Commission Regulation (EC) No 1542/2007 of 20 December 2007 on landing and weighing procedures for herring, mackerel and horse mackerel
Date: 2007-12-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: administrative check, administrative formalities, disclosure of information, fishery management, fishing rights, fishing vessel, harbour installation, labelling, quantity of fish landed, sea fish, weights and measures

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COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1542/2007

of 20 December 2007

on landing and weighing procedures for herring, mackerel and horse mackerel

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

apply a system similar to the Community system for
landing and weighing of those species.

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

(5)

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 23 thereof,

resources under

fisheries

Whereas:

for

In order to improve the accuracy of the information
submitted in the logbook, it is necessary to provide for
certain exceptions to Commission Regulation (EEC) No
2807/83 of 22 September 1983 laying down detailed
recording information on Member States’
rules
catches of fish (3). For reasons of clarity, it is appropriate
to specify that certain requirements of this Regulation
apply in addition to those set out in Council Regulation
(EEC) No 2847/93 of 12 October 1993 establishing a
control
system applicable to the common fisheries
policy (4).

(1)

(2)

(3)

Article 23(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 provides
that detailed rules may be adopted concerning the setting
up of administrative and technical structures necessary
for
inspection and en-
control,
forcement as laid down in Article 23(3) thereof.

ensuring effective

It is appropriate, in order to ensure fair competition, to
and
landing
introduce harmonised procedures
weighing of herring, mackerel and horse mackerel.

for

for

landing

Procedures
and weighing have been
developed during 2002 to 2005 in close cooperation
between the Community, Norway and the
Faeroe
Islands and have been made part of Community legis-
transitional
lation during the development phase as
technical and control measures in Council Regulation
(EC) No 41/2007 of 21 December 2006 fixing for
2007 the fishing opportunities and associated conditions
for certain fish stocks and groups of
fish stocks,
applicable in community waters, and for Community
vessels, in waters where catch limitations are required (2).

(6)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
accordance with the opinion of
the Committee for
Fisheries and Aquaculture,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

Scope

This Regulation shall apply to landings in the Community by
Community and third country fishing vessels, or by Community
fishing vessels in third countries, of quantities per landing
exceeding 10 tonnes of herring (Clupea harengus), mackerel
(Trachurus spp.) or a
(Scomber scombrus) and horse mackerel
combination thereof, taken in

(a)

for herring in ICES (5) zones I, II, IIIa, IV, Vb, VI, and VII;

(4)

To allow an adequate control and inspection of landings
of herring, mackerel and horse mackerel by Community
vessels landings should only be allowed in designated
in third countries that
ports in the Community or

(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 15, 20.1.2007, p. 1. Regulation as

last amended by
Commission Regulation (EC) No 898/2007 (OJ L 196, 28.7.2007,
p. 22).

(b) for mackerel and horse mackerel in ICES zones IIa, IIIa, IV,

VI, and VII.

(3) 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).

(4) 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).

(5) International Council for the exploration of the Sea as defined in
Council Regulation (EEC) No 3880/91 of 17 December 1991 on the
submission of nominal catch statistics by Member States in the
north-east Atlantic (OJ L 365, 31.12.1991, p. 1 as last amended
by Regulation (EC) No 448/2005 (OJ L 74, 19.3.2005, p. 5).

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Article 2

Designated ports

(d) the zone where the catch was taken, as defined in Article

10(d) below.

1.
Landings of herring, mackerel or horse mackerel shall be
prohibited outside ports designated by Member States or third
countries that have concluded agreements with the Community
concerning the landings of such fish.

transmit

Each Member State concerned shall

2.
to the
Commission a list of designated ports in which landings of
herring, mackerel or horse mackerel may take place. It shall
also communicate to the Commission the inspection and
surveillance procedures applicable in those ports, including the
terms and conditions for recording and reporting the quantities
of any of such species within each landing.

Each Member State concerned shall

to the
3.
Commission, at
least 15 days before they enter into force,
any changes to the lists of ports and to the inspection and
surveillance procedures referred to in paragraph 2.

transmit

A Member State may provide for a shorter notification
2.
period than laid down in paragraph 1.
In such a case the
Member State shall inform the Commission 15 days before its
entry into force. The Commission and the Member States
respective
concerned shall put
websites.

information on their

this

Article 4

Discharge

The competent authorities of the Member State concerned shall
require that the discharge does not commence until authorised
to do so. If the discharge is interrupted, permission shall be
required before the discharge can recommence.

Article 5

Logbook

The Commission shall transmit the information referred
4.
to in paragraphs 2 and 3 as well as the list of ports designated
by third countries to all Member States concerned.

