Council Regulation (EU) 2015/523 of 25 March 2015 amending Regulations (EU) No 43/2014 and (EU) 2015/104 as regards certain fishing opportunities
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Address https://gelex.eu/eli/EU/regulation/2015/523@2015-03-25/en
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 43(3) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
Whereas:
(1) Council Regulation (EU) 2015/104 does not contain limits on fishing opportunities for the stock of sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) in the north-east Atlantic.
(2) In June 2014, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) released scientific advice on the stock on sea bass in the north-east Atlantic, and confirmed that this stock has been in rapid decline since 2012. Furthermore, the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) has evaluated the protection of sea bass by national measures in place and, in general, has deemed those measures ineffective. Sea bass is a late maturing and slow growing species. The fishing mortality on sea bass in the north-east Atlantic is currently four times higher than the level which would ensure maximum sustainable yield (MSY).
(3) The Commission has adopted Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/111, based on Article 12 of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, to alleviate a serious threat to the conservation of the sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) stock in the Celtic Sea, Channel, Irish Sea and southern North Sea. Also recreational fisheries contribute significantly to the fishing mortality on that stock. It is therefore appropriate to establish fishing opportunities in the form of a daily limit on the number of fish that a recreational fisherman may retain. Recreational fisheries include various forms, such as fishing from a recreational vessel or fishing from shore.
(4) In order to avoid interpretation problems, Article 7(1) and (2) of Regulation (EU) 2015/104 should be formulated so as to correspond to the wording in Article 15 of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013.
(5) Catch limits for sand eel in Union waters of ICES zones IIa, IIIa and IV were set at zero in Annex IA to Regulation (EU) 2015/104, pending advice from the ICES. ICES advice on the stock has been available since 23 February 2015, and it is now possible to set a total allowable catch (TAC) for sand eel in this area, distributed in seven management areas in order to avoid local depletion.
(6) It is appropriate to provide certain inter-area flexibility for megrims that constitute the same biological stock for all Member States with a quota in the relevant areas.
(7) Regulation (EU) 2015/104 contains an error in the TAC and quota for Northern prawn in the North Sea, where a rollover of the 2014 TAC should have been adopted. Annex IA to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(8) For some stocks, fishing opportunities and conditions of access to fishery resources for vessels in Coastal State waters are established each year in the light of consultations on fisheries between the relevant Coastal States. As no agreement on quota-sharing arrangements for 2015 concerning Atlanto-Scandian herring has been reached, it is appropriate to fix an autonomous quota based on the Union share of this stock in recent years. Annex IB to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(9) At its third annual meeting in 2015, the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) fixed fishing opportunities consisting of a total allowable catch (TAC) for jack mackerel. This measure should be implemented in the law of the Union.
(10) A footnote in Annex III to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 wrongly referred to an obsolete agreement, and should thus be corrected.
(11) In order to accurately reflect the present gear distribution of the French and Spanish 2015 bluefin tuna fishing fleet, it is necessary to amend Annex IV of Regulation (EU) 2015/104, laying down the fishing, farming and fattening limitations for bluefin tuna.
(12) An error needs to be corrected in the TAC table for mackerel (Scomber scombrus) in areas VI, VII, VIIIa, VIIIb, VIIId and VIIIe; Union and international waters of Vb; international waters of IIa, XII and XIV (MAC/2CX14-).
(13) Scientific advice received from the STECF on 2 March 2015 indicates that it is precautionary to allow a small by-catch quota for undulate ray (Raia undulata) in ICES areas VIa, VIb, VIIa-c, VIId, VIIe-k, VIII and IX. Annex IA to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(14) Whereas in accordance with the procedure provided for in the agreement on fisheries relations with the Faroe Islands, the Union has held additional consultations on reciprocal arrangements with the Faroe Islands on fishing opportunities for Atlanto-Scandian herring and blue whiting for 2015; it is therefore appropriate to fix fishing opportunities for these stocks.
