Council Regulation (EC) No 1404/2007 of 26 November 2007 fixing the fishing opportunities and associated conditions for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea for 2008
Date: 2007-11-26
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: Baltic Sea, authorised catch, catch quota, fishery management, fishery resources, fishing rights

30.11.2007

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Official Journal of the European Union

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

I

REGULATIONS

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1404/2007

of 26 November 2007

fixing the fishing opportunities and associated conditions for certain fish stocks and groups of fish
stocks applicable in the Baltic Sea for 2008

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

to waters and resources and the sustainable pursuit of
fishing activities taking account of available scientific
the report prepared by the
advice and,
Scientific, Technical
for
Fisheries.

and Economic Committee

in particular,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 of 20
December 2002 on the conservation and sustainable exploi-
tation of
the common fisheries
policy (1), and in particular Article 20 thereof,

resources under

fisheries

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

conditions

additional

for

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1098/2007 of 18
September 2007, establishing a multiannual plan for the cod
stocks in the Baltic Sea and the fisheries exploiting those
stocks (3), and in particular Articles 5 and 8(3) 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

(1) OJ L 358, 31.12.2002, p. 59. Regulation as amended by Regulation

(EC) No 865/2007 (OJ L 192, 24.7.2007, p. 1).

(2) OJ L 115, 9.5.1996, p. 3.
(3) OJ L 248, 22.9.2007, p. 1.

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

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

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

and certain procedures

fishery
The principles
management need to be laid down at Community
level, so that Member States can ensure the management
of the vessels flying their flag.

for

Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 lays down
fishing
definitions of
opportunities.

relevance to the allocation of

In accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No
847/96,
to the various
measures referred to therein must be identified.

that are subject

the stocks

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(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 (1), Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2807/83
of 22 September 1983 laying down detailed rules for
recording information on Member States’ catches of
fish (2), Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 of 12
October 1993 establishing a control system applicable
to the common fisheries policy (3), Commission Regu-
lation (EC) No 2244/2003 of 18 December 2003
laying down detailed provisions regarding satellite-based
Vessel Monitoring Systems (4), Council Regulation (EEC)
No 2930/86 of 22 September 1986 defining character-
istics for fishing vessels (5), 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 (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 Sound (7) and Regulation
(EC) No 1098/2007.

(8)

in accordance with the Commission’s
It is appropriate,
declaration at the meeting of the Council on 11-12 June
2007, to take account of the efforts made by Member
States to adjust fleet capacities in the Baltic Sea in recent
years without compromising the overall objective of the
effort scheme in Regulation (EC) No 1098/2007.

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.

By way of derogation from paragraph 1, this Regulation
2.
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 Regu-
lation (EC) No 2371/2002, for the purposes of this Regulation
the following definitions shall apply:

(a)

the International Council
(ICES)
zones
No 3880/91;

are

as

for the Exploration of the Sea
(EEC)
in Regulation
defined

(9)

In order to contribute to the conservation of fish stocks,
certain supplementary measures on technical conditions
of fishing should be implemented in 2008,

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

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

(c)

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

CHAPTER I

SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS

Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation fixes fishing opportunities for the year 2008 for
certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks in the Baltic Sea
and the associated conditions under which such fishing oppor-
tunities may be used.

(1) OJ L 132, 21.5.1987, p. 9.
(2) OJ L 276, 10.10.1983, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1804/2005 (OJ L 290, 4.11.2005, p. 10).

(3) OJ L 261, 20.10.1993, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1967/2006 (OJ L 409, 30.12.2006, p. 11).

(4) OJ L 333, 20.12.2003, p. 17.
(5) 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).

(6) 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).

(7) OJ L 349, 31.12.2005, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation

(EC) No 809/2007 (OJ L 182, 12.7.2007, p. 1).

(d) ‘quota’ means a proportion of the TAC allocated to the

Community, a Member State or a third country;

(e)

‘day absent from port’ means any continuous period of 24
hours or part thereof during which the vessel is absent from
port.

