Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) amending for a second time Regulation (EC) No 66/98 laying down certain conservation and control measures applicable to fishing activities in the Antarctic
Date: 1999-05-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Antarctica, conservation of fish stocks, fishing area, fishing controls, fishing regulations

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES

Brussels, 27.05.1999
COM(1999) 255 final

Proposal for a

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)

amending for a second time Regulation (EC) No 66/98 laying down certain
conservation and control measures applicable to fishing activities in the
Antarctic

(presented by the Commission)

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

This proposal concerns the international obligations of the European Community with
regard to the conservation of Antarctic marine living resources.

At its annual meeting on 6 November 1998, the Commission for the Conservation of
Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) adopted conservation measures
applicable to the CCAMLR Convention area for the period 7 November 1998 to
30 November 1999. The purpose of
to incorporate these
recommendations into Community legislation. These measures include:

this proposal

is

–

–

–

the catch restrictions applicable to certain species,

the prohibition on directed fishing of certain species,

the reduction of incidental mortality of seabirds during longline fisheries.

These conservation measures will become binding from 9 May 1999 unless the
Contracting Parties raise any objections.

The Commission proposes that the Council adopt this Regulation.

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Proposal for a

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)

amending for a second time Regulation (EC) No 66/98 laying down certain
conservation and control measures applicable to fishing activities in the
Antarctic

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 66/98 of 18 December 19971 laying
down certain conservation and control measures applicable to fishing activities in the
Antarctic and repealing Regulation (EC) N° 2113/96, as modified by the Council
Regulation (EC) N° 2479/982, and in particular Article 21 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission3,

(1) Whereas Regulation (EC) N° 66/98 implements in Community Law the
conservation and control measures adopted by the Commission for the
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, hereinafter referred to as
the "CCAMLR";

(2) Whereas, at its annual meeting on 6 November 1998, the CCAMLR adopted
following advice from its Scientific Committee further conservation measures
in the CCAMLR convention area for the period from 7 November 1998 to 30
November 1999;

(3) Whereas these conservation measures will become binding as from 9 May

1999;

(4) Whereas the members of CCAMLR have agreed to apply the conservation
measures adopted on 6 November 1998, on a provisional basis, without
waiting for them to become binding, in view of the fact that some of the
conservation measures relate to fishing seasons commencing on or after 7
November 1998;

(5) Whereas the Community, as a Contracting Party to the Convention, is bound
to ensure that the measures adopted by the CCAMLR are applied to fishing
vessels flying the flag of a Member State with effect from the dates fixed;

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2

3

OJ L 6, 10.1.98, p.1.
OJ L 309, 19.11.98, p. 1
OJ

3

(6) Whereas Regulation (EC) No 66/98 should therefore be amended,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EC) No 66/98 is amended as follows:

1.

In Article 2

(a)

the following subparagraph shall be added to paragraph 1:

"This special fishing permit, or an authorised copy, must be carried by the
fishing vessel and be available for inspection at any time by a designated
CCAMLR inspector in the area defined in Article 1".

(b)

the following paragraph shall be added after paragraph 1 :

"1bis. Member States must ensure that each vessel flying their flag notifies
entry and exit of the Convention Area as well as movements between FAO
Antarctic subareas and divisions".

2.

Article 4 shall be amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 3, "6 November 1998" shall be replaced by "30 November
1999".

(b)

paragraph 4 shall be replaced by the following:

"4. Directed fishing of Dissostichus spp. in FAO Antarctic sub-area
48.5, 88.1, 88.2, 88.3 and FAO Antarctic division 58.4.1 shall be
prohibited from 7 November 1998 until 30 November 1999."

(c)

in paragraph 6, "7 November 1997 until 6 November 1998" shall be
replaced by "7 November 1998 until 30 November 1999".

(d)

paragraph 7 shall be replaced by the following

"7. Directed fishing of D. Mawsoni in FAO Antarctic sub-area 48.4 and
D. eleginoides in FAO Antarctic sub-area 58.7 shall be prohibited, except for
scientific research purposes in conformity with Article 17."

3.