(15) Regulation (EU) 2015/104 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(16) According to Article 3(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 847/96, when more than 75 % of a precautionary TAC has been utilised before 31 October of the year of its application, a Member State with a quota for the stock may request an increase in the TAC. A request for a 10 % increase of the 2014 TAC for skates and rays in the North Sea has been received by the Commission. The supporting biological information, submitted with the request, has been verified and validated by experts at the Commission's Joint Research Centre.
(17) Council Regulation (EU) No 43/2014 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(18) The catch limits provided for in Regulation (EU) 2015/104 apply from 1 January 2015. The provisions of this Regulation concerning catch limits should therefore also apply from that date. Such retroactive application is without prejudice to the principles of legal certainty and protection of legitimate expectations as the fishing opportunities concerned have not yet been exhausted. However, the new catch limit for sea bass should apply from the date of entry into force of this Regulation. Since the modification of catch limits has an influence on the economic activities and the planning of the fishing season of Union vessels, this Regulation should enter into force immediately after its publication. For reasons set out in recital 16, the provisions on higher fishing opportunities for skates and rays in the North Sea should apply with effect from 1 January 2014,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is amended as follows:
(1) Article 2 is replaced by the following:
Article 1
(1)
Article 2 Scope
1. This Regulation shall apply to the following vessels:
(a) Union vessels;
(b) third-country vessels in Union waters.
2. For the purpose of Article 11a, this Regulation shall also apply to recreational fisheries.
Article 1
(2)(m) In Article 3, the following point is added: recreational fisheries means non-commercial fishing activities exploiting marine living aquatic resources such as for recreation, tourism or sport. .
(3) Article 7 is replaced by the following: .
Article 1
(3)
Article 7 Conditions for landing catches and by-catches
1. Catches of species which are subject to catch limits and which have been caught in fisheries specified in point (a) of Article 15(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 are subject to the landing obligation, as established in Article 15 of that Regulation (the landing obligation).
2. Fish subject to catch limits caught in fisheries not subject to the landing obligation shall be retained on board or landed only if:
(a) the catches have been taken by vessels flying the flag of a Member State having a quota and that quota is not exhausted; or
(b) the catches consist of a share in a Union quota which has not been allocated by quota among Member States, and that Union quota has not been exhausted.
3. The stocks of non-target species within safe biological limits referred to in Article 15(8) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 are identified in Annex I to this Regulation for the purposes of the derogation from the obligation to count catches against the relevant quotas provided for in that Article.
Article 1
(4) The following Article is inserted: .
Article 1
(4)
Article 11a Recreational sea bass fisheries in the north-east Atlantic
In recreational fisheries in ICES divisions IVb, IVc, VIIa, VIId, VIIe, VIIf, VIIg, VIIh, VIIj and VIIk not more than three specimens of sea bass may be retained per person per day.
Article 1
(5) Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is amended in accordance with Annex I to this Regulation.
(6) Annex IA to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is amended in accordance with Annex III to this Regulation.
(7) Annex IB to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is amended in accordance with Annex IV to this Regulation.
(8) Annex IJ to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is replaced by Annex V to this Regulation.
(9) Annex III to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is replaced by Annex VI to this Regulation.
(10) Annex IV to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is replaced by Annex VII to this Regulation.
(11) Annex VIII to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is amended in accordance with Annex VIII to this Regulation.
Article 2
Annex IA to Regulation (EU) No 43/2014 is amended in accordance with Annex II to this Regulation.
