EN Official Journal of the European Union L 16/184

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 52/2006

of 22 December 2005

fixing the fishing opportunities and associated conditions for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea for 2006

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 of 20 December 2002 on the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the Common Fisheries Policy (1), and in particular Article 20 thereof,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 847/96 of 6 May 1996 introducing additional conditions for year-to-year management of TACs and quotas (2), and in particular Article 2 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1) Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 requires the Council to adopt the measures necessary to ensure access to waters and resources and the sustainable pursuit of fishing activities, taking account of available scientific advice and, in particular, the report prepared by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries.

(2) Under Article 20 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002, it is incumbent upon the Council to establish fishing opportunity limits by fishery or group of fisheries and the allocation of these opportunities to Member States.

(3) In order to ensure effective management of the fishing opportunities, the specific conditions under which fishing operations are carried out should be established.

(4) The principles and certain procedures for fishery management need to be laid down at Community level, so that Member States can ensure the management of the vessels flying their flag.

(5) Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 lays down definitions of relevance for the allocation of fishing opportunities.

(6) In accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96, the stocks that are subject to the various measures referred to therein need to be identified.

(7) Fishing opportunities should be used in accordance with the Community legislation on the subject, and in particular with Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1381/87 of 20 May 1987 establishing detailed rules concerning the marking and documentation of fishing vessels (3), Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2807/83 of 22 September 1983 laying down detailed rules for recording information on Member States' catches of fish (4), Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 of 12 October 1993 establishing a control system applicable to the common fisheries policy (5), Commission Regulation (EC) No 2244/2003 of 18 December 2003 laying down detailed provisions regarding satellite-based Vessel Monitoring Systems (6), Council Regulation (EEC) No 2930/86 of 22 September 1986 defining characteristics for fishing vessels (7), Council Regulation (EEC) No 3880/91 of 17 December 1991 on the submission of nominal catch statistics by Member States fishing in the north-east Atlantic (8), and Council Regulation (EC) No 2187/2005 of 21 December 2005 for the conservation of fishery resources through technical measures in the Baltic Sea, the Belts and the Sound (9).

(8) In order to contribute to the conservation of fish stocks, certain supplementary measures on control and technical conditions of fishing should be implemented in 2006.

(9) In order to ensure the livelihood of Community fishermen and avoid endangering resources and any possible difficulty due to the lapsing of Regulation (EC) No 27/2005, it is important to open these fisheries on 1 January 2006. Given the urgency of the matter, it is imperative to grant an exception to the six-week period referred to in paragraph I(3) of the Protocol on the role of national Parliaments in the European Union, annexed to the Treaty on European Union and to the Treaties establishing the European Communities,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS

Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation fixes fishing opportunities for the year 2006 for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks in the Baltic Sea and the associated conditions under which such fishing opportunities may be used.

Article 2

Scope

1. This Regulation shall apply to Community fishing vessels (Community vessels) and fishing vessels flying the flag of, and registered in, third countries operating in the Baltic Sea.

2. By way of derogation from paragraph 1, this Regulation shall not apply to fishing operations conducted solely for the purpose of scientific investigations which are carried out with the permission and under the authority of the Member State concerned and of which the Commission and the Member State in whose waters the research is carried out have been informed in advance.

Article 3

Definitions

In addition to the definitions laid down in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002, for the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall apply:

(a) the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) zones shall be as defined in Regulation (EEC) No 3880/91;

(b) ‘Baltic Sea’ means ICES Divisions IIIb, IIIc and IIId;

(c) ‘total allowable catch (TAC)’ means the quantity that can be taken from each stock each year;

(d) ‘quota’ means a proportion of the TAC allocated to the Community, a Member State or a third country.

CHAPTER II

FISHING OPPORTUNITIES AND ASSOCIATED CONDITIONS

Article 4

Catch limits and allocations

The catch limits, the allocation of such limits among Member States and additional conditions in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) 847/96 are set out in Annex I to this Regulation.