In Article 5:

(a)

paragraph 2 shall be replaced by the following:

"2. The TAC of Dissostichus eleginoides is fixed at:

(a)

3 500 tonnes in FAO Antarctic sub-area 48.3 from 15 April
to 31 August 1999; or until the quantity is reached.

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(b)

28 tonnes in FAO Antarctic sub-area 48.4 from 15 April to
31 August 1999 until the quantity or the TAC specified in
(a) is reached whichever is sooner.

(c)

3 690 tonnes in FAO Antarctic division 58.5.2 from
7 November 1998 to 30 November 1999.

(d) The Community shares of the TACs of the new and
exploratory fisheries for Dissostichus eleginoides in the
Convention area as well as the allocation of that share
among the Member States are laid down in Annex V. These
fisheries shall be subject to the general conditions laid
down in the Appendix to Annex V.

Member States concerned shall confirm to the Commission
their intention to conduct the new or exploratory fisheries
in advance of their initiation."

(c)

in paragraph 3,
following:

the first subparagraph shall be replaced by the

"The TAC of Champsocephalus gunnari is fixed at 4 840 tonnes in FAO
Antarctic sub-area 48.3 from 7 November 1998 to 31 March 1999."

(d)

paragraph 4 shall be amended as follows:

the words "7 November 1997 to 6 November 1998" in the first and second
subparagraphs are replaced by "7 November 1998 to 30 November 1999".

(e)

paragraph 5 (iii) shall be replaced by the following:

"In all directed fishing in FAO Antarctic division 58.5.2 from 7 November
1998 to 30 November 1999:

–

–

the by-catch of Lepidonotothen squamifrons may not exceed 80 tonnes,

the by-catch of Channichthys rhinoceratus may not exceed 150 tonnes,

By-catches of all species of fish not referred to in the previous subparagraph
and for which no other catch restrictions apply may not exceed 50 tonnes in
FAO Antarctic division 58.5.2."

4.

Article 8 shall be amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 1(i), "1 April 1998" is replaced by "15 April 1999".

(b)

in paragraph 2(i), "31 July to 25 August 1998" is replaced by "31 July
to 31 August 1999" and "25 September 1998" is replaced by
"25 September 1999".

5.

In Article 11(1) and (2), all references to 1998 are replaced by references
to 1999.

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6.

Article 12 shall be amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 1:

(i)

(ii)

in point (a) the words "from 7 November 1997 until 6 November
1998" shall be replaced by "from 7 November 1998 until 30
November 1999" and the words "from 1 April to 31 August
1998" are replaced by "from 15 April to 31 August 1999";

in point (b), the words "from 7 November 1997 until 31 March
1998" shall be replaced by "from 7 November 1998 until 31
March 1999";

(iii)

a new point c shall be added:

"Champsocephalus gunnari in FAO Antarctic division 58.5.2. from
7 November 1998 until 30 November 1999".

7.

In Article 18 the following new paragraph shall be added before the existing
one:

"Annex VI fixes the rules for the Experimental Harvest Regime for the Crab
Fishery in FAO Antarctic sub-area 48.3 for the 1998/1999 and the 1999/2000
seasons and the authorized fishing areas".

8.

In Article 19:

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

in point (a) the words "from 7 November 1997 to 6 November 1998"
are replaced by the words "from 7 November 1998 to 30 November
1999".

in point (b), the words "from 1 April 1997 to 31 August 1998" are
replaced by "from 15 April 1998 to 31 August 1999".

in point (c) the words "from 7 November 1997 to 31 March 1998" are
replaced by the words "from 7 November 1998 to 31 March 1999".

in point (d), the words "from 7 November 1997 until 6 November
1998" are replaced by "from 7 November 1998 until 30 November
1999" .

9.

Annexes I and II will be inserted after Annex V.

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Article 2

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

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

Done at Brussels,

For the Council
The President

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ANNEX I

"ANNEX VI"

New and exploratory fisheries projects by Community vessels recommended by
CCAMLR for Dissostichus spp. in 1999 in the Convention Area.

Sub-Area/Division

Fishing Possibilities

Member State

Division §58.4.3 outside areas of
national jurisdiction and North of
60°S

Division §58.4.4 North of 60°S4

Sub-area §58.64

700 tonnes

France

143 tonnes
143 tonnes

733 tonnes

France
Spain

France

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In the event that another Contracting Party renounces to its intention to undertake a new or
exploratory fishery,
the Commission will inform the Member State(s) concerned of the
additional possibilities available.

