Corrigendum to Council Regulation (EC) No 1966/2006 of 21 December 2006 on electronic recording and reporting of fishing activities and on means of remote sensing ( OJ L 409, 30.12.2006 )
Date: 2007-02-08
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: common fisheries policy, data transmission, disclosure of information, fishery management, fishing controls, fishing regulations, remote sensing

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CORRIGENDA

Corrigendum to Council Regulation (EC) No 1966/2006 of 21 December 2006 on electronic
recording and reporting of fishing activities and on means of remote sensing

(Official Journal of the European Union L 409 of 30 December 2006)

Regulation (EC) No 1966/2006 should read as follows:

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1966/2006

of 21 December 2006

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

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

the presence of vessels in a given area. The combination of
all these means increases the accuracy of the information.

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu-
nity, 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) Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 (1) establishes a
framework designed to ensure the conservation and the
sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the
Common Fisheries Policy.

(2) 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.

(3)

Therefore, in order to soundly manage fishing opportu-
nities 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,
transports and sales, while control on
transhipments,
fishing effort is mainly carried out by collecting informa-
tion on the characteristics of the vessel, time spent on
fishing and gears used. Furthermore,
remote control
technologies enable fisheries control authorities to monitor

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

(4) Articles 22(1) and 23(3) of Regulation (EC) 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.

(5)

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.

(6) Article 6 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 of
12 October 1993 establishing a control system applicable
to the Common Fisheries Policy (2) foresees that the masters
of Community fishing vessels shall keep a logbook of their
operations.

(7) Article 22 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 stipulates that
fisheries products shall only be sold from a fishing vessel to
registered buyers or at registered auctions.

(8) Article 9 of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 foresees that
auction centres or other bodies or persons authorised by
Member States which are responsible for the first marketing
of fishery products shall, upon first sale, submit a sales note
to the competent authorities in whose territory the first
marketing takes place.

(2) 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).

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(9) Article 8 of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 foresees that the
master of each Community fishing vessel having an overall
length equal to, or more than, 10 m, or his representative,
shall after each trip and within 48 hours of landing submit
a declaration to the competent authorities of the Member
State where the landing takes place.

(18) 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
implementing powers
the exercise of
conferred on the Commission (2),

for

(10) Article 9 of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 also foresees that
where the first marketing of fisheries products does not
take place in the Member State where the products have
been landed, the Member State responsible for monitoring
the first marketing shall ensure that a copy of the sales note
is submitted to the authorities responsible for monitoring
the landing of the products concerned as soon as possible.

(11) Article 19 of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 requires
Member States to create computerised databases and to
establish a validation system comprising in particular cross-
checks and verification of data.

a

that

take-over declaration which is

(12) Article 9 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 also
foresees
the
responsibility of the holder of this declaration shall be
submitted to the competent authorities when the products
are not offered for sale or are intended for sale at a later
date.

(13) Remote sensing should only be used where there is clear
evidence of a cost benefit in relation to the use only of
traditional control means such as fishery patrol vessels and
aircraft in the detection of fishing vessels operating illegally.

(14) Conditions under which electronic recording and reporting,
as well as means of remote sensing, are to be used for
control purpose should therefore be established.

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Electronic recording and reporting

1. 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 and a transhipment
declaration as defined in the relevant Community legislation, and
shall send it by electronic means to the competent authority of
the Flag State.

2. The master of a Community fishing vessel or his
representative shall record by electronic means information
relating to fishing activities, which is required to be recorded in a
landing declaration as defined in the relevant Community
legislation, and shall send it by electronic means
to the
competent authority of the Flag State.

3. The first sales note and, where appropriate,
take-over
declaration shall be electronically recorded and transmitted to
the competent authorities in whose territory the first marketing
takes place by a registered buyer, a registered auction or other
entity or person authorised by Member States
that are
responsible for the first sale of fishery products.

4. Member States shall have the necessary administrative and
technical structures enabling them to receive, treat, cross-check
and transmit, by electronic means, the information contained, at
a minimum, in the logbook, transhipment declaration, landing
declaration, sales note and take-over declaration referred to in
paragraphs 1, 2 and 3.

