COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 3074/95

of 22 December 1995

fixing, for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, the total allowable catches for 1996 and certain conditions under which they may be fished

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3760/92 of 20 December 1992 establishing a Community system for fisheries and aquaculture (1), and in particular Article 8 (4) thereof,

Having regard to the 1985 Act of Accession, and in particular Article 161 thereof,

Having regard to the 1994 Act of Accession, and in particular Articles 121 and 122 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas Article 4 of Regulation (EEC) No 3760/92 requires the Council to formulate, in the light of the available scientific advice and, in particular, of the report prepared by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries, the measures necessary to ensure the rational and responsible exploitation of resources on a sustainable basis;

Whereas a management regime making full use of the new management possibilities given by Regulation (EEC) No 3760/92, and in particular the management of catch limitations on a pluriannual and multispecies basis, cannot yet be achieved, due to the need to put into force certain measures for the control of fisheries, to further develop the appropriate administrative framework for a system of limitation of fishing effort, and to enhance scientific knowledge; whereas, until such a management regime is consolidated, limitation of exploitation rates should be guaranteed by the current TAC system;

Whereas, under the terms of Article 8 (4) of Regulation (EEC) No 3760/92, it is incumbent upon the Council, in accordance with Article 4, to determine for each fishery or group of fisheries the total allowable catches (TAC); whereas fishing opportunities should by allocated to Member States in accordance with Article 8 (4) (ii) of that Regulation;

Whereas it is necessary to establish the principles and certain procedures of fishery management at Community level, so that Member States can ensure the management of the fleets under their flag or jurisdiction;

Whereas, in accordance with the procedure provided for in Article 2 of the Agreement on fisheries between the European Economic Community, of the one part, and the Government of Denmark and the Home Government of the Faeroes, of the other part (2), the Parties have consulted on their reciprocal fishing rights for 1996; whereas these consultations have been successfully concluded; whereas, as a result, it is possible to fix the TACs, the Community shares and the quotas for certain joint and autonomous stocks, of which part is allocated to the Faeroes;

Whereas, in accordance with the procedure provided in Articles 2 and 7 of the Fisheries Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway (3), the Community and Norway have held consultations concerning mutual fishing rights for 1996; whereas these consultations have been successfully concluded and therefore it is possible to fix the TACs, the Community shares and the quotas for joint stocks and, where necessary, for other stocks;

Whereas the Community has signed the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which contains principles and rules relating to the conservation and management of the living resources of the sea;

Whereas, in the framework of its wider international obligations, the Community participates in efforts to conserve fish stocks arising in international waters; whereas the extent to which such stocks are fished by vessels of the Community should be viewed in the light of overall fishing activity and the contribution made hitherto by the Community towards their conservation should be taken into account;

Whereas the International Baltic Sea Fishery Commission has recommended TACs for the stocks of cod, salmon, herring and sprat occurring in the waters of the Baltic Sea and the shares thereof for each Contracting Party;

Whereas, in the case of certain stocks fished mainly for reduction to meal and oil, it does not appear necessary to make quota allocations,

Whereas Article 161 of the 1985 Act of Accession fixes the share of the TACs allocated to Spain for certain stocks in certain zones and allocates flat-rate amounts of horse mackerel and blue whiting to Spain;

Whereas those flat-rate amounts of blue whiting must be divided among ICES subareas and divisions V b (EC zone), VI, VII and VIII a, b and d;

Whereas, in order to ensure effective management of these TACs, the specific conditions under which fishing operations occur should be established;

Whereas, in order to ensure a better exploitation of the quotas of herring, anchovy, hake, blue whiting, mackerel and megrim, transfers of a part of the quotas from the zone of allocation to adjacent zones should be allowed;

Whereas, in order to ensure a better exploitation of the haddock stocks in zones V b (EC zone), VI, XII and XIV, catches in zones V b and VI a should be limited;