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Appendix to ANNEX VI

General Measures applicable for New and Exploratory Longline Fisheries for
Dissostichus spp. in the Convention Area in the 1998/99 season

1.

2.

The new and exploratory fisheries may only be conducted by longline and the
fishing season shall be 15 April to 31 August 1999.

Fishing should take place over as large a geographical and bathymetric range
as possible to obtain the information necessary to determine fishery potential
and to avoid over-concentration of catch and effort. To this end, fishing in any
fine-scale rectangle5 shall cease when the reported catch reaches 100 tonnes
and that rectangle shall be closed to fishing for the remainder of the season.
Fishing in any fine-scale rectange shall be restricted to one vessel at any one
time.

3.

In order to give effect to paragraph 2 above:

(i)

(ii)

the precise geographic position of the mid-point between the start and
end of the longline shall be determined using appropriate means;

catch and effort
accordance with this regulation and notably Articles 7 to 12;

information for each species shall be reported in

(iii) CCAMLR shall notify Contracting Parties participating in these
fisheries when the total longline catch for Dissostichus eleginoides and
Dissositichus mawsoni combined in any fine-scale rectangle exceeds
100 tonnes.

The by-catch of any species in the new and exploratory fisheries other than
Dissostichus spp. in the Statistical Subareas and Divisions concerned shall be
limited to 50 tonnes.

The total number and weight of Dissostichus eleginoides and Dissostichus
mawsoni discarded, including those with the “jellymeat” condition, shall be
reported.

Each Community vessel participating in the new and exploratory fisheries for
Dissostichus spp. during the 1998/99 season shall have on board at least one
scientific observer, appointed in accordance with the CCAMLR Scheme of
International Scientific Observation, throughout all fishing activities within
the fishing season.

Data collected for the period up to 31 August 1999 shall be reported to
CCAMLR by 30 September 1999.

A fine-scale rectangle is defined as an area of 0.5° latitude by 1° longitude with respect to the
northwest corner of the Statistical Subarea or Division. The identification of each rectangle is
by the latitude of its northernmost boundary and the longitude of the boundary closest to 0°.

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4.

5.

6.

7.

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Data Collection Plan for New and Exploratory Longline Fisheries

1.

2.

All vessels will comply with conditions set by CCAMLR. These include
five-day catch and effort reporting system (51/XII) and monthly fine-scale
effort and biological data reporting system will be followed.

All data required by the CCAMLR Scientific Observers Manual for finfish
fisheries will be collected. These include:

(i)

haul-by-haul catch and catch per effort by species;

(ii)

haul-by-haul length frequency of common species;

(iii)

sex and gonad state of common species;

(iv)

diet and stomach fullness;

(v)

scales and/or otoliths for age determination;

(vi)

by-catch of fish and other organisms; and

(vii) observation on occurrence and incidental mortality of seabirds and

mammals in relation to fishing operations.

3.

Data specific to longline fisheries will be collected. These include:

(i)

number of fish lost at surface;

(ii)

number of hooks set;

(iii) bait type;

(iv)

baiting success (%);

(v)

hook type;

(vi)

setting, soak, and hauling times;

(vii) sea depth at each end of line on hauling; and

(viii) bottom type.

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ANNEX II
"ANNEX VII"

EXPERIMENTAL HARVEST REGIME FOR THE CRAB FISHERY IN FAO
ANTARCTIC SUB-AREA 48.3 FOR THE 1998/99 AND 1999/2000 SEASONS

The following measures apply to all crab fishing within FAO Antarctic sub-area 48.3
for the 1998/99 and 1999/2000 fishing seasons. Every vessel participating in the crab
fishery in sub-area 48.3 shall conduct fishing operations in accordance with an
experimental fishing regime as outlined below:

1.

2.

The experimental regime shall consist of at least two phases. Phase 1 shall be
conducted during the first season that a vessel participates in the experimental
harvest regime. Phase 2 and any additional phase shall be completed in the
next season of fishing.

