Proposal for a Council Regulation (EU) No […]/2010 of amending Regulation (EU) No 53/2010 as regards certain fishing opportunities for cod, redfish and bluefin tuna and excluding certain groups of vessels from the fishing effort regime laid down in Chapter III of Regulation (EC) 1342/2008
Date: 2010-06-11
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU waters, authorised catch, fishery management, fishing area, fishing regulations, fishing rights, sea fish

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 11.6.2010 
COM(2010)306 final 

2010/0167 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) No […]/2010 

of 

amending Regulation (EU) No 53/2010 as regards certain fishing opportunities for cod, 
redfish and bluefin tuna and excluding certain groups of vessels from the fishing effort 
regime laid down in Chapter III of Regulation (EC) 1342/2008 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

Regulation  (EU)  No  53/2001  fixes  for  2010  the  fishing  opportunities  for  certain  fish  stocks 
and groups of fish stocks, applicable in EU waters and, for EU vessels, in waters where catch 
limitations are required. 

At its Annual Meeting in 2009, NAFO decided to reopen the fishery for cod in NAFO 3M and 
redfish in NAFO 3LN after more than 10 years of moratorium, and strict by-catch rules were 
put in place. It should be clarified that the general rule for by-catches applicable in the NAFO 
Regulatory  Area  implies  that  by-catches  can  only  be  taken  by  Member  States  that  have  an 
allocation for a certain species in a certain area.  

Annex ID of that Regulation establishes the TACs and quotas for highly migratory species on 
the basis of decisions taken by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic 
Tunas (ICCAT) at its annual meeting in 2009. At the ICCAT Compliance Committee, at its 
special meeting held in Madrid on 24-26 February 2010, the quota allocation for bluefin tuna 
was  revised  and  the  European  Union  quota  reduced.  Therefore,  the  quota  for  bluefin  tuna 
should be amended accordingly.  

In  addition,  Article  15  and  Annex  IV  of  that  Regulation  establish  the  maximum  number  of 
vessels  allowed  to  fish  for  bluefin  tuna  in  certain  regions  and  under  certain  circumstances. 
Having regard to Articles 5 and 6 of Regulation (EC) No 302/2009 concerning a multiannual 
recovery  plan  for  bluefin  tuna  in  the  eastern  Atlantic  and  Mediterranean2  it  is  necessary  to 
decide  on  further  limitations  of  fishing  opportunities  for  this  fishery,  and  in  particular  to 
determine  the  number  of  traps,  the  number  and  total  capacity  in  gross  tonnage  of  fishing 
vessels and the tuna farming and fattening capacity for each Member State with regard to the 
bluefin tuna fishery in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean.  

According  to  Article  11(2)  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1342/2008  establishing  a  long-term  plan 
for  cod  stocks  and  the  fisheries  exploiting  those  stocks  and  repealing  Regulation  (EC)  No 
423/2004  on  the  basis  of  the  information  provided  by  Member  States  and  the  advice  of 
STECF the Council may exclude certain groups of vessels from the application of the effort 
regime  provided  that  appropriate  data  is  available  on  the  cod  catches  and  discards  of  the 
vessels  concerned,  that  the  percentage  of  cod  catches  does  not  exceed  1,5%  of  the  total 
catches of the group of vessels and that the inclusion of the group in the effort regime would 
constitute an administrative burden disproportionate to its overall impact on cod stocks.  

Based on the advice from STECF, information provided by Germany, Ireland and France on 
certain groups of vessels fishing in the North Sea, to the West of Scotland and in the Irish Sea, 
sufficiently  shows  that  the  cod  catches,  including  discards,  of  the  groups  of  vessels  comply 
with  the  conditions  of  Article  11(2)  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1342/2008  and  may  thus  be 
excluded  from  the  effort  regime.  Having  regard  to  the  advice  from  the  STECF,  it  is 
appropriate to exclude these groups of vessels from the application of the effort regime under 
Regulation  (EC)  No  1342/2008  by  way  of  amending  Regulation  (EC)  No  754/2009  and  to 
adjust  the  maximum  allowable  effort  allocated  to  those  Member  States  in  Appendix  I  to 
Annex IIa to Regulation (EC) No 53/2010. 

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OJ L 21, 26.1.2010, p. 1. 
OJ L 96, 15.4.2009, p.1. 