Article 3
This Regulation shall enter into force the day after its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. Article 1(3), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), and (11) shall apply from 1 January 2015. Article 2 shall apply from 1 January 2014.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 25 March 2015. For the Council The President E. Rincēvičs
ANNEX
ANNEX III MAXIMUM NUMBER OF FISHING AUTHORISATIONS FOR UNION VESSELS FISHING IN THIRD-COUNTRY WATERS
Area of fishing Fishery Number of fishing authorisations Allocation of fishing authorisations amongst Member States Maximum number of vessels present at any time Norwegian waters and fishery zone around Jan Mayen Herring, north of 62° 00′ N To be established DK To be established To be established DE To be established FR To be established IE To be established NL To be established PL To be established SV To be established UK To be established Demersal species, north of 62° 00′ N 80 DE 16 50 IE 1 ES 20 FR 18 PT 9 UK 14 Unallocated 2 Mackerel Not relevant Not relevant 70 Industrial species, south of 62° 00′ N 480 DK 450 150 UK 30 Faroese waters All trawl fisheries with vessels of not more than 180 feet in the zone between 12 and 21 miles from the Faroese baselines 26 BE 0 13 DE 4 FR 4 UK 18 Directed fisheries for cod and haddock with a minimum mesh of 135 mm, restricted to the area south of 62° 28′ N and east of 6° 30′ W 8 Not relevant 4 Trawl fisheries outside 21 miles from the Faroese baseline. In the periods from 1 March to 31 May and from 1 October to 31 December, these vessels may operate in the area between 61° 20′ N and 62° 00′ N and between 12 and 21 miles from the baselines 70 BE 0 26 DE 10 FR 40 UK 20 Trawl fisheries for blue ling with a minimum mesh of 100 mm in the area south of 61° 30′ N and west of 9° 00′ W and in the area between 7° 00′ W and 9° 00′ W south of 60° 30′ N and in the area south-west of a line between 60° 30′ N, 7° 00′ W and 60°00′ N, 6°00′ W 70 DE 8 20 FR 12 Directed trawl fisheries for saithe with a minimum mesh size of 120 mm and with the possibility to use round-straps around the cod end 70 Not relevant 22 Fisheries for blue whiting. The total number of fishing authorisations may be increased by four vessels to form pairs, should the Faroese authorities introduce special rules of access to an area called 'main fishing area of blue whiting' 34 DE 2 20 DK 5 FR 4 NL 6 UK 7 SE 1 ES 4 IE 4 PT 1 Line fisheries 10 UK 10 6 Mackerel 12 DK 1 12 BE 0 DE 1 FR 1 IE 2 NL 1 SE 1 UK 5 Herring, north of 62° 00′ N 20 DK 5 DE 2 IE 2 FR 1 NL 2 PL 1 SE 3 UK 4
ANNEX VII
1. Maximum number of Union bait boats and trolling boats authorised to fish actively for bluefin tuna between 8 kg/75 cm and 30 kg/115 cm in the eastern Atlantic Spain 60 France 37 Union 97
2. Maximum number of Union coastal artisanal fishing vessels authorised to fish actively for bluefin tuna between 8 kg/75 cm and 30 kg/115 cm in the Mediterranean Spain 151 France 94 Italy 30 Cyprus 6 Malta 28 Union 309
3. Maximum number of Union vessels authorised to fish actively for bluefin tuna between 8 kg/75 cm and 30 kg/115 cm in the Adriatic Sea for farming purposes Croatia 11 Italy 12 Union 23
ANNEX IV ICCAT CONVENTION AREA
Table A Table B
4. Maximum number and total capacity in gross tonnage of fishing vessels of each Member State that may be authorised to fish for, retain on board, tranship, transport, or land bluefin tuna in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Number of fishing vessels Cyprus Greece Croatia Italy France Spain Malta Purse Seiners 1 1 11 12 17 6 1 Longliners 6 0 0 30 8 58 28 Baitboat 0 0 0 0 8 70 0 Handline 0 0 12 0 29 1 0 Trawler 0 0 0 0 57 0 0 Other artisanal 0 21 0 0 94 83 0 Total capacity in gross tonnage Cyprus Croatia Greece Italy France Spain Malta Purse Seiners To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established Longliners To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established Baitboats To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established Handlines To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established Trawlers To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established Other artisanal To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established To be established
5. Maximum number of traps engaged in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery authorised by each Member State Number of traps Spain 5 Italy 6 Portugal 2
6. Maximum bluefin tuna farming capacity and fattening capacity for each Member State and maximum input of wild-caught bluefin tuna that each Member State may allocate to its farms in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Maximum tuna farming capacity and fattening capacity Number of farms Capacity (in tonnes) Spain 14 11852 Italy 15 13000 Greece 2 2100 Cyprus 3 3000 Croatia 7 7880 Malta 8 12300 Maximum input of wild-caught bluefin tuna (in tonnes) Spain 5855 Italy 3764 Greece 785 Cyprus 2195 Croatia 2947 Malta 8768
ANNEX VIII
ANNEX VIII QUANTITATIVE LIMITATIONS OF FISHING AUTHORISATIONS FOR THIRD-COUNTRY VESSELS FISHING IN UNION WATERS
Flag State Fishery Number of fishing authorisations Maximum number of vessels present at any time Norway Herring, north of 62° 00′ N To be established To be established Faroe Islands Mackerel, VIa (north of 56° 30′ N), IIa, IVa (north of 59° N) Horse mackerel, IV, VIa (north of 56° 30′ N), VIIe, VIIf, VIIh 14 14 Herring, north of 62° 00′ N 20 Herring, IIIa 4 4 Industrial fishing for Norway pout, IV, VIa (north of 56° 30′ N) (including unavoidable by-catches of blue whiting) 14 14 Ling and tusk 20 10 Blue whiting, II, IVa, V, VIa (north of 56° 30′ N), VIb, VII (west of 12° 00′ W) 20 20 Blue ling 16 16
ANNEX I
Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2015/104 is amended as follows:
1. The following entry is inserted in the first table (comparative table of Latin names and common names) after the entry for Deania calcea: Dicentrarchus labrax BSS Sea bass .
