Council Regulation (EC) No 809/2007 of 28 June 2007 amending Regulations (EC) No 894/97, (EC) No 812/2004 and (EC) No 2187/2005 as concerns drift nets
Date: 2007-06-28
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: conservation of fish stocks, conservation of resources, fishing net, protection of animal life, technical regulations

12.7.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 182/1

(Acts adopted under the EC Treaty/Euratom Treaty whose publication is obligatory)

I

REGULATIONS

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 809/2007

of 28 June 2007

amending Regulations (EC) No 894/97, (EC) No 812/2004 and (EC) No 2187/2005 as concerns drift
nets

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

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

establishing the European

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

Council Regulation (EC) No 894/97 of 29 April 1997
laying down certain technical measures for the conser-
vation of fishery resources (1) establishes a management
framework for
fishery resources
the conservation of
through technical measures in the form of a general
overall
length limitation of drift nets to maximum 2,5
km, as well as a prohibition to use or keep on board drift
nets intended for the capture of certain species. This
prohibition applies to all Community fishing vessels
with the exception of those operating in the Baltic Sea,
the Belts and the Øresund.

Council Regulation (EC) No 812/2004 of 26 April 2004
laying down measures concerning incidental catches of
cetaceans in fisheries (2) sets out requirements concerning
the use of acoustic deterrent devices and the monitoring
incidental catches of cetaceans in certain drift net
of
fisheries.

(1) OJ L 132, 23.5.1997, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1239/98 (OJ L 171, 17.6.1998, p. 1).

(2) OJ L 150, 30.4.2004, p. 12.

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

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
Øresund (3) sets out the restrictions and conditions on
the use drift nets in this regulated area.

Those Regulations do not however contain a definition
of drift nets. For reasons of clarity and in order to
facilitate uniformity in the practice of monitoring
between Member States,
it is necessary to introduce a
uniform definition of drift nets in all those three acts.

The establishment of a definition of drift nets does not
expand the field of application of the restrictions and
conditions on the use of drift nets implemented in
Community law.

Regulations (EC) No 894/97, (EC) No 812/2004 and (EC)
No
amended
accordingly,

2187/2005

therefore

should

be

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 894/97 shall be replaced by
the following:

‘Article 11

“Drift net” means: any gillnet held on the sea surface or
1.
at a certain distance below it by floating devices, drifting with
the current, either independently or with the boat to which it
may be attached. It may be equipped with devices aiming to
stabilise the net or to limit its drift.

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

L 182/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

12.7.2007

No vessel may keep on board, or use for fishing, one or
2.
more drift nets whose individual or total length is more than
2,5 kilometres.’

Article 3

In Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 2187/2005, the following
point shall be added:

Article 2

In Regulation (EC) No 812/2004 the following Article shall be
inserted:

‘Article 1a

Definitions
“Drift net” means: any gillnet held on the sea surface or at a
certain distance below it by floating devices, drifting with the
current, either independently or with the boat to which it
may be attached. It may be equipped with devices aiming
to stabilise the net or to limit its drift.’

‘(o)

“Drift net” means: any gillnet held on the sea surface or
at a certain distance below it by floating devices, drifting
with the current, either independently or with the boat
to which it may be attached. It may be equipped with
devices aiming to stabilise the net or to limit its drift.’

Article 4

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 Luxembourg, 28 June 2007.

For the Council
The President

S. GABRIEL