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Finally, in accordance with Article 16(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008, in 2009, Member 
States  could  modify  their  effort  allocations  by  transferring  the  fishing  effort  and  capacity 
between  the  geographical  areas  provided  that  certain  conditions  are  met.  The  Netherlands 
have provided information regarding transfers carried out in 2009 of certain amount of effort 
and capacity from the North Sea to the Irish Sea which can be considered compatible with the 
conditions  of  Article  16(3).  The  maximum  allowable  effort  allocated  to  Netherlands  in 
Appendix  I  to  Annex  IIa  to  Regulation  (EC)  No  53/2010  needs  therefore  to  be  amended 
accordingly. 

The  Council  is  requested  to  adopt  this  proposal  as  soon  as  possible  in  order  to  allow 
fishermen to plan their activities for the remainder of this fishing season. 

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2010/0167 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) No […]/2010 

of 

amending Regulation (EU) No 53/2010 as regards certain fishing opportunities for cod, 
redfish and bluefin tuna and excluding certain groups of vessels from the fishing effort 
regime laid down in Chapter III of Regulation (EC) 1342/2008 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 43(3) thereof, 

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008 of 18 December 2008 establishing a 
long-term  plan  for  cod  stocks  and  the  fisheries  exploiting  those  stocks3,  and  in  particular 
Article 11 thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

Council  Regulation  (EU)  No  53/20104  fixes  for  2010  the  fishing  opportunities  for 
certain  fish  stocks  and  groups  of  fish  stocks,  applicable  in  EU  waters  and,  for  EU 
vessels, in waters where catch limitations are required. 

The  North  Atlantic  Fisheries  Organisation  (NAFO)  at  its  Annual  Meeting  in  2009 
decided to reopen the fishery for cod in zone NAFO 3M and for redfish in zone NAFO 
3LN  after  more  than  ten  years  of  moratorium.  The  by-catch  rules  established  in 
Regulation  (EU)  No  53/2010  for  the  two  reopened  fisheries  should  be  amended  to 
ensure consistency with the general by-catch rules applicable in the NAFO Regulatory 
Area under Article 4(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1386/2007 of 22 October 2007 
laying  down  conservation  and  enforcement  measures  applicable  in  the  Regulatory 
Area of the North West Atlantic Fisheries Organisation5.  

(3) 

The  Compliance  Committee  of  International  Commission  for  the  Conservation  of 
Atlantic  Tunas  (ICCAT),  at  its  special  meeting  held  in  Madrid  on  24-26  February 
2010, reduced the quota for bluefin tuna allocated to the European Union. Therefore, it 
is necessary to implement those new provisions into EU law. 

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5 

OJ L 348, 24.12.2008, p. 20. 
OJ L 21, 26.1.2010, p. 1. 
OJ L 318, 5.12.2007, p. 1.  

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(4) 

Having  regard  to  Articles  5(5)  and  (8)  and  6(4)  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  302/2009 
concerning  a  multiannual  recovery  plan  for  bluefin  tuna  in  the  eastern  Atlantic  and 
Mediterranean6 it is necessary to establish the maximum number and total capacity in 
gross tonnage of fishing vessels of each Member State that may be authorised to fish 
for, retain on board, tranship, transport, or land bluefin tuna, the maximum number of 
tuna traps that may be authorised by each Member State, the maximum tuna farming 
and fattening capacity for each Member State and the maximum input of wild caught 
bluefin tuna that each Member State may allocate to its farms. 

(5)  Within the context of establishing fishing opportunities and in accordance with Article 
11  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1342/2008,  the  Council  may,  on  the  basis  of  information 
provided  by  Member  States  and  assessed  by  the  STECF,  exclude  certain  groups  of 
vessels from the effort regime established in that Regulation, provided that appropriate 
data  is  available  on  cod  catches  and  discards  of  the  vessels  concerned,  that  the 
percentage of cod catches does not exceed 1,5 % of the total catches of the group of 
vessels  and  that  the  inclusion  of  the  group  in  the  effort  regime  would  constitute  an 
administrative  burden  disproportionate  to  its  overall  impact  on  cod  stocks.  Germany 
provided information on the cod catches by a group of vessels targeting saithe in the 
North  Sea  and  in  the  area  to  the  West  of  Scotland  with  bottom  trawls  of  mesh  size 
equal to or larger than 120 mm. Ireland provided information on the cod catches by a 
group  of  vessels  targeting  Nephrops  in  the  Irish  Sea  with  a  selective  sorting  grid 
similar  to  that  defined  in  Appendix  2  to  Annex  III  to  Regulation  (EC)  No  43/2009. 
France provided information on the cod catches by a group of vessels targeting deep 
sea species in the West of Scotland with bottom trawls of mesh size larger than 110 
mm. On the basis of that information as assessed by STECF, it can be established that 
the cod catches, including discards, of those groups of vessels do not exceed 1,5 % of 
their  total  catches.  Having  moreover  regard  to  control  and  monitoring  measures  in 
place ensuring the monitoring and control of the fishing activities of those groups of 
vessels  and  considering  that  the  inclusion  of  these  groups  would  constitute  an 
administrative burden disproportionate to the overall impact of  that inclusion on  cod 
stocks,  it  is  appropriate  to  exclude  those  groups  of  vessels  from  the  application  of 
Chapter  III  of  Regulation  (EC)  No 1342/2008,  thus  allowing  to  establish  the  effort 
limits for the concerned Member States accordingly. 