By way of derogation from the provisions of point 4.2 of
1.
Annex IV to Regulation (EEC) No 2807/83, the master of a
fishing vessel shall submit,
immediately upon arrival to port,
the relevant page or pages of the logbook to the competent
authority at the port of landing.

5.
The Commission and the Member State concerned shall
publish the list of designated ports and the changes thereto on
their websites.

CHAPTER II

LANDINGS IN THE COMMUNITY

Article 3

Entry into port

1.
The master of a fishing vessel or his agent shall inform the
competent authorities of the Member State in which the landing
is to be made, at least four hours in advance of entry to port of
landing concerned of the following:

(a)

the port he intends to enter, the name of the vessel and its
registration number;

(b) the estimated time of arrival at that port;

2.
The quantities retained on board, notified prior to landing
as referred to in Article 3(1)(c), shall be equal to the quantities
recorded in the logbook after its completion.

By way of derogation from the provisions of Article 5(2)
3.
of Regulation (EEC) No 2807/83,
the permitted margin of
tolerance in estimates recorded into the logbook of the quan-
tities in kilograms of fish retained on board of vessels shall
be 10 %.

Article 6

Weighing of fresh fish

All buyers purchasing fresh fish shall ensure that all quan-
1.
tities
received are weighed on systems approved by the
competent authorities. The weighing shall be carried out prior
to the fish being sorted, processed, held in storage and trans-
ported from the port of landing or resold. The figure resulting
from the weighing shall be used for the completion of landing
declarations, sales notes and takeover declarations.

(c)

the quantities in kilograms live weight by species retained
on board;

2. When determining the weight any deduction for water
shall not exceed 2 %.

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Article 7

Weighing of fresh fish after transport

The weighing system shall be approved, calibrated and

2.
sealed by the competent authorities.

1.
By way of derogation from Article 6(1) Member States
may permit fresh fish to be weighed after transport from the
port of landing provided that the fish has not been weighed on
landing and is transported to a destination on the territory of
the Member State no more than 100 kilometres from the port
of landing.

2. Weighing of fresh fish after transport, as referred to in
paragraph 1, may only be permitted if:

(a)

the tanker in which the fish is transported is accompanied
by an inspector from the place of landing to the place
where the fish is weighed, or

(b) approval is given by the competent authorities at the place

of landing to transport the fish.

The party weighing the fish shall for each weighing system
3.
keep a bound, paginated logbook (weighing logbook) indicating:

(a)

the name and registration number of the vessel from which
the fish has been landed;

(b) the identity number of the tankers in cases where fish has
been transported from the port of landing before weighing
in accordance with Article 7. Each tanker load shall be
weighed and recorded separately;

(c)

the species of fish;

(d) the weight of each landing;

The approval referred to in paragraph 2(b) shall be subject

3.
to the following conditions:

(e)

the date and time of the beginning and end of the weighing.

(a)

immediately prior to the tanker leaving the port of landing,
the buyer or his agent must provide to the competent
authorities a written declaration giving the species of the
fish and name of
from which it has been
discharged, the unique identity number of the tanker and
details of the destination where the fish will be weighed; the
declaration must include the date and time as well as the
estimated time of arrival of the tanker at the destination;

the vessel

4. Where the weighing is carried out on a conveyor belt
system a visible counter shall be fitted that records the cumu-
lative total of the weight. The reading of the counter at the
the weighing as well as the cumulative total
beginning of
shall be recorded in the weighing logbook. All use of
the
system shall be recorded in the weighing logbook.

Article 10

Labelling of frozen fish

(b) a copy of the declaration provided for in point (a) must be
kept by the driver during the transport of the fish and
handed over to the receiver of the fish at the destination.

Vessels shall only be permitted to land frozen fish that has been
identified with a clearly legible label or stamp. The label or
stamp, which shall be placed on each box or block of frozen
fish, shall indicate the following:

Article 8

Publicly operated weighing facilities for fresh fish

In cases where publicly operated weighing facilities are used the
party weighing the fish shall issue to the buyer a weighing slip
indicating the date and time of the weighing and the identity
number of the tanker. A copy of the weighing slip shall be
attached to the sales note or takeover declaration.

(a) name or registration number of the vessel which caught the

fish;

(b) species;

(c) date of production;

Article 9

Privately operated weighing facilities for fresh fish

In cases where privately operated weighing facilities are

1.
used, the provisions of this Article shall apply.

(d) zone where the catch was taken; the zone shall refer to the
sub-area and division or sub-division in which catch limits
apply pursuant to Community law.

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Article 11

Weighing of frozen fish

1.
All buyers or holders of frozen fish shall ensure that the
quantities landed are weighed prior to the fish being processed,
held in storage, transported from the port of landing or resold.
The weight of frozen fish landed in boxes shall be determined
per species by multiplying the total number of boxes by a net
average weight for a box calculated according to the meth-
odology set down in the Annex.