Whereas massive catches of young flatfish are being taken in the southern North Sea in autumn; whereas protection should be given to these fish, in order to achieve a better exploitation;

Whereas the International Baltic Sea Fisheries Commission has recommended certain technical measures for resource conservation to be implemented by its Contracting Parties with effect from 1 January 1996;

Whereas, pursuant to Article 122 of the 1994 Act of Accession, the conditions under which allocations made in the framework of the Accession can be fished will remain identical to those applicable immediately prior to the entry into force of the 1994 Treaty of Accession,

Whereas improved economical utilization of certain stocks of herring requires them to be used for purposes other than direct human consumption; whereas the state of these stocks is such that, under appropriate management, there is no danger in implementing such a measure;

Whereas the management regime set out by Council Regulation (EC) No 2027/95 of 15 June 1995 establishing a system for the management of fishing effort relating to certain Community fishing areas and resources (1) requires the maintenance of the existing balances in fishing activities; whereas, in the case of certain stocks of horse mackerel, these balances can be kept by setting appropriate TACs and allocating them to the Member States concerned;

Whereas the economical effectiveness of the fishery for horse mackerel in zones VIII c and IX may be improved by the landing of small horse mackerel within limits compatible with the sustainability of the resource,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

This Regulation fixes for 1996, for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, total allowable catches (TACs) per stock or group of stocks, the share of these catches available to the Community, the allocation of that share among Member States and the specific conditions under which these stocks may be fished (2).

For the purposes of this Regulation, the Skagerrak is bounded on the west by a line drawn from the Hanstholm lighthouse to the Lindesnes lighthouse and on the south by a line drawn from the Skagen lighthouse to the Tistlarna lighthouse and from this point to the nearest point on the Swedish coast.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the Kattegat is bounded on the north by a line drawn from the Skagen lighthouse to the Tistlarna lighthouse and from this point to the nearest point on the Swedish coast and on the south by a line drawn from Hasenoere to Gnibens Spids, from Korshage to Spodsbjerg and from Gilbjerg Hoved to Kullen.

For the purposes of this Regulation, the North Sea shall comprise ICES subarea IV and that part of ICES division III a which is not covered by the definition of the Skagerrak given in this Article.

Article 2

TACs for stocks or groups of stocks to which Community rules apply and the share of these catches available to the Community are hereby fixed for 1996 as set out in the Annex.

Article 3

The allocation among the Member States of the share available to the Community of the TACs mentioned in Article 2 is fixed for 1996, in the form of fish quotas, in the Annex.

This allocation shall be without prejudice to exchanges made pursuant to Article 9 (1) of Regulation (EEC) No 3760/92 and reallocations made pursuant to Articles 21 (4), 23 (1) and 32 (2) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 of 12 October 1993 establishing a control system applicable to the common fisheries policy (1).

Article 4

As regards the herring stock of the North Sea and of the eastern English Channel, transfers of up to 50 % of the quotas may be effected from ICES divisions IV c and VII d to ICES division IV b.

As regards the hake stock in zones II a (EC zone) and IV (EC zone), Member States having a quota in this zone may, on exhaustion of this quota, make transfers from zones V b (EC zone), VI, VII, XII and XIV and from zones VIII a, b and d to zone II a (EC zone) and IV (EC zone).

However, such transfers must be notified in advance to the Commission.

Article 5

1. It shall be prohibited to retain on board or to land catches from stocks for which TACs or quotas are fixed unless:

(i) the catches have been taken by vessels of a Member State having a quota and that quota is not exhausted; or

(ii) the share of the TAC available to the Community (Community share) has not been allocated by quota among Member States and the Community share has not been exhausted; or

(iii) for all species other than herring and mackerel, they are mixed with other species and have been taken with nets whose mesh size is 32 mm or less in regions 1 and 2 or 40 mm or less in region 3 in accordance with Article 2 (1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 3094/86 of 7 October 1986 laying down certain technical measures for the conservation of fishery resources (2), and are not sorted either on board or on landing; or

(iv) for herring, they are within the limits of paragraph 2; or

(v) for mackerel, they are mixed with horse mackerel or pilchard and the mackerel does not exceed 10 % of the total weight of mackerel, horse mackerel and pilchard on board and the catches are not sorted, or

(vi) they are caught during the course of scientific investigations carried out under Regulation (EEC) No 3094/86.

