. These include the following: 1) plant populations or their parts; 2) single plants or their groups; 3) reproductive parts of plants (seeds, pollen, germ, meristemic tissues, buds, shoots).
4. Plant genetic reserve is a territory, designated for the conservation of plant genetic resources.
5. Country of origin of plant genetic resources is the country where plant genetic resources occur naturally or have been artificially created.
6. Plant gene bank is an institution financed from the State Budget, which co-ordinates conservation and studies of plant genetic resources and conserves plant genetic material. 6.

are plant genetic resources, which have been selected and included, in the central database of

having ecological, selection and economic significance for the Republic of Lithuania. 7. Central data base of

is a collection of data and other information regarding

, which is collected and stored in the electronic media of an institution authorised by the Government. 8. Conservation of

is preservation of plant genetic information in order to avoid damage or extinction of

and to ensure their diversity, vitality and sustainability. 9. Ex situ conservation of

is the conservation of

outside their natural habitat or creation environment. 10. In situ conservation of

is the conservation of

within their natural habitat or creation environment. 11. Inter situ conservation of

is the conservation of cultured and cultivated

in the sites, where new inherited characteristics of these plants have formed during a long period of cultivation. 12. Co-ordination Centre for

is a science or study institution or their sub-unit, which according to the procedure established by legal acts, has been granted the right to collect the results of research on the use and conservation of the

. 13. Use of

is the use of

for the rational (specific) human needs (food, technological processing, medicinal raw materials, scientific research, breeding, seed production, propagation and exchange) without a threat for the sustainability of the resources.

1. Gene conservation area is a restricted area, which contains the plant population selected for conservation of national genetic resources of this species.
2. Field collection is a collection of plants systematically grown, regenerated and preserved in outdoor conditions.
3. Meristemic tissue is a group of cells that have a long-lasting ability to divide.
4. Storage is a special facility, designated for the conservation of plant genetic material.
5. Seed collection stand is a productive forest stand of good quality, aimed for collection of seeds to be used as genetic material.
6. Seed collection site is a restricted in size area, which contains a plant population, aimed for collection of seeds, to be used as genetic material. Article
7. Ownership Rights of

The

shall make up a component part of the living natural resources of the Republic of Lithuania. They shall belong by the right of ownership to the State and legal and natural persons. SECTION TWO STATE REGULATION OF USE AND PROTECTION OF

Article 4

. State Regulation of the Use and Protection of

1. Institutions authorised by the Government shall implement State regulation of the use and conservation of the

and within the scope of their competence, shall implement the following principal functions: 1) organise the collection and conservation of the

; 2) establish the procedure of the collection, conservation, use and regeneration of the

; 3) co-ordinate the administration of the central database of the

; 4) organise control of the use and protection of the

; 5) establish the procedure of the exchange, import and export of the

; 6) draft programmes of conservation and use operations of the

; 7) co-operate with foreign institutions; 8) perform the other functions assigned to them by legal acts. 2. A permanent committee of the

shall be established of the representatives of the State administrative institutions, science and study institutions and non-governmental institutions, for solving the issues of the selection, conservation, use and regeneration of the

. Upon receiving the proposals of the co-ordination centres of plant national genetic resources, this committee shall select plant genetic resources and submit them to the institutions authorised by the Government in order that they may grant them the status of national genetic resources and include them in the central database. The committee shall also submit proposals to the institutions authorised by the Government concerning the improvement of the condition of the

. The committee shall operate on a voluntary basis. An institution authorised by the Government shall approve the makeup and regulations of the committee. Article 5. Co-ordination of Collection, Research and Conservation of

1. In the Republic of Lithuania the plant gene bank shall co-ordinate the collection, research and conservation of the

and conserve genetic material. 2. The co-ordination centres the

shall co-ordinate collection, research and conservation according to plant groups as follows: 1) agricultural (field crops); 2) forest trees and shrubs; 3) horticultural plants; 4) ornamental plants; 5) medicinal aromatic plants. Article 6. Funding of Scientific Research, Collection, Conservation and Regeneration of

1. The implementation of scientific research, collection, conservation and regeneration of the

shall be funded from the State Budget. 2. The funds of users of

, funds of international foundations and organisations and also, voluntary contributions by legal and natural persons may be sources of funding the means of the protection of

. SECTION III COLLECTION AND CONSERVATION OF

Article 7

. Collection of

1.

shall be collected through research, selection, evaluation and choice of the means of conservation and use. 2. Science and study institutions shall evaluate the

as regards biological, ecological, genetic, economic and other aspects and determine their factual and potential value. 3.

for conservation shall be selected according to their value, actual condition, factors threatening destruction, extinction or threat to sustainability, which are present currently or may manifest in the future, present resources and natural and artificial reproduction features. Article 8. Conservation of

1. Selected

shall be conserved: 1) in the areas of their natural origin or creation (in situ); 2) outside the areas of origin or creation (ex situ): in field collections and plant gene banks; 3) in areas where their new features have appeared (inter situ); 2. For in situ conservation of

, genetic reserves, gene conservation areas, seed collection stands shall be established or populations, groups or single trees shall be selected. In situ conservation of

shall not be separated from the conservation of the national habitats, maintenance of vital populations and regeneration through creation of conditions favourable to their development. 3. For ex situ conservation of

, field collections and facilities for long-term storage of genetic material shall be established. 4.Plant varieties and races, having acquired new distinguishing characteristics, shall be conserved inter situ, by drawing up contracts with the administrators and owners of the land, where these

are found. 5. According to their competence: the owners of genetic resources, users of State land or owners of private land, shall be responsible for the conservation of

Article 9. Plant Genetic Reserves and Gene Conservation Areas 1.

