These regulations have been made on the basis of article 32 (1) (s) of the Plant Quarantine Act, which empowers the Minister to establish rules as to the setting up of protected zones. The present provisions lay down the conditions to be fulfilled when requesting the recognition of a protected zone, i.e. a zone in which one or more harmful organisms are not endemic or established despite favourable conditions for them to establish themselves there, and in which there is a danger that certain harmful organisms will establish for particular crops. The above-mentioned conditions include the submission of an official action programme and the surveys specified under regulation 4.