COMMISSION DECISION
of 22 July 2008
establishing a specific control and inspection programme related to the cod stocks in the Kattegat, the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the eastern Channel, the waters west of Scotland and the Irish Sea
(notified under document number C(2008) 3633)
(2008/620/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 of 12 October 1993 establishing a control system applicable to the common fisheries policy (1), in particular Article 34c(1) thereof,
Whereas:
(1)
Council Regulation (EC) No 423/2004 of 26 February 2004 establishing measures for the recovery of cod stocks (2), establishes measures for the recovery of cod stocks in the Kattegat, the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the eastern Channel, the waters west of Scotland and the Irish Sea and rules on monitoring, control and surveillance of cod fisheries in those areas.
(2)
Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 of 20 December 2002 on the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the Common Fisheries Policy (3) provides for control activities by the Commission and Member States and for the cooperation between Member States to ensure compliance with the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy.
(3)
To ensure the success of the recovery measures for the cod stocks in the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the Kattegat, the west of Scotland, the eastern Channel and the Irish Sea, it is necessary to establish a specific control and inspection programme directed to the fisheries exploiting those stocks.
(4)
The specific control and inspection programme should be established for a period of three years. The results obtained by the application of the specific control and inspection programme should be periodically evaluated by the Member States concerned in cooperation with the Community Fisheries Control Agency (hereinafter referred to as CFCA) set up by Council Regulation (EC) No 768/2005 (4).
(5)
Joint inspection and surveillance activities should be carried out in accordance with joint deployment plans established by the CFCA.
(6)
The measures provided for in this Decision have been established in concert with the Member States concerned.
(7)
The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
Subject matter
This Decision establishes a specific control and inspection programme to ensure the harmonised implementation of the measures established by Regulation (EC) No 423/2004 for the recovery of cod stocks in the Kattegat, the North Sea, the Skagerrak, the eastern Channel, the waters west of Scotland and the Irish Sea.
Article 2
Scope
The specific control and inspection programme referred to in Article 1 shall apply for three years and shall cover:
(a)
fishing activities by vessels subject to effort limitations and associated conditions in the areas referred to in Article 1;
(b)
all related activities including the landing, weighing, marketing, transport and storage of fishery products and the recording of landing and sales.
Article 3
Definitions
For the purposes of this Decision, the definitions laid down in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 and Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 423/2004 shall apply.
Article 4
National control and inspection programmes
1. Belgium, Denmark, Germany, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom shall establish national control and inspection programmes, in conformity with the common rules set out in Annex I, as regards the activities listed in Article 2.
2. National control and inspection programmes shall contain all the data and specifications listed in Annex II.
3. The Member States referred to in paragraph 1 shall make available to the Commission, by 15 October 2008, their national control and inspection programme and the implementation schedule. The schedule shall include details as regards human and material resources allocated and the periods and zones where they are to be deployed.
4. Thereafter, the Member States referred to in paragraph 1 shall notify an updated implementation schedule to the Commission every year and no later than 15 days before the date of commencement of its implementation.
Article 5
Cooperation between Member States
All Member States shall cooperate with the Member States referred to in Article 4(1) for the implementation of the specific control and inspection programme.
Article 6
Member State surveillance and inspection activities
1. A Member State that intends to conduct surveillance and inspect fishing vessels in the waters under the jurisdiction of another Member State, in the framework of a Joint Deployment Plan (hereinafter referred to as JDP) established in accordance with Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 768/2005, shall notify its intentions to the contact point of the coastal Member State concerned, referred to in Article 3 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1042/2006 (5), and to the Community Fisheries Control Agency (hereinafter referred to as CFCA). The notification shall contain the following information:
(a)
type, name and call sign of the inspection vessels and inspection aircraft on the basis of the list referred to in Article 28(4) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002;
(b)
the areas, as referred to in Article 1, where the surveillance and inspection will be carried out;
(c)
the duration of the surveillance and inspection activities.
2. Surveillance and inspections shall be carried out in accordance with Annex I.
Article 7
Joint inspection and surveillance activities
The Member States referred to in Article 4(1) shall undertake joint inspection and surveillance activities in accordance with the joint deployment plan established by the CFCA on the basis of Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 768/2005.
Article 8
Information
The Member States referred to in Article 4(1) shall make available to the Commission by 31 January of each year the following information concerning the previous calendar year:
(a)
the inspection and surveillance tasks set out in Annex I;
(b)
the infringements, as referred to in Annex III, detected during that year, including for each infringement the flag of the vessel, the date and location of the inspection and the nature of the infringement; Member States shall indicate the nature of the infringement by references to the letter under which they are listed in Annex III;
(c)
the state of play concerning the follow-up of infringements, whether detected during that year or during previous years;
(d)
any relevant coordination and cooperation actions between Member States.
Article 9
Evaluation
1. Each of the Member States referred to in Article 4(1) shall, by 31 January of each year, draw up and send to the Commission and CFCA an evaluation report concerning the control and inspection activities carried out in the previous calendar year under the specific control and inspection programme laid down in this Decision and the national control and inspection programme referred to in Article 5.
2. The CFCA shall take into consideration the evaluation reports referred to in paragraph 1 in its annual assessment of the effectiveness of a Joint Deployment Plan as referred to in Article 14 of Regulation (EC) No 768/2005.
3. The Commission shall convene once a year a meeting of the Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture to evaluate compliance with the specific control and inspection programme and the national control and inspection programmes.
Article 10
Addressees
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 22 July 2008.