(6) 

Article  16(3)  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1342/2008  allowed  Member  States  to  modify 
their effort allocations in 2009 by transferring the fishing effort and capacity between 
the  geographical  areas  provided  that  certain  conditions  are  met.  On  the  basis  of  the 
information provided by Netherlands regarding transfers carried out in 2009 of certain 
amount of effort and capacity from the North Sea to the Irish Sea, it is appropriate to 
adjust the maximum allowable effort allocated to Netherlands in Appendix I to Annex 
IIa to Regulation (EC) No 53/2010. 

(7) 

Regulations  (EU)  No  53/2010  and  (EC)  No  754/2009  excluding  certain  groups  of 
vessels  from  the  fishing  effort  regime  laid  down  in  Chapter  III  of  Regulation  (EC) 
1342/20087 should therefore be amended accordingly. 

6 
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OJ L 96, 15.4.2009, p.1 
OJ L 214, 19.8.2009, p. 16. 

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(8) 

In order to avoid the interruption of fishing activities and for the purpose reporting of 
catches per calendar year or of effort per year calculated from 1 February 2010 to 31 
January 2011, this Regulation should enter into force immediately after its publication 
and apply from 1 January 2010 and 1 February 2010 respectively, 

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

Article 1 
Amendment of Regulation (EU) No 53/2010  

Regulation (EU) No 53/2010 is amended as follows: 

(1) 

Article 15 is replaced by the following: 

"Article 15  
Fishing and farming and fattening capacity limitations for bluefin tuna  

1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

The number of EU bait boats and trolling boats authorised to fish actively for 
bluefin  tuna  between  8  kg/75  cm  and  30  kg/115  cm  in  the  Eastern  Atlantic 
shall be limited as set out in point 1of Annex IV. 

The number of EU coastal artisanal fishing vessels authorised to fish actively 
for  bluefin  tuna  between  8 kg/75  cm  and  30  kg/115  cm  in  the  Mediterranean 
shall be limited as set out in point 2 of Annex IV. 

The  number  of  EU  vessels  fishing  for  bluefin  tuna  in  the  Adriatic  Sea  for 
farming purposes authorised to fish actively for bluefin tuna between 8 kg/75 
cm and 30 kg/115 cm shall be limited as set out in point 3 of Annex IV. 

The number and total capacity in gross tonnage of fishing vessels authorised to 
fish for, retain on board, tranship, transport, or land bluefin tuna in the eastern 
Atlantic and Mediterranean shall be limited as set out in point 4 of Annex IV. 

The number of traps engaged in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin 
tuna fishery shall be limited as set out in point 5 of Annex IV. 

The  bluefin  tuna  farming  capacity,  the  fattening  capacity  and  the  maximum 
input of wild caught bluefin tuna allocated to the farms in the eastern Atlantic 
and Mediterranean shall be limited as set out in point 6 of Annex IV." 

(2) 

Annex IC is amended as follows: 

(i) 

the entry for the species cod in zone NAFO 3M is replaced by the following:  

Species: 

Cod 

Zone: 

NAFO 3M 

Gadus morhua 

(COD/N3M.) 

Estonia 

Germany 

61 

247 

(1) (2) 

(1)  

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Latvia 

Lithuania 

Poland 

Spain 

France 

Portugal 

United 

EU 

TAC 

61 

61 

209 

796 

110 

1070 

521 

(1) (2)  

(1) (2)  

(1) (2)  

(1)  

(1)  

(1)  

(1)  

3 136 

(1) (2) 

5 500 

(1) (2) 

(1)  Directed fishery for cod in NAFO 3M shall be permitted until the moment when the 
estimated catches, including by-catches, to be taken in the remainder of the year equal 
100% of the allocated quota. After that date, only by-catches shall be permitted within 
a maximum of 1 250 kg or 5%, which ever is greater, within the quota allocated to the 
Flag Member State.  