Article 5

Special provisions on allocations

1. The allocation of catch limits among Member States as set out in Annex I shall be without prejudice to:

(a) exchanges made pursuant to Article 20(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002;

(b) reallocations made pursuant to Articles 21(4), 23(1) and 32(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93;

(c) additional landings allowed under Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96;

(d) quantities withheld in accordance with Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96;

(e) deductions made pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96.

2. For the purpose of withholding quotas to be transferred to 2007, Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 may apply, by way of derogation from that Regulation, to all stocks subject to analytical TAC.

Article 6

Conditions for catches and by-catches

1. Fish from stocks for which catch limits are fixed shall be retained on board or landed only if:

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

(b) the catches form part of a Community quota and that quota has not been exhausted, or

(c) species other than herring and sprat are mixed with other species, the catches have been taken with trawls, Danish seines or similar gears whose mesh size is less than 32 mm, and the catches are not sorted either on board or on landing.

2. All landings shall count against the respective quota, except for catches made under paragraph 1(c).

3. Where the quota for herring allocated to a Member State is exhausted, vessels flying the flag of that Member State, registered in the Community, and operating in the fisheries to which the relevant quota apply shall not land catches that are unsorted and that contain herring.

Article 7

Fishing effort limits

Fishing effort limits are set out in Annex II.

Article 8

Transitional technical and control measures

Transitional technical and control measures are set out in Annex III.

CHAPTER III

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 9

Data transmission

When, pursuant to Article 15(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93, Member States send data to the Commission relating to landings of quantities of stocks caught, they shall use the stock codes set out in Annex I to this Regulation.

Article 10

Entry into force

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

It shall apply from 1 January 2006.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 22 December 2005. For the Council The President B. BRADSHAW

(1) OJ L 358, 31.12.2002, p. 59.

(2) OJ L 115, 9.5.1996, p. 3.

(3) OJ L 132, 21.5.1987, p. 9.

(4) OJ L 276, 10.10.1983 p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1804/2005 (OJ L 290, 4.11.2005, p. 10).

(5) OJ L 261, 20.10.1993, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 768/2005 (OJ L 128, 21.5.2005, p. 1).

(6) OJ L 333, 20.12.2003, p. 17.

(7) OJ L 274, 25.9.1986, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No 3259/94 (OJ L 339, 29.12.1994, p. 11).

(8) OJ L 365, 31.12.1991, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 448/2005 (OJ L 74, 19.3.2005, p. 5).

(9) OJ L 349, 31.12.2005, p. 1.