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) No 847/96 are set out in Annex I to this
Regulation.

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Article 5

Special provisions on allocations

The allocation of catch limits among Member States, as set

1.
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;

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 applies shall not land catches that are
unsorted and that contain herring.

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

Article 7

Fishing effort limits

(d) quantities withheld in accordance with Article 4 of Regu-

lation (EC) No 847/96;

Fishing effort limits are set out in Annex II.

(e) deductions made pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EC)

No 847/96.

2.
For the purpose of withholding quotas to be transferred to
2009, 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

Fish from stocks for which catch limits are fixed shall only

1.
be retained on board or landed if:

(a)

the catches have been taken by vessels of a Member State
with a quota and that quota has not been exhausted; or

(b) 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.

Article 8

Transitional technical measures

Transitional technical measures are set out in Annex III.

CHAPTER III

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 9

Data transmission

When Member States send data to the Commission relating to
landings of quantities of stocks caught pursuant to Article 15(1)
of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93, 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 publi-
cation in the Official Journal of the European Union.

2.
All landings shall count against the quota or against the
Community share, except for catches made under paragraph
1(b).

It shall apply from 1 January 2008.

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

Done at Brussels, 26 November 2007.

For the Council
The President

J. SILVA

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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.

Within each area, fish stocks are referred to following the alphabetical order of the Latin names of the species. For the
purposes of these tables the codes used for the different species are as follows:

Scientific name

Clupea harengus

Gadus morhua

Platichthys flesus

Pleuronectes platessa

Psetta maxima

Salmo salar

Sprattus sprattus

Alpha-3 code

Common name

HER

COD

FLE

PLE

TUR

SAL

SPR

Herring

Cod

Flounder

Plaice

Turbot

Atlantic salmon

Sprat

Species:

Herring
Clupea harengus

Zone:

Subdivisions 22-24
HER/3B23.; HER/3C22.; HER/3D24.

Denmark
Germany
Finland
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

Species:

Finland
Sweden

EC

TAC

6 245
24 579
3
5 797
7 926

44 550

44 550

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.

Herring
Clupea harengus

Zone:

Subdivisions 30-31
HER/3D30.; HER/3D31.

71 344
15 676

87 020

87 020

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.

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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
Germany
Estonia
Finland
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

Species:

Estonia
Latvia

EC

TAC

3 358
890
17 148
33 472
4 232
4 456
38 027
51 047

152 630

Not relevant

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.

Herring
Clupea harengus

Zone:

Subdivision 28,1
HER/03D.RG

16 668
19 426

36 094

36 094

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:

EC waters of Subdivisions 25-32
COD/3D25.; COD/3D26.; COD/3D27.; COD/3D28.;
COD/3D29.; COD/3D30.; COD/3D31.; COD/3D32.

Denmark
Germany
Estonia
Finland
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

8 905
3 542
868
681
3 311
2 181
10 255
9 022

38 765

Not relevant

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.

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Species:

Cod
Gadus morhua

Zone:

EC waters of Subdivisions 22-24
COD/3B23.; COD/3C22.; COD/3D24.

Denmark
Germany
Estonia
Finland
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

Species:

Plaice
Pleuronectes platessa

Denmark
Germany
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

8 390
4 102
186
165
694
450
2 245
2 989

19 221

19 221

2 293
255
480
173

3 201

3 201

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.

Zone:

EC waters of IIIbcd
PLE/3B23.; PLE/3C22.; PLE/3D24.; PLE/3D25.; PLE/3D26.;
PLE/3D27.; PLE/3D28.; PLE/3D29.; PLE/3D30.;
PLE/3D31.; PLE/3D32.

Precautionary 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:

EC waters of IIIbcd excluding Subdivision 32
SAL/3B23.; SAL/3C22.; SAL/3D24.; SAL/3D25.;
SAL/3D26.; SAL/3D27.; SAL/3D28.; SAL/3D29.;
SAL/3D30.; SAL/3D31.

