# Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1944Show full title

Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1944 of 28 October 2015 amending Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU establishing            a specific control and inspection programme for pelagic fisheries in Western Waters of the North East Atlantic         

        - Previous
        - Next

U.K.

# Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/1944                     

# of 28 October 2015

# amending Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU establishing a specific control and inspection programme for pelagic fisheries                        in Western Waters of the North East Atlantic                     

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 of 20 November 2009 establishing a Community control system for ensuring                           compliance with the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy, amending Regulations (EC) No 847/96, (EC) No 2371/2002, (EC) No                           811/2004, (EC) No 768/2005, (EC) No 2115/2005, (EC) No 2166/2005, (EC) No 388/2006, (EC) No 509/2007, (EC) No 676/2007, (EC)                           No 1098/2007, (EC) No 1300/2008, (EC) No 1342/2008 and repealing Regulations (EEC) No 2847/93, (EC) No 1627/94 and (EC) No                           1966/2006(1), and in particular Article 95 thereof,                        

Whereas:

(1)Commission Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU(2) establishes a specific control and inspection programme for pelagic fisheries in Western Waters of the North East Atlantic.

(2)Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council(3) establishes a landing obligation for pelagic fisheries in order to reduce the current high levels of unwanted catches and                              to gradually eliminate discards. Details for the implementation of the landing obligation are laid down in Commission Delegated                              Regulation (EU) No 1393/2014(4) establishing a discard plan for certain pelagic fisheries in north-western waters and in Commission Delegated Regulation                              (EU) No 1394/2014(5) establishing a discard plan for certain pelagic fisheries in south-western waters. Compliance with the landing obligation                              should be controlled and inspected. The small pelagic species named in Article 15(1)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 should                              therefore be included in the specific control and inspection programme in order to enable Member States concerned to undertake                              efficiently and effectively joint inspection and surveillance activities.

(3)Mackerel and herring are widely distributed migratory species. In order to harmonise the control and inspection procedures                              for mackerel and herring fisheries in the waters adjacent to Western Waters, it is appropriate to include ICES division IVa                              as defined in Regulation (EC) No 218/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council(6) in the specific control and inspection programme.

(4)It is appropriate to maintain the specific control and inspection programme till 31 December 2018 to ensure a level playing                              field during the introduction of the landing obligation.

(5)Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98(7) and in particular Title IIIa thereof establishes measures to reduce discarding. The specific control and inspection programme                              should ensure compliance with the prohibition of highgrading, the moving-on provisions and the prohibition on slipping.

(6)Pursuant to Commission Implementing Decisions 2013/305/EU(8) and 2013/328/EU(9) establishing a specific control and inspection programme for the Baltic Sea and the North Sea respectively Member States                              inform the Commission on an annual basis. The reporting concerning the specific control and inspection programme for pelagic                              fisheries in Western Waters should be done with the same frequency.

(7)During the Consultations between Norway, the Union and the Faroe Islands on the Management of Mackerel for 2015, the benchmarks                              for the inspection of landings of herring, mackerel and horse mackerel have been reduced significantly because from now on                              this is based on risk assessment, and their application has been extended to landings of blue whiting. The target benchmarks                              in Annex II of Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU should therefore be amended accordingly.

(8)The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

# Article 1U.K.

Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU is amended as follows:

The Title is replaced by the following:

**‘Commission Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU of 19 December 2012 establishing a specific control and inspection programme                                    for pelagic fisheries in Western Waters of the North East Atlantic and in the Northern North Sea’**

Article 1 is replaced by the following:

## ‘Article 1Subject matter

This Decision establishes a specific control and inspection programme applicable to the stocks of mackerel, herring, horse                                 mackerel, blue whiting, boarfish, anchovy, argentine, sardine and sprat in EU waters of ICES sub-areas V, VI, VII, VIII and                                 IX and in EU waters of CECAF 34.1.11 (hereafter referred to as “Western Waters”), as well as to mackerel and herring in EU                                 waters of ICES division IVa (hereafter referred to as “the Northern North Sea”).’                           

In Article 2, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

‘2.The specific control and inspection programme shall apply until 31 December 2018.’                           