Vessels shall conduct Phase 1 of the experimental regime at the start of their
first season of participation in the crab fishery. For the purposes of Phase 1,
the following conditions shall apply:

(i)

(ii)

Phase 1 shall be defined as a vessel’s first 200 000 pot hours of effort
at the start of its first fishing season;

every vessel conducting Phase 1 shall expend its first 200 000 pot
hours of effort within a total area delineated by twelve 0.5° latitude by
1° longitude blocks.

These blocks shall be numbered A to L. The appendix of Annex II
illustrates the blocks (Figure 1) and the geographic position is denoted
by the coordinates of the northeast corner of the block.

For each string, pot hours shall be calculated by taking the total
number of pots on the string and multiplying by the soak time (in
hours) for that string. Soak time shall be defined for each string as the
time between start of setting and start of hauling;

(iii) vessels shall not fish outside the area delineated by the twelve 0.5°

latitude by 1° longitude blocks prior to completing Phase 1;

(iv) during Phase 1, vessels shall not expend more than 30 000 pot hours in

any single 0.5° latitude by 1° longitude block;

(v)

(vi)

if a vessel returns to port before it has expended 200 000 pot hours in
Phase 1, the balance of remaining pot hours shall be expended before
the vessel can consider Phase 1 to be completed;

after completing 200 000 pot hours of experimental fishing, vessels
shall consider Phase 1 to be completed and commence fishing in a
normal fashion.

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3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

Normal
regulations set out in Articles 3 and 5(4), 6(2) and 8(2).

fishing operations shall be conducted in accordance with the

For the purpose of implementing normal fishing operations after Phase 1 of
the Ten-day catch and effort reporting
the experimental harvest regime,
system set out in 7(2) shall apply.

Vessels shall conduct Phase 2, and any additional phases, of the experimental
harvest regime at the start of their second season of participation in the crab
fishery.

If any vessel initiates Phase 1 of the experimental harvest regime during the
1998/99 or 1999/2000 fishing seasons, the CCAMLR Scientific Committee
and its Working Group on Fish Stock Assessment, shall advise the CCAMLR
on an appropriate experimental harvest strategy, Phase 2, for the following
fishing season. This advice shall include provisions for:

(i)

requiring each vessel
to expend approximately one month of
experimental fishing effort during its second season of participation in
the experimental harvest regime;

and

(ii)

a data collection and submission policy appropriate to the experimental
fishing strategy that is being recommended.

Data collected during the experimental harvest regime in both Phase 1 and
Phase 2 up to 30 June in any split-year shall be submitted to the CCAMLR by
31 August of the following split year.

Vessels that complete all phases of the experimental harvest regime shall not
be required to conduct experimental fishing in future seasons. However, these
vessels shall abide by the guidelines set for in Articles 3, 5(4), 6(2) and 8(2).

regime
Fishing vessels
independently (e.g. vessels may not cooperate to complete phases of the
experiment).

shall participate in the experimental harvest

Crabs captured during the experimental regime shall be considered part of the
prevailing TAC for
for 1998/99 and
1999/2000, experimental catches shall be considered part of the 1 600 tonnes
TAC outlined in Article 5(4 )].

fishing season [e.g.

the current

All vessels participating in the experimental harvest regime shall carry at least
one scientific observer on board during all fishing activities.

The experimental harvest regime shall be instituted for a period of two split-
years (1998/99 and 1999/2000), and the details of the regime may be revised
by the Commission during this period of time.

Fishing vessels that begin experimental fishing in the 1998/99 and 1999/2000
season must complete the regime during the 1999/2000 season.

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Appendix attached.

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Appendix to ANNEX VII

LOCATIONS OF FISHING AREAS FOR THE EXPERIMENTAL HARVEST

REGIME OF THE EXPLORATORY CRAB FISHERY

-53 AA

BB

CC

DD EE

FF GG

-53.5 M

-54

-54.5

N

R

-55 W

A

B

C

O

P

Q

S

X

T

Y

U

Z

D

F

J

V

E HH

G

H

K

II

I

L

-55.5

-41

-40

-39

-38

-37

-36

-35

-34

Figure 1:

Operations for Phase 1 of the experimental harvest regime for the crab
fishery in FAO Antarctic sub-area 48.3.

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