Denmark
Germany
Estonia
Finland
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

75 511 (1)
8 401 (1)
7 674 (1)
94 157 (1)
48 028 (1)
5 646 (1)
22 907 (1)
102 068 (1)

364 392 (1)

Not relevant

(1) Expressed by number of individual fish.

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.

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Species:

Estonia
Finland

EC

TAC

Atlantic salmon
Salmo salar

Zone:

Subdivision 32
SAL/3D32.

1 581 (1)
13 838 (1)

15 419 (1)

Not relevant

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.

Species:

Sprat
Sprattus sprattus

Zone:

EC waters of IIIbcd
SPR/3B23.; SPR/3C22.; SPR/3D24.; SPR/3D25.;
SPR/3D26.; SPR/3D27.; SPR/3D28.; SPR/3D29.;
SPR/3D30.; SPR/3D31.; SPR/3D32.

Denmark
Germany
Estonia
Finland
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Sweden

EC

TAC

44 833
28 403
52 060
23 469
62 877
22 745
133 435
86 670

454 492

Not relevant

Analytical TAC.
Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 does not apply.
Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.
Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 847/96 applies.

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ANNEX II

1.

Fishing effort limits

1.1. For vessels flying their flag, Member States shall ensure that fishing with trawls, Danish seines or similar gear of a
mesh size equal to or larger than 90 mm, with gillnets, entangling nets or trammel nets of a mesh size equal to or
larger than 90 mm, with bottom set lines, longlines except drifting lines, handlines and jigging equipment shall be
permitted for a maximum number of

(a) 223 days absent from port in subdivisions 22-24 with the exception of the period from 1 to 30 April when

Article 8 paragraph 1(a) of Regulation (EC) No 1098/2007 applies, and

(b) 178 days absent from port in subdivisions 25-27, 28.2 with the exception of the period from 1 July to 31

August when Article 8 paragraph 1(b) of Regulation (EC) No 1098/2007 applies.

1.2. The maximum number of days absent from port per year for which a vessel may be present within the two areas
defined in point 1.1 (a) and (b) fishing with the gears referred to in point 1.1 may not exceed the maximum number
of days allocated for one of the two areas.

1.3. Up to 4 additional days absent from port may be allocated to Member States by the Commission on the basis of
permanent cessations of fishing activities with any of the gears defined in Article 8 paragraph 1 of Regulation (EC)
No 1098/2007 that have taken place since 1 January 2005 in the areas concerned in accordance with Article 7 of
Regulation (EC) No 2792/1999 of 17 December 1999 laying down the detailed rules and arrangements regarding
Community structural assistance in the fisheries sector (1).

1.4. Member States wishing to benefit from the allocations described in point 1.3 shall submit a request to the
Commission with reports containing the details of permanent cessations of the fishing activities in question by
30 January 2008. On the basis of such a request the Commission may amend the number of days absent from port
defined in point 1.1 for that Member State in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 30(2) of
Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002.

(1) OJ L 337, 30.12.1999, p. 10. Regulation repealed by Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006 (OJ L 223, 15.8.2006, p. 1).

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ANNEX III

TRANSITIONAL TECHNICAL MEASURES

1.

Restrictions on fishing for flounder and turbot

1.1. The retention on board of the following species of fish which are caught within the geographical areas and during

the periods mentioned below shall be prohibited:

Species

Geographical area

Period

Flounder (Platichthys flesus)

Subdivisions 26 to 28, 29 south of
59°30′N
Subdivision 32

15 February to 15 May

15 February to 31 May

Turbot (Psetta maxima)

Subdivisions 25 to 26, 28 south of
56°50′N

1 June to 31 July

2.

By way of derogation from point 1, when fishing with trawls, Danish seines and similar gears with a mesh size
equal to or greater then 105 mm or with gillnets, entangling nets or trammel nets with a mesh size equal to or
greater than 100 mm, by-catches of flounder and turbot may be retained on board and landed within a limit of
10 % by live weight of the total catch retained on board and landed during the periods of prohibition referred to in
that point.