ANNEX I Landings limits and associated conditions for year to-year management of catch limits applicable to Community vessels in areas where catch limits exist by species and by area The following tables set out the TACs and quotas (in tonnes live weight, except where otherwise specified) by stock, the allocation to the Member States and associated conditions for year-to-year management of the quotas. Species: Herring Clupea harengus Zone: Subdivisions 30-31 HER/3D30.; HER/3D31. Finland 75 099 Sweden 16 501 EC 91 600 TAC 91 600 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Herring Clupea harengus Zone: Subdivisions 22-24 HER/3B23.; HER/3C22.; HER/3D24. Denmark 6 658 Germany 26 207 Finland 3 Poland 6 181 Sweden 8 451 EC 47 500 TAC 47 500 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Herring Clupea harengus Zone: Subdivisions 25-27, 28.2, 29 and 32 HER/3D25.; HER/3D26.; HER/3D27.; HER/3D28.; HER/3D29.; HER/3D32. Denmark 2 548 Germany 676 Estonia 13 015 Finland 25 404 Latvia 3 212 Lithuania 3 382 Poland 28 861 Sweden 38 744 EC 115 842 TAC 128 000 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Herring Clupea harengus Zone: Subdivision 28.1 HER/03D.RG Estonia 18 472 Latvia 21 528 EC 40 000 TAC 40 000 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Cod Gadus morhua Zone: Subdivisions 25-32 (EC-waters) COD/3D25.; COD/3D26.; COD/3D27.; COD/3D28.; COD/3D29.; COD/3D30.; COD/3D31.; COD/3D32. Denmark 10 415 Germany 4 143 Estonia 1 015 Finland 797 Latvia 3 873 Lithuania 2 551 Poland 11 993 Sweden 10 552 EC 45 339 TAC 49 220 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not applyArticle 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Cod Gadus morhua Zone: Subdivisions 22 –24 (EC waters) COD/3B23.; COD/3C22.; COD/3D24. Denmark 12 395 Germany 6 061 Estonia 275 Finland 244 Latvia 1 026 Lithuania 665 Poland 3 317 Sweden 4 417 EC 28 400 TAC 28 400 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Plaice Pleuronectes platessa Zone: IIIbcd (EC waters) PLE/3B23.; PLE/3C22.; PLE/3D24.; PLE/3D25.; PLE/3D26.; PLE/3D27.; PLE/3D28.; PLE/3D29.; PLE/3D30.; PLE/3D31.; PLE/3D32 Denmark 2 698 Germany 300 Sweden 203 Poland 565 EC 3 766 TAC Not relevant Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Atlantic salmon Salmo salar Zone: IIIbcd (EC waters) excluding Subdivision 32 SAL/3B23.; SAL/3C22.; SAL/3D24.; SAL/3D25.; SAL/3D26.; SAL/3D27.; SAL/3D28.; SAL/3D29.; SAL/3D30.; SAL/3D31. Denmark 93 512 (1) Germany 10 404 (1) Estonia 9 504 (1) Finland 116 603 (1) Latvia 59 478 (1) Lithuania 6 992 (1) Poland 28 368 (1) Sweden 126 399 (1) EC 451 260 (1) TAC 460 000 (1) Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Atlantic salmon Salmo salar Zone: Subdivision 32 SAL/3D32. Estonia 1 581 (2) Finland 13 838 (2) EC 15 419 (2) TAC 17 000 (2) Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

Species: Sprat Sprattus sprattus Zone: IIIbcd (EC waters) SPR/3B23.; SPR/3C22.; SPR/3D24.; SPR/3D25.; SPR/3D26.; SPR/3D27.; SPR/3D28.; SPR/3D29.; SPR/3D30.; SPR/3D31.; SPR/3D32. Denmark 41 512 Germany 26 299 Estonia 48 204 Finland 21 730 Latvia 58 219 Lithuania 21 060 Poland 123 552 Sweden 80 250 EC 420 826 TAC 468 000 Analytical TAC.Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies. (1) Expressed by number of individual fish. (2) Expressed by number of individual fish.

ANNEX II FISHING EFFORT LIMITS 1. Fishing with trawls, seines or similar gears of a mesh size equal to or greater than 90 mm or with bottom set gillnets, entangling nets and trammel nets of a mesh size equal to or greater than 90 mm or with bottom set lines shall be prohibited: (a) from 15 March to 14 May in subdivisions 22-24, and (b) from 15 June to 14 September in subdivisions 25-27. 2. For vessels flying their flag, Member States shall ensure that fishing with trawls, seines or similar gears of a mesh size equal to or greater than 90 mm or with bottom set gillnets, entangling nets and trammel nets of a mesh size equal to or greater than 90 mm or with bottom set lines shall be prohibited for: (a) 30 calendar days in subdivisions 22-24 outside the period from 15 March to 14 May, and (b) 27 calendar days in subdivisions 25-27 outside the period from 15 June to 14 September. 3. At the request of the Commission, Member States shall provide a description of the system applied to ensure compliance with point 2. 4. By way of derogation from points 1 and 2, Community vessels with an overall length of less than 12 metres shall be permitted to retain on board and land up to 10 % cod by live weight when fishing with gillnets, entangling nets and/or trammel nets with a mesh size equal to or greater than 110 mm.