2. The following entry is inserted in the second table (comparative table of common names and Latin names) after the entry for sandy ray: Sea bass BSS Dicentrarchus labrax .
ANNEX II
Species: Skates and rays Rajiformes Zone: Union waters of IIa and IV (SRX/2AC4-C) Belgium 233 Denmark 9 Germany 11 France 36 The Netherlands 198 United Kingdom 895 Union 1382 TAC 1382 Precautionary TAC
ANNEX III Special condition: Special condition:
Species: Sand eel Ammodytes spp. Zone: Norwegian waters of IV (SAN/04-N.) Denmark 0 United Kingdom 0 Union 0 TAC Not relevant within the limits of the abovementioned quotas, no more than the quantities given below may be taken in the following sand eel management areas, as defined in Annex IID: Zone Union waters of sand eel management areas 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 (SAN/234_1) (SAN/234_2) (SAN/234_3) (SAN/234_4) (SAN/234_5) (SAN/234_6) (SAN/234_7) Denmark 125459 27355 179227 4717 0 206 0 United Kingdom 2742 598 3918 103 0 5 0 Germany 192 42 274 7 0 0 0 Sweden 4607 1005 6581 173 0 8 0 Union 133000 29000 190000 5000 0 219 0 Total 133000 29000 190000 5000 0 219 0 Species: Sand eel Ammodytes spp. Zone: Union waters of IIa, IIIa and IV Denmark 336964 United Kingdom 7366 Germany 515 Sweden 12374 Union 357219 TAC 357219 Species: Megrims Lepidorhombus spp. Zone: VII (LEZ/07.) Belgium 470 Spain 5216 France 6329 Ireland 2878 United Kingdom 2492 Union 17385 TAC 17385 Species: Blue whiting Micromesistius poutassou Zone: Union and international waters of I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIIIa, VIIIb, VIIId, VIIIe, XII and XIV (WHB/1X14) Denmark 30106 Germany 11706 Spain 25524 France 20952 Ireland 23313 The Netherlands 36711 Portugal 2371 Sweden 7447 United Kingdom 39065 Union 197195 Norway 102605 Faroe Islands 15000 TAC Not relevant Analytical TAC Species: Blue whiting Micromesistius poutassou Zone: Union waters of II, IVa, V, VI north of 56° 30′ N and VII west of 12° W (WHB/24A567) Norway 0 Faroe Islands 35000 TAC Not relevant Analytical TAC Species: Northern prawn Pandalus borealis Zone: Union waters of IIa and IV (PRA/2AC4-C) Denmark 1818 The Netherlands 17 Sweden 73 United Kingdom 538 Union 2446 TAC 2446 Analytical TAC Species: Skates and rays Rajiformes Zone: Union waters of VIa, VIb, VIIa-c and VIIe-k (SRX/67AKXD) Belgium 725 Estonia 4 France 3255 Germany 10 Ireland 1048 Lithuania 17 The Netherlands 3 Portugal 18 Spain 876 United Kingdom 2076 Union 8032 TAC 8032 Species: Skates and rays Rajiformes Zone: Union waters of VIId (SRX/07D.) Belgium 72 France 602 The Netherlands 4 United Kingdom 120 Union 798 TAC 798 Precautionary TAC Species: Skates and rays Rajiformes Zone: Union waters of VIII and IX (SRX/89-C.) Belgium 7 France 1298 Portugal 1051 Spain 1057 United Kingdom 7 Union 3420 TAC 3420 Precautionary TAC within the limits of the abovementioned quotas, no more than the quantities given below may be taken in the following zones and periods: Union waters of IIa; Union and Norwegian waters of IVa. During the periods from 1 January to 15 February 2015 and from 1 September to 31 December 2015 (MAC/*4A-EN) Norwegian waters of IIa (MAC/*2AN-) Faroese waters (MAC/*FRO2) Germany 16154 2176 2228 France 10770 1449 1485 Ireland 53847 7254 7426 The Netherlands 23557 3172 3249 United Kingdom 148087 19952 20424 Union 252415 34003 34812 Species: Mackerel Scomber scombrus Zone: VI, VII, VIIIa, VIIIb, VIIId and VIIIe; Union and international waters of Vb; international waters of IIa, XII and XIV (MAC/2CX14-) Germany 26766 Spain 28 Estonia 223 France 17846 Ireland 89220 Latvia 164 Lithuania 164 The Netherlands 39033 Poland 1885 United Kingdom 245363 Union 420692 Norway 18852 Faroe Islands 39824 TAC Not relevant