In Article 3(2) point (b) is replaced by the following:

## ‘(b)reporting obligations applicable to fishing activities in Western Waters and in the Northern North Sea, in particular the                                    reliability of the information recorded and reported;’

In Article 3(2), point (c) is replaced by the following:

## ‘(c)the obligation to land all catches of species subject to the landing obligation pursuant to Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of                                    the European Parliament and of the Council(10), and the measures to reduce discarding provided for in Title IIIa of Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98(11)’

In Article 12, the following paragraph is added:

‘3.As from 2016 onwards, Member States shall communicate the information referred to in paragraph 1 on an annual basis, by the                                    31 January after each calendar year.’                           

Annex II is replaced by the text in the Annex to this Decision.

# Article 2U.K.

This Decision shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the *Official Journal of the European Union*.                  

Done at Brussels, 28 October 2015.

*For the Commission*                            

*The President*                            

Jean-Claude Juncker                            

## ANNEXU.K.

Annex II to Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU is replaced by the following:

### “ANNEX II**TARGET BENCHMARKS**

#### 1.**Level of inspections at sea (including aerial surveillance, where applicable)**U.K.

On a yearly basis, the following target benchmarks(12) shall be reached for the inspections at sea of fishing vessels engaged in the fishery of herring, mackerel, horse mackerel,                     anchovy and blue whiting in the area, in the case that inspections at sea are relevant in relation to the step in the fishery                     chain and are part of the risk management strategy:                  

#### 2.**Level of inspections ashore (including document based controls and inspections in ports or at first sale)**U.K.

On a yearly basis, the following target benchmarks(13) shall be reached for the inspections ashore (including document based controls and inspections in ports or at first sale)                     of fishing vessels and other operators engaged in the fishery of herring, mackerel, horse mackerel, anchovy and blue whiting                     in the area, in the case that inspections ashore are relevant in relation to the step in the fishery/marketing chain and are                     part of the risk management strategy.                  

Inspections made after landing or transhipment shall in particular be used as a complementary cross-checking mechanism to                     verify the reliability of the information recorded and reported on catches and landings.”                  

1

OJ L 343, 22.12.2009, p. 1.                           

2

Commission Implementing Decision 2012/807/EU of 19 December 2012 establishing a specific control and inspection programme                              for pelagic fisheries in Western Waters of the North East Atlantic (OJ L 350, 20.12.2012, p. 99).                           

3

Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy,                              amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1954/2003 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulations (EC) No 2371/2002 and                              (EC) No 639/2004 and Council Decision 2004/585/EC (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 22).                           

4

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1393/2014 of 20 October 2014 establishing a discard plan for certain pelagic fisheries                              in north-western waters (OJ L 370, 30.12.2014, p. 25).                           

5

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 1394/2014 of 20 October 2014 establishing a discard plan for certain pelagic fisheries                              in south-western waters (OJ L 370, 30.12.2014, p. 31).                           

6

Regulation (EC) No 218/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2009 on the submission of nominal catch                              statistics by Member States fishing in the north-east Atlantic (OJ L 87, 31.3.2009, p. 70).                           

7

Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98 of 30 March 1998 for the conservation of fishery resources through technical measures for                              the protection of juveniles of marine organisms (OJ L 125, 27.4.1998, p. 1).                           

8

Commission Implementing Decision 2013/305/EU of 21 June 2013 establishing a specific control and inspection programme for                              fisheries exploiting cod, herring, salmon and sprat in the Baltic Sea (OJ L 170, 22.6.2013, p. 66).                           

9

Commission Implementing Decision 2013/328/EU of 25 June 2013 establishing a specific control and inspection programme for                              fisheries exploiting cod, plaice and sole in the Kattegat, the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the eastern Channel, the waters west                              of Scotland and the Irish Sea (OJ L 175, 27.6.2013, p. 61).                           

10

Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy,                              amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1954/2003 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulations (EC) No 2371/2002 and                              (EC) No 639/2004 and Council Decision 2004/585/EC (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 22).                           

11

Council Regulation (EC) No 850/98 of 30 March 1998 for the conservation of fishery resources through technical measures for                              the protection of juveniles of marine organisms (OJ L 125, 27.4.1998, p. 1);’                           

12

For vessels spending less than 24 hours at sea per fishing trip, and according to the risk management strategy, the target                              benchmarks may be reduced by half.                           

13

For vessels landing less than 10 tons per landing, and according to the risk management strategy, the target benchmarks may                              be reduced by half.