(15) The formats which national competent authorities will use
to exchange information for control and inspection
purposes should be defined in detailed implementing rules.

Article 2

Periodicity and authenticity of data

(16) A Member State should be free to decide on the formats for
transmission of data used by vessels flying its flag.

1. The master of the fishing vessel shall transmit relevant
logbook data at least once a day. He shall also send such data at
the request of the competent authority of the Flag State. He shall
in any event transmit the relevant logbook data after the last
fishing operation has been completed and before entering into
port.

(17)

Investments related to implementation of control technol-
ogies are eligible under the framework of the Council
Regulation (EC) No 861/2006 of 22 May 2006 establishing
Community financial measures for the implementation of
the common fisheries policy and in the area of the Law of
the Sea (1).

(1) OJ L 160, 14.6.2006, p. 1.

Logbook, transhipment declaration and landing declaration
2.
data recorded by the competent authority of the Flag State shall
be deemed authentic under conditions established under national
law.

(2) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. Decision as amended by Decision 2006/

512/EC (OJ L 200, 22.7.2006, p. 11).

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First sales note and take-over declaration information and
3.
data recorded by the competent authority of a Member State
shall be deemed authentic under conditions established under
national law.

Article 3

Phasing in

1. The obligation to electronically record and transmit the data
mentioned in Article 1 paragraphs 1 and 2 shall apply to masters
of fishing vessels exceeding 24 m length overall within 24
months of the entry into force of the implementing rules referred
to in Article 5 and to masters of fishing vessels exceeding 15 m
length overall within 42 months of entry into force of the
implementing rules.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, a Member
State may oblige or authorise, as of the date falling 12 months
after the entry into force of the implementing rules referred to in
Article 5, masters of fishing vessels referred to in paragraph 1
and of 15 m or less length overall flying its flag to electronically
record and transmit the data mentioned in Article 1 paragraphs
1 and 2.

3. The competent authorities of a Coastal Member State shall
accept electronic reports received from the Flag Member State
containing the data from fishing vessels referred to in paragraph
2.

4. The obligation to electronically record and transmit sales
notes and, where appropriate, take-over declarations shall apply
from 1 January 2009 to registered buyers, registered auctions, or
other entities or persons authorised by Member States that are
responsible for the first sale of fishery products with an annual
financial turnover in first sales of fishery products in excess of
EUR 400 000.

Article 4

Remote sensing

As from 1 January 2009 and where there is clear evidence of a
cost benefit in relation to the traditional control means in the
detection of fishing vessels operating illegally, Member States
shall ensure that their Fisheries Monitoring Centres possess the
technical capacity allowing them to match the positions derived
by remotely sensed images sent to earth by satellites or other
systems with the data received by the vessel
equivalent

monitoring system, in order to assess the presence of fishing
vessels in a given area.

Article 5

Detailed rules

Detailed rules for the implementation of this Regulation shall be
adopted in accordance with the procedure referred to Article 30
(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002. These rules shall lay down
in particular:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

the conditions under which national competent authorities
will exchange information for control and inspection
purposes while ensuring confidentiality and ensuring that
coastal Member States can access this information;

the content of the messages to be transmitted;

the formats which national competent authorities will use
to exchange information for control and inspection
purposes;

the conditions for the recording and submission of sales
note and takeover declaration data;

provisions that allow a Member State to extend the
electronic reporting obligation to fishing vessels as foreseen
in Article 3(2);

exemptions from the requirements to submit electronic
landing declarations and conditions and notification
requirements to inform the Coastal state of such exemp-
tions;

exemptions, in order to reduce the administrative burden
on operators, from certain control provisions in Commu-
nity rules for fishing vessels that electronically record and
transmit the information referred to in Article 1 (1) and (2);

provisions for recording and transmitting data mentioned
in Article 1 in the case of technical failure.

Article 6

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day
following 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, 21 December 2006.

For the Council

The President

J. KORKEAOJA