Analytical TAC Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 shall not apply Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 shall not apply
Analytical TAC Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 shall not apply Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 shall not apply
Analytical TAC Article 11 of this Regulation applies
Precautionary TAC Article 11 of this Regulation applies
Analytical TAC Article 7(3) of this Regulation applies
ANNEX IV Special condition:
within the limits of the abovementioned quotas, no more than the quantities given below may be taken in the following zones: Norwegian waters north of 62° N and the fishery zone around Jan Mayen (HER/*2AJMN) 0 II, Vb north of 62° N (Faroes waters) (HER/*2A 5B-F) Belgium 3 Denmark 3084 Germany 540 Spain 10 France 133 Ireland 798 Netherlands 1104 Poland 156 Portugal 10 Finland 48 Sweden 1143 United Kingdom 1971 Species: Herring Clupea harengus Zone: Union and international waters of I and II (HER/1/2-) Belgium 6 Denmark 6314 Germany 1105 Spain 21 France 272 Ireland 1634 The Netherlands 2259 Poland 319 Portugal 21 Finland 98 Sweden 2339 United Kingdom 4036 Union 18424 Faroe Islands 9000 TAC Not established Analytical TAC
ANNEX V
ANNEX IJ SPRFMO CONVENTION AREA
Species: Jack mackerel Trachurus murphyi Zone: SPRFMO Convention Area (CJM/SPRFMO) Germany 7067,15 The Netherlands 7660,06 Lithuania 4917,5 Poland 8455,29 Union 28100 TAC Not relevant
Analytical TAC Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 shall not apply Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 shall not apply
ANNEX VI
Versions
Cited by
- Council Regulation (EU) 2015/960 of 19 June 2015 amending Regulation (EU) 2015/104 as regards certain fishing opportunities Regulation · Grade B
Council Regulation (EU) 2015/104 has been amended by Council Regulation (EU) 2015/523, with the aim of reducing the impact of recreational fisheries on fishing mortality.
- Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/1316 of 30 July 2015 derogating from Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98, as regards the minimum conservation reference size for sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax) Regulation · Grade B
By Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/111, based on Article 12 of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013, the Commission has adopted urgent measures to reduce the fishing mortality caused by pelagic vessels targeting spawning aggregations of sea bass. A restrictive limit has been introduced by Council Regulation (EU) 2015/523 to reduce the mortality from recreational anglers. Scientific advice has indicated that a combination of limiting the catches and an increase in the minimum conservation reference size would be more effective in reducing the fishing mortality.