The party weighing the fish shall keep a record per

2.
landing, indicating:

(a)

the name and registration number of the vessel from which
the fish has been landed;

the sales note or takeover
landed shall submit a copy of
declaration to the competent authorities of the Member State
concerned on demand, but in any event no later than 48 hours
after the completion of the weighing.

Article 14

Access by competent authorities

The competent authorities shall have full access at all times to
the weighing
logbooks, written
declarations and all premises where the fish is processed and
kept.

the weighing

system,

Article 15

Cross-checks

(b) the species of fish landed;

The competent authorities shall carry out administrative cross-
checks on all landings between the following:

(c)

the size of the lot and sample of pallets per species in
accordance with the provisions of point 1 of the Annex;

(d) the weight of each pallet in the sample and the average

weight of the pallets;

1. quantities by species indicated in the prior notice of landing,
as referred to in Article 3(1)(c), and the quantities recorded
in the vessel’s logbook,

(e)

the number of boxes on each pallet in the sample;

2. quantities by species recorded in the vessel’s logbook and the

quantities recorded in the landing declaration,

(f)

the tare weight per box, if different from the tare weight
specified in point 4 of the Annex;

(g) the average weight of an empty pallet in accordance with

the provisions of point 3(b) of the Annex;

3. quantities by species recorded on the landing declaration and
the quantities recorded in the takeover declaration or the
sales note,

(h) the average weight per box per species.

4. catch area recorded in the vessel’s logbook and the VMS data

for the vessel concerned.

3.
The figure resulting from the weighing shall be used for
the completion of landing declarations, sales notes and takeover
declarations.

Article 16

Full inspection

Article 12

Keeping of weighing documents

The weighing logbook and records provided for in Article 9(3)
and 11(2) and the copies of written declarations provided for in
Article 7(3)(b) shall be kept for six years.

Article 13

Sales note and takeover declaration

In addition to the provisions of Article 9(5) of Regulation
(EC) No 2847/93, the processor, receiver or buyer of all fish

The competent authorities of a Member State shall ensure
1.
that at least 15 % of the quantities of fish landed and at least
10 % of the landings of fish are subject to full inspections. Such
inspections shall be carried out in accordance with paragraphs
2, 3 and 4.

the weighing of

the catch from the vessel shall be
2.
The weighing of
In the case of vessels pumping catch
monitored by species.
shall be
entire discharge
ashore
monitored.
In the case of landings of frozen fish, all boxes
shall be counted and the methodology for calculating the
average net weight of boxes provided for in the Annex shall
be monitored.

the

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The following data shall be cross-checked in addition to

3.
those referred to in Article 15:

It shall be verified that the vessel is empty of all fish, once

4.
the discharge has been completed.

(a) quantities by species recorded in the weighing logbook and
takeover

recorded in the

species
the quantities by
declaration or the sales note;

(b) the written declarations received by the competent auth-
and the written
to Article 7(3)(a)
orities pursuant
declarations held by the receiver of the fish pursuant to
Article 7(3)(b);

(c)

tankers entered into the weighing
identity numbers of
logbook in accordance with Article 9(3)(b)
and the
numbers that appear in the written declarations provided
for in Article 7(3)(a).

Article 17

Documentation of inspection activities

inspection activities covered by Article 16 shall be docu-

All
mented. Such documentation shall be kept for six years.

CHAPTER III

FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 18

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 January 2008.

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

Done at Brussels, 20 December 2007.

For the Commission

Joe BORG
Member of the Commission

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ANNEX

Methodology for calculating the average net weight of boxes or blocks of frozen fish

1. The average weight per box shall be determined per species using the sampling plan in the table below. The sample of

pallets shall be selected randomly.

Lot size
(number of boxes)

5 000 or less

5 001-10 000

10 001-15 000

15 001-20 000

20 001-30 000

30 001-50 000

More than 50 000

Sampling Plan

Sample size
(number of pallets × 52 boxes)

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

2. Each pallet of boxes in the sample shall be weighed. The total gross weight of all pallets in the sample shall be divided

by the total number of pallets in the sample to arrive at the average gross weight per pallet per species.

3. In order to arrive at the net weight per box per species the following deductions are made from the average gross

weight of the pallet referred to in point 2:

(a) The average tare weight per box equal to the weight of ice and cardboard, plastic or other packaging material

multiplied by the number of boxes on the pallet;

(b) The average weight of nine empty pallets as used in the landing.

The resulting net weight per pallet per species shall then be divided by the number of boxes on the pallet.

4. The tare weight per box referred to in point 3(a) shall be 1,5 kg. A Member State may use a different tare weight per
box provided that they submit their sampling methodology and any changes thereto to the Commission for approval.