CELEX: 51979PC0020
Language: en
Date: 1979-02-27 00:00:00
Title: Recommendation for a COUNCIL DECISION authorizing the Commission to negotiate on behalf of the Community for the establishment of a convention on the conservation of antarctic marine living resources (submitted to the Council by the Commission)

ARCHIVES HISTORIQUES
DE LA COMMISSION
COLLECTION RELIEE DES
DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM (79) 20
Vol. 1979/0009
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 ---pagebreak--- COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                          COM(79)20 final
                                          Brussels , 27 February 1979
                        Recommendation for a
                           COUNCIL DECISION
         authorizing the Commission to negotiate on behalf
         of the Community for the establishment of a convention
         on the conservation of antarctic marine living resources
             ( submitted to the Council by the Commission )
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 C0MC79 ) 20 final
 ---pagebreak---                                     EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
I.    Background
      1.     Since October 1977 the Consultative Parties to the Antarctic Treaty of
             1959 C1 ) have been preparing    a convention intended to establish a machinery
             for the conservation of living marine resources around Antarctica . A single
             draft ( see annex ) of this convention has emerged from meetings of the
             Consultative Parties held in Canberra , Buenos Aires and Washington during
             1978 , although the geographical application of the Convention is still in dispute .
      2.     Three Member States of the Community ( Belgium , France and the United Kingdom )
             have taken part in these discussions , and have informed the other partici­
             pants of the Community 's power and jurisdiction in fisheries matters ,
             pointing out that participation by the Community both in the negotiations
             and in the ensuing convention would be a prerequisite for a successful
             outcome of these discussions . Largely as a result of disagreement over
             the question of Community participation , a Diplomatic Conference which
             was to have been convened by the Australian Government in January 1979
             has been postponed . The Australian authorities have recently proposed an
             informal meeting to discuss issues which remain unresolved and to negotiate
             definitely on the questions of Community participation at the Diplomatic
             Conference and the " EC relationship with the final document ". It is also
             proposed that the Community be represented at this informal meeting .
1 1 . The proposed Convention
      3.     The objective of the Convention is the conservation of Antarctic marine
              living resources ( Article II ), or more explicitly , the establishment of
       ( 1 ) Twelve countries , including three Community Member States ( Belgium , France ,
             and the United Kingdom ) were original signatories of this Treaty , and under
              its Article IX are accorded the status of Consultative Parties responsible
              for considering and recommending measures in furtherance of the objectives
             of the Treaty . Two other Member States ( Denmark , the Netherlands ) have since
             acceded to the Treaty . The immediate purpose of the Treaty was to promote
              scientific research in Antarctica , but other important provisions include
              the banning of military activity , nuclear explosions , and disposal of radio­
             active waste material , as well as a moratorium on territorial claims in the
             area .
 ---pagebreak---                                                    2
   J             " suitable machinery for recommending , promoting , deciding upon and coordi­
                 nating the measures and scientific studies needed to ensure the conservation
                        "                                                  \ '
                 of Antarctic marine living organisms " ( preamble ). The Contracting Parties  '
                 agree to set up a Commission responsible for the adoption of conservation
                 measures and the implementation of a system of observation and inspection ,
                 with the help of a Scientific Committee .
         4.      The objective of the draft convention namely the conservation of marine
                 living resources falls clearly under Community competence by virtue of
                the powers given to the Community under the Treaty , as recently     inter­
                preted by the European Court of Justice ( notably in the Kramer decision
         .      of 14.7.76 ),and of the decisions taken by the Council of Ministers on
                3rd November 1976 .
               The draft convention does , however , also include certain provisions which
                have the purpose of binding the Contracting Parties to , the Convention to
               certain articