Proposal for a Council Regulation on electronic recording and reporting of fishing activities and on means of remote sensing . (presented by the Commission)
Date: 2004-10-28
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: data transmission, disclosure of information, fishery management, fishing regulations, information system, remote sensing

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 28.10.2004 
COM(2004)724 final 

2004/0252(CNS) 

. 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL REGULATION 

on electronic recording and reporting of fishing activities and on means of 
remote sensing 

. 

(presented by the Commission) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

The European Community is at the forefront in introducing modern technologies in order to 
improve  management  and  monitoring  of  fisheries  activities.  Since  1992  it  promoted  the 
introduction  of  the  satellite-based  vessel  monitoring  system  (VMS)  as  a  tool  to  efficiently 
control  its  fishing  fleet,  irrespective  of  where  it  is  operating,  and  third  country  fleets  when 
operating within Community waters. After a series of pilot projects, the fitting on board of a 
vessel localisation device became mandatory for certain categories of vessels. As of 1 January 
2005,  save  few  exceptions,  all  Community  vessels  greater  than  15  metres  in  length  overall 
will be subject to VMS and cannot fish without an operational satellite localisation device on 
board. 

A further step towards the utilisation of modern technologies is now proposed. The rational 
exploitation  of fisheries resources, which is one of the main  aims  of  the  Common  Fisheries 
Policy,  requires  accurate  and  timely  reporting  of  information  relating  to  fishing  activities, 
such as quantities of catches on board, species, time spent at fishing, the area where catches 
have  been  taken  and  the  gears  used.  This  essential  information  is  currently  collected  by  the 
masters of the fishing vessels by recording it with a pen on a paperbound logbook. The same 
procedure is used when catches are transhipped, landed, transported or sold. 

As  a  consequence,  in  order  to  be  gathered,  analysed  and  transmitted  to  the  authorities  in 
charge of managerial or control tasks, this information needs to be digitalised. This process is 
slow, costly and conducive to typing mistakes which can hinder the quality of the data. 

In  order  to  make  it  more  efficient,  accurate  and  less  expensive,  the  Commission  favours  an 
electronic  recording  and  reporting  system  which  will  replace  the  current  manual  and 
cumbersome process. It will be designed to alleviate the administrative burden on the masters 
and  the  main  actors  of  the  commercial  chain  and  dramatically  simplify  the  tasks  of  the 
national authorities.  

Pilot  projects  on  electronic  recording  and  reporting  of  information  relating  to  fisheries 
activities  have  been  carried  out  in  recent  years.  Some  have  already  been  conducted  with 
conclusive  results,  others  are  still  ongoing.  There  is  no  doubt  about  the  feasibility  of  the 
electronic recording of fishing activities. Specific software is already available on the market. 
What is necessary now is a legislative text laying down the minimal requirements. 

The setting of technical specifications, which are required in order to satisfy Community and 
third  countries  legislation,  is  the  aim  of  an  international  project  on  secured  and  harmonised 
electronic logbook. This project is currently being carried out and specifications will be made 
available  in  2005.  A  Commission  Regulation  will  amend  the  current  legislation  on  logbook 
and other recording requirements accordingly. 

With  a  view  to  facilitating  the  introduction  of  this  technology,  the  Community  may  grant 
financial  assistance  to  fishermen  as  well  as  to  national  authorities  under  the  framework  of 
Decision 2004/465/EC1, as it did in the past in order to promote the setting up of the vessel 
monitoring systems. 

1 

Council  Decision  on  a  Community  financial  contribution  towards  Member  States  fisheries  control 
programmes (JO L 157, 30.4.2004, p. 114). 

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Furthermore,  the  Commission  proposes  to  take advantage  of  the  Vessel  Monitoring  System 
(VMS)  in  order  to  track  fishing  vessels  operating  in  a  given  fishing  zone  which  may  be  in 
breach of national or Community legislation. Remotely sensed images may be used to detect 
such vessels. This technology is not new since it is already in use in other fields. Pilot projects 
focused on fishing activities have been carried out and they have proved to be successful. The 
objective  is  to  cross-check  the  status  of  fishing  vessels  detected,  thanks  to  this  technology 
(Vessel  Detection  System),  with  position  reports  from  VMS.  Fisheries  Monitoring  Centres 
may  wish  to  further  investigate  as  regards  those  vessels  which  do  not  transmit  position 
reports. 

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2004/0252(CNS) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL REGULATION 

on electronic recording and reporting of fishing activities and on means of 
remote sensing 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 
37 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

Council  Regulation (EC) N° 2371/20022 establishes a  framework  designed to  ensure 
the  conservation  and  the  sustainable  exploitation  of  fisheries  resources  under  the 
Common Fisheries Policy. 

Objectives  of  conservation  and  sustainable  exploitation  of  the  fisheries  resources  are 
achieved  through  conditions  governing  access  to  waters  and  resources,  namely  by 
limiting  catches  and  fishing  effort  and  by  adopting  technical  measures  related  to 
fishing techniques and gears and sizes of catches. 

Therefore,  in  order  to  soundly  manage  fishing  opportunities  and  in  order  to  achieve 
these  objectives,  there  is  a  need  to  monitor  fisheries  activities  through  the  most 
appropriate  means.  Control  on  quantities  caught  is  mainly  carried  out  by  collecting 
information on catches, landings, transhipments, transports and sales, while control on 
fishing effort is mainly carried out by collecting information on the characteristics of 
the  vessel,  time  spent  on  fishing  and  gears  used.  Furthermore,  remote  control 
technologies enable fisheries control authorities to monitor the presence of vessels in a 
given  area.  The  combination  of  all  these  means  increases  the  accuracy  of  the 
information. 

(4) 

Articles  22 (1) and 23 (3) of the Regulation No  2371/2002  respectively  provide  that 
the Council is to decide in 2004 on the obligation to electronically record and transmit 
relevant  information  relating  to  fishing  activities,  including  landing  or  transhipments 
of catches and sales note, and on the obligation to set up a means of remote sensing. 

2 

OJ L 358, 31.12.2002, p. 59. 

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(5) 

(6) 

(7) 

Pilot projects on electronic recording and reporting as well as on remote sensing have 
been carried out during recent years by Member States and other countries. They have 
proved to be valid and cost-effective. 

Conditions  under  which  electronic  recording  and  reporting  as  well  means  of  remote 
sensing to be used for control purpose should therefore be established; 

The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted 
in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the 
procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission3, 

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:  

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

1. 

Article 1 

Electronic recording and reporting 

The  master  of  a  Community  fishing  vessel  shall  record  by  electronic  means 
information relating to fishing activities, which he is required to record in a logbook 
by  Community  legislation,  and  shall  send  it  by  electronic  means  to  the  competent 
authority.  

The declaration of catches landed by a Community fishing vessel as well as the first 
sales note related to these catches shall be electronically recorded. 

Member States shall set up the administrative and technical structures enabling them 
to  receive,  treat,  cross-check  and  transmit,  by  electronic  means,  the  information 
contained in the logbook, landing declaration and sales note referred to in paragraphs 
1 and 2. 

Detailed  rules  for  the  implementation  of  paragraphs  1  and  2  may  be  adopted  in 
accordance  with  the  procedure  referred  to  in  Article  30  (2)  of  Regulation 
No  2371/2002.  These  rules  may  also  provide  exemptions  from  the  obligations  laid 
down in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, where such exemptions may be justified 
by the disproportionate burden they would impose on the operator compared with the 
economic importance of his activity. 

Article 2 

Remote sensing 

Member  States  shall  ensure  that  their  Fishery  Monitoring  centres  possess  the 
technical  structure  allowing  them  to  match,  in  real  time,  the  positions  derived  by 
remotely  sensed  images  sent  to  earth  by  satellites  with  the  Vessel  Monitoring 
System, in order to assess the presence of fishing vessels in a given area.  

3 

OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. 

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2. 

Detailed rules for the implementation of paragraph 1 of this Article may be adopted 
in  accordance  with  the  procedure  referred  to  Article  30  (2)  of  Regulation  (EC) 
No 2371/2002. 

Article 3 

Entry into force 

This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 January 2006. 

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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