(2) 

Including  the  fishing  entitlements  of  Estonia,  Latvia  and  Lithuania  of  61  tonnes 
respectively  and  the  allocation  for  Poland  of  209  tonnes  in  accordance  with  sharing 
arrangements  for  the  former  USSR  adopted  by  the  NAFO  Fisheries  Commission  in 
2003,  following  the  accession  of  Estonia,  Latvia,  Lithuania  and  Poland  to  the 
European Union.  

(ii) 

the entry for the species redfish in 3LN is replaced by the following:  

Species: 

Redfish 

Zone: 

NAFO 3LN 

Sebastes spp. 

(RED/N3LN.) 

Estonia 

Germany 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

EU 

TAC 

173 

119 

173 

173 

638 

(1) (2) 

(1) 

(1) (2) 

(1) (2) 

(1) (2) 

3 500 

(1) (2) 

(1)  Directed fishery for redfish in NAFO 3LN shall be permitted until the moment when 
the estimated catches, including by-catches, to be taken in the remainder of the year 
equal 100% of the allocated quota. After that date, only by-catches shall be permitted 
within a maximum of 1 250 kg or 5%, which ever is greater, within the quota allocated 
to the Flag Member State.  

(2) 

Including  the  fishing  entitlements  of  Estonia,  Latvia  and  Lithuania  of  173  tonnes 
respectively in accordance with sharing arrangements for the former USSR adopted by 
the NAFO Fisheries Commission in 2003, following the accession of Estonia, Latvia, 
Lithuania and Poland to the European Union.  

(3) 

In  Annex  ID,  the  entry  concerning  the  species  bluefin  tuna  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean, 
east of 45° W, and Mediterranean is replaced by the following:  

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"Species: 

Bluefin tuna 

Zone: 

Thunnus thynnus 

Atlantic  Ocean,  east  of  45° 
W, and Mediterranean 

(BFT/AE045W) 

Cyprus 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Malta 

Portugal 

All Member States 

EU 

TAC 

70,18 

(4) 

130,30 

2 526,06 

(2)(4) 

2 021,93 

(2)(3)(4) 

1 937,50 

(4)(5) 

161,34 

(4) 

237,66 

2,41 

(1) 

7 087,38 

(2)(3)(4)(5) 

13 500 

(1) 

Except Cyprus, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Malta and Portugal, and only as by-catch. 

(2)  Within this TAC, the following catch limits and allocation between Member States shall apply 
to catches of bluefin tuna between 8 kg/75 cm and 30 kg/115 cm by the vessels referred to in 
point 1 of Annex IV (BFT/*8301):  

Spain  

France  

EU  

367,23 

165,69 

532,92 

(3)  Within this TAC, the following catch limits and allocation between Member States shall apply 
to catches of bluefin tuna weighing no less than 6,4 kg or measuring no less than 70 cm by the 
vessels referred to in point 1 of Annex IV (BFT/*641):  

France  

EU  

45 (*) 

45 

(*) This quantity may be revised by the Commission upon request of France, up to an amount 
of 100 tonnes as indicated by ICCAT Recommendation 08-05. 

(4)  Within  this  TAC,  the  following  the  catch  limit  and  allocation  between  Member  States  shall 
apply to catches of bluefin tuna between and 8 kg and 30 kg by the vessels referred to in point 
2 of Annex IV (BFT/*8302):  

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Cyprus 

50,52 

49,84 

39,34 

1,40 

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Malta 

EU 

3,23 

144,34 

(5)  Within  this  TAC,  the  following  the  catch  limit  and  allocation  between  Member  States  shall 
apply to catches of bluefin tuna between and 8 kg and 30 kg by the vessels referred to in point 
3 of Annex IV (BFT/*643):  

Italy 

EU 

39,34 

39,34  " 

(4) 

Annex IV is amended as follows: 

(i) 

the table under point 2 is replaced by the following: 

"Spain 

France 

Italy 

Cyprus 

Malta 

EU 

139 

86 

35 

25 

83 

374" 

(ii) 

the following points 4, 5 and 6 are added: 

"4.  Maximum number and total capacity in gross tonnage of fishing vessels 
of each Member State that may be authorised to fish for, retain on board, 
tranship,  transport,  or  land  bluefin  tuna  in  the  eastern  Atlantic  and 
Mediterranean 

Table A 

Number of fishing vessels 

Purse Seiners 
Longliners 
Baitboat 
Handline 
Trawler 
Other artisanal 

Cyprus 
1 
12 
0 
0 
0 
0 

Greece 
1 
0 
0 
0 
0 
256 

Italy 
24 
30 
0 
0 
0 
0 

France 
19 
0 
8 
29 
78 
87 

Spain 
6 
81 
61 
2 
0 
33 

Malta 
0 
83 
0 
0 
0 
0 

Table B 

Purse Seiners 
Longliners 
Baitboat 
Handline 
Trawler 

Total capacity in gross tonnage 

Cyprus 
51 
409 
- 
- 
- 

Greece 
260 
- 
- 
- 
- 

Italy 
* 
1196 
- 
- 
- 

France 
4044 
0 
 248 
 pm 
 pm 

Spain 
1608 
4416,73 
10335,58 
20,96 
0 

Malta 
0 
1365,64 
0 
0 
0 

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Other artisanal 

-  3343,21** 

- 

 pm 

489,83 

0 

* Temporary cessation of activities in 2010 

** Polyvalent vessels, using multi-gear equipment (longline, handline, trolling line) 

5.  Maximum  number  of  traps  engaged  in  the  eastern  Atlantic  and 
Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery authorised by each Member State 

Spain 

Italy 

Portugal 

Number of traps 

6 

6 

1 

6.  Maximum bluefin tuna farming capacity and fattening capacity for each 
Member State and maximum input of wild caught bluefin tuna that each 
Member  State  may  allocate  to  its  farms  in  the  eastern  Atlantic  and 
Mediterranean 

Table A 

Maximum 
tuna 
fattening capacity  

farming  capacity  and 

Spain 

Italy 

Greece 

Cyprus 

Malta 

Spain 

Italy 

Greece 

Cyprus 

Malta 

14 

15 

2 

3 

8 

Table B 

Maximum input of wild caught bluefin tuna (in tonnes) 

5 855 

3 764 

785 

2 195 

8 768" 

(5) 

Appendix 1 to Annex IIA is amended as follows: 

(i) 

In table (b), the columns concerning Germany and the Netherlands are replaced 
by the following: 

Regulated gear 

  DE 

  NL 

EN 

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TR 1 
TR 2 
TR 3 
BT 1 
BT 2 
GN 
GT 
LL 

1 269 111 
516 154 
3 501 
29 271 
1 691 253 
224 484 
467 
0 

371 757 
1 080 920 
48 508 
999 808 
34 743 212 
438 664 
0 
0 

(ii) 

In table (c), the columns concerning Ireland and the Netherlands are replaced 
by the following: 

Regulated gear 
TR 1 
TR 2 
TR 3 
BT 1 
BT 2 
GN 
GT 
LL 

IE 
59 625 
778 729 
8 433 
0 
514 584 
18 255 
0 
0 

NL 
0 
0 
0 
0 
200 000 
0 
0 
0 

(iii)  In table (d), the columns concerning Germany and France are replaced by the 

following: 

Regulated gear 
TR 1 
TR 2 
TR 3 
BT 1 
BT 2 
GN 
GT 
LL 

DE 
11 151 
0 
0 
0 
0 
35 442 
0 
0 

FR 
2 317 946 
7 415 
0 
7 161 
13 211 
400 503 
0 
54 917 

Article 2 
Amendment of Regulation (EC) No 754/2009  

In Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 754/2009, the following points are added: 

"(f) 

(g) 

the group of high sea vessels flying the flag of Germany, participating in the fishery 
indicated  in  the  request  from  Germany  dated  26  March  2010  as  completed  by 
correspondence dated of 9 April and 20 May 2010, targeting saithe in the North Sea, 
the EU waters of ICES Zone IIa and in the area to the West of Scotland with bottom 
trawls of mesh size equal to or larger than 120 mm  

the group of vessels flying the flag of Ireland, participating in the fishery indicated in 
the  request  from  Ireland  dated  26  March  2010,  fishing  in  the  Irish  Sea  during  the 
period in which these vessels are fishing solely with a selective sorting grid similar to 

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that  defined  in  Appendix  2  to  Annex  III  to  Regulation  (EC)  No  43/2009  and 
targeting Norway lobster; 

(h) 

the group of vessels flying the flag of France, participating in the fishery indicated in 
the request from France dated 24 March 2010 as completed by correspondence dated 
25 March, 29 March, 8 April and 20 May 2010 targeting deep sea species in area to 
the West of Scotland with bottom trawls of mesh size larger than 110 mm." 

Article 3 

This  Regulation  shall  enter  into  force  on  the  day  following  that  of  its  publication  in  the 
Official Journal of the European Union. 

It  shall  apply  from  1  January  2010,  with  the  exception  of  Articles  1(5)  and  2,  which  shall 
apply from 1 February 2010. 

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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