EN Official Journal of the European Union L 186/6

COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2017/1345

of 18 July 2017

operating deductions from fishing quotas available for certain stocks in 2017 on account of overfishing in the previous years

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 Union 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 105(1), (2) and (3) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Fishing quotas for the year 2016 have been established by: — Council Regulation (EU) No 1367/2014 (2), — Council Regulation (EU) 2015/2072 (3), — Council Regulation (EU) 2016/72 (4), and — Council Regulation (EU) 2016/73 (5).

(2) Fishing quotas for the year 2017 have been established by: — Council Regulation (EU) 2016/1903 (6), — Council Regulation (EU) 2016/2285 (7), — Council Regulation (EU) 2016/2372 (8), and — Council Regulation (EU) 2017/127 (9).

(3) According to Article 105(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009, when the Commission has established that a Member State has exceeded the fishing quotas which have been allocated to it, the Commission is to operate deductions from future fishing quotas of that Member State.

(4) Article 105(2) and (3) of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 provides that such deductions have to be operated in the following year or years by applying the respective multiplying factors as set out therein.

(5) Certain Member States have exceeded their fishing quotas for the year 2016. It is therefore appropriate to operate deductions on the fishing quotas allocated to them in 2017 and, where relevant, in subsequent years, for the overfished stocks.

(6) Commission Implementing Regulations (EU) 2016/2226 (10) and (EU) 2017/162 (11) have provided for deductions from fishing quotas for certain countries and species for 2016. However, for certain Member States, the deductions to be applied for some species were higher than the respective quotas available in 2016 and could therefore not be operated entirely in that year. To ensure that in such cases the full amount for the respective stocks be deducted, the remaining quantities should be taken into account when establishing deductions for 2017 and, where appropriate, from subsequent quotas.

(7) In the framework of Article 3(3) of Council Regulation (EC) No 847/96 (12), by letter dated 16 November 2016, Belgium requested Commission's permission to land additional quantities of turbot and brill in Union waters of IIa and IV (T/B/2AC4-C) within the limits of 10 % of the quota. The additional quantities granted in 2016 under that procedure should be considered as exceeding permitted landings for the purpose of the deductions envisaged in Article 105 of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009.

(8) Deductions from fishing quotas, as provided for by this Regulation, should apply without prejudice to deductions applicable to 2017 quotas pursuant to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 185/2013 (13).

(9) Since quotas are expressed in tonnes, overfishing involving quantities of less than 1 tonne should not be considered,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

1. The fishing quotas fixed in Regulations (EU) 2016/1903, (EU) 2016/2285, (EU) 2016/2372 and (EU) 2017/127 for the year 2017 shall be reduced as set out in the Annex to this Regulation.

2. Paragraph 1 shall apply without prejudice to deductions provided for in Implementing Regulation (EU) No 185/2013.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 18 July 2017. For the Commission The President Jean-Claude JUNCKER

(1) OJ L 343, 22.12.2009, p. 1.

(2) Council Regulation (EU) No 1367/2014 of 15 December 2014 fixing for 2015 and 2016 the fishing opportunities for Union fishing vessels for certain deep-sea fish stocks (OJ L 366, 20.12.2014, p. 1).

(3) Council Regulation (EU) 2015/2072 of 17 November 2015 fixing for 2016 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea and amending Regulations (EU) No 1221/2014 and (EU) 2015/104 (OJ L 302, 19.11.2015, p. 1).

(4) Council Regulation (EU) 2016/72 of 22 January 2016 fixing for 2016 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, applicable in Union waters and, for Union fishing vessels, in certain non-Union waters, and amending Regulation (EU) 2015/104 (OJ L 22, 28.1.2016, p. 1).

(5) Council Regulation (EU) 2016/73 of 18 January 2016 fixing for 2016 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks in the Black Sea (OJ L 16, 23.1.2016, p. 1).

(6) Council Regulation (EU) 2016/1903 of 28 October 2016 fixing for 2017 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea and amending Regulation (EU) 2016/72 (OJ L 295, 29.10.2016, p. 1).

(7) Council Regulation (EU) 2016/2285 of 12 December 2016 fixing for 2017 and 2018 the fishing opportunities for Union fishing vessels for certain deep-sea fish stocks and amending Council Regulation (EU) 2016/72 (OJ L 344, 17.12.2016, p. 32).

(8) Council Regulation (EU) 2016/2372 of 19 December 2016 fixing for 2017 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks in the Black Sea (OJ L 352, 23.12.2016, p. 26).

(9) Council Regulation (EU) 2017/127 of 20 January 2017 fixing for 2017 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks, applicable in Union waters and, for Union fishing vessels, in certain non-Union waters (OJ L 24, 28.1.2017, p. 1).

(10) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/2226 of 9 December 2016 operating deductions from fishing quotas available for certain stocks in 2016 on account of overfishing in the previous years (OJ L 336, 10.12.2016, p. 28).

(11) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/162 of 31 January 2017 operating deductions from fishing quotas available for certain stocks in 2016 on account of overfishing of other stocks in the previous years and amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/2226 operating deductions from fishing quotas available for certain stocks in 2016 on account of overfishing in the previous years (OJ L 27, 1.2.2017, p. 101).

(12) Council Regulation (EC) No 847/96 of 6 May 1996 introducing additional conditions for year-to-year management of TACs and quotas (OJ L 115, 9.5.1996, p. 3).

(13) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 185/2013 of 5 March 2013 providing for deductions from certain fishing quotas allocated to Spain in 2013 and subsequent years on account of overfishing of a certain mackerel quota in 2009 (OJ L 62, 6.3.2013, p. 1).