Plant genetic reserves shall be established based on the Law on Protected Areas. They shall conserve plant populations or their parts, which have genetic value. Plant genetic reserves shall be managed in accordance with the Plant Genetic Reserve Regulations approved by the Government. 2. The Law on Protected Areas, Forestry Law and other legal acts shall regulate the conservation of

in State reserves, national and regional parks, plots of regenerated natural resources and other protected areas.

1. If necessary, in the protected areas listed in paragraph 2 of this Article, gene conservation areas shall be established and the genetic resources, shall be conserved according to special programmes, prepared and approved by the institutions authorised by the Government. Article
2. Protected Seed Collection Areas, Seed and Tree Groups or Individual Trees Institutions authorised by the State shall approve the list of seed collection areas, seed collection stands and tree groups or individual trees, which are assigned to the

and the regulations governing their selection, maintenance and protection, taking into account the recommendations of the co-ordinating centres of

. Article 11. Field Collections The field collections of the

shall be established in specially designated for this purpose, plots from the plants included in the central database of national genetic resources. Science and study institutions shall select plots on private land having obtained the written approval of the landowner, plant the collections and maintain them. An institution authorised by the Government shall establish the procedure of planting and maintaining of the field collections. Article 12. Plant Gene Bank 1. The Government shall establish a plant gene bank in accordance with the procedure set forth in legal acts, for the purpose of co-ordinating the collection, exploration and conservation of the plant genetic material of the

included in the central database of

. An institution authorised by the Government shall approve the regulations thereof. The plant gene bank shall be maintained by State Budget funds. 2. The plant gene bank shall organise the following basic functions: 1) co-ordinate the collection, research and conservation of the national, plant genetic resources; 2) keep the genetic material, preserving its genetic identity and integrity; 3) multiply and propagate genetic material; 4) maintain direct contacts with the users of the genetic material such as, breeders, geneticists, botanists and private collection owners; 5) initiate and co-ordinate joint scientific research programmes of

, publish obtained results of research; 6) co-operate with the plant gene banks of other countries, participate in drafting and implementing national programmes on the issues of

; 7) maintain the central database of

; 8) organise the other functions set forth in the plant gene bank regulations. 3. Science and study institutions or those authorised by the Government (within the scope of their competence implementing the measures of collection, research and conservation of the

) shall select the plant genetic materials, based upon the requirements of this Law and other legal acts and the criteria recommended by the Commission of

. Article 13. Conservation of

in Planning and Carrying out Commercial Activity

1. Persons planning or carrying out commercial activity must comply with the requirement of the Law on Environmental Impact Assessment of the Proposed Economic Activity, Land-use Planning and Forest Managing Projects.
2. Users may use chemically or biologically active materials in the areas where

are conserved in situ, exclusively if these materials do not harm the

. 3. In order to regenerate

in the face of ongoing generation rotation, users must create favourable regeneration conditions (it these do not regenerate, to regenerate them), and reseed the short rotation plants. In regenerating the

their natural characteristics must be conserved. 4. Institutions authorised by the Government shall establish and within the scope of their competence, control the impact of commercial activity on the

. SECTION IV USE OF

Article 14

. Use and Access to

1.

shall be freely available for plant breeding and research and other bone fide objectives, indicated in paragraph 2 of this Article. 2.

shall be used for the following objectives: 1) scientific research; 2) plant breeding and seed production; 3) reproduction; 4) exchanges; 5) satisfaction of the rational (purposeful) human needs (food, technological reprocessing, raw materials for drugs and for other objectives consuming

in the environment). 3. The

shall be used on a sustainable basis. Article 15. Users of

1. Natural and legal persons may become users of

. 2. Users of

shall have the right according to the procedure set forth in legal acts to use the

all over the Republic of Lithuania. 3. Users of

must: 1) secure sustainable use and protect

following the requirements of set forth by the laws and other legal acts regarding the use, conservation and regeneration of

; 2) implement fire prevention measures based upon fire prevention safety requirements; in the event of fire to take measures of extinguishing them; 3) regenerate the threatened

and the habitats thereof in accordance with the procedure established by an institution authorised by the Government; 4) implement the requirements of the institutions and officers authorised by the Government Article 16. Central Data Base of

1. In order to systematise, collect, keep and use the data on

and other information concerning them, an institution authorised by the Government shall establish the central data base of

(hereinafter - database) and approve the management regulations of the database of

. 2. The following data on

shall be collected in the database: 1) plant genetic reserves; 2) seed collected areas and gene conservation areas; 3) seed collection stands; 4) field collections; 5) individual protected trees or their groups; 6) plant genetic material kept in plant gene banks. SECTION V LIABILITY FOR VIOLATIONS OF THIS LAW Article

1. Legal Liability
2. Civil, administrative or criminal proceedings shall be instituted in accordance with the procedure set forth by laws, against the natural and legal persons, who have violated the requirements of this Law.
3. The following shall have the right to submit lawsuits: 1) natural and legal persons, whose property or interests have suffered damage; 2) The State Inspectorate of Environmental Protection and the other institutions authorised by laws, when the damage has been inflicted upon the national plant resources and their location sites on State land.
4. An institution authorised by the Government shall establish the procedure of estimating the damage caused to plant national resources and their location sites and the costs thereof. SECTION VI INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION Article
5. International Cooperation in

Area 1. The Republic of Lithuania, following the Convention on Biological Diversity and other legal acts, shall contract international agreements and participate in the activities of international organisations, related to

. 2. In cooperating with other states and international organisations in the area of

the institutions authorised by the Government of Lithuania, shall: 1) solve the problems of the use and protection of the

; 2) provide information on national genetic issues to interested states and international organisations. 3.

shall be taken out and brought into the Republic of Lithuania in accordance with the procedure established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or institutions authorised by it. I promulgate This Law passed by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania. PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC VALDAS ADAMKUS