All landings shall count against the quota, or, if the Community share has not been allocated between Member States by quotas, against the Community share, except for catches made under the provisions of (iii), (iv), (v) and (vi).

2. When fishing with nets whose mesh size is less than 32 mm in regions 1 and 2 other than the Skagerrak and the Kattegat and with nets whose mesh size is less than 40 mm in region 3, it shall be prohibited to retain on board catches of herring mixed with other species unless such catches are not sorted and unless the herring, if mixed with sprat only, does not exceed 10 % by weight of the total weight of herring and sprat combined.

When fishing with nets whose mesh size is less than 32 mm in regions 1 and 2 and with nets whose mesh size is less than 40 mm in region 3, it shall be prohibited to retain on board catches of herring mixed with other species unless such catches are not sorted and unless the herring, if mixed with other species whether or not including sprat, does not exceed 5 % by weight of the total weight of the herring and other species combined.

3. The determination of the percentage of by-catches and their disposal shall be made in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EEC) No 3094/86.

Article 6

By way of derogation from Regulation (EEC) No 2115/88 (1), directed fishing and landing of herring for purposes other than human consumption may be conducted, until 31 December 1996, by vessels flying the flag of Sweden or Finland and, in the Baltic Sea, on a pilot basis, by vessels flying the flag of another Member State, within the rules provided in Council Regulation (EEC) No 1866/86 of 12 June 1986 laying down certain technical measures for the conservation of fishery resources in the waters of the Baltic Sea, the Belts and the Sound (2).

Article 7

By way of derogation from the second subparagraph of paragraph (a) of Article 9 (3) of Regulation (EEC) No 3094/86, the period of enlargement of the area in which beam trawling is banned shall be from 1 January to 31 December 1996.

Article 8

By way of derogation from Article 5 of Regulation (EEC) No 1866/86, the area in which fishing for flatfish is permitted with mesh sizes equal to, or greater than, 90 mm is extended to the whole of subdivisions 22 and 24.

Article 9

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

It shall apply with effect from 1 January 1996.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 22 December 1995.

For the Council

The President

L. ATIENZA SERNA

(1) OJ No L 389, 31. 12. 1992, p. 1. Regulation as amended by the 1994 Act of Accession.

(2) OJ No L 226, 29. 8. 1980, p. 12.

(3) OJ No L 226, 29. 8 .1980, p. 48.

(1) OJ No L 199, 24. 8. 1995, p. 1.

(2) The definition of the ICES and Cecaf areas refereed to in this Regulation is given in Commission communications 85/C 347/05 (OJ No C 347, 31. 12. 1985, p. 14) and 85/C 335/02 (OJ No C 335, 24. 12. 1985, p. 2) respectively.

(1) OJ No L 261, 20. 10. 1993, p. 1 (2) OJ No L 288, 11. 10. 1986, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2251/95 (OJ No L 230, 27. 9. 1995, p. 11).

(1) OJ No L 247, 28. 9. 1977, p. 2.

(2) OJ No L 162, 18. 6. 1986, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2250/95 (OJ No L 230, 27. 9. 1995, p. 1).

ANNEX

TACs by stock and by area for 1996 and the allocation among the Member States of the share available to the Community (in tonnes live weight, except where otherwise specified). All catch limitations set out in this Annex are considered as quotas for the purposes of Article 5 of this Regulation, and shall, therefore, be submitted to the rules set out by Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93, in particular by Articles 14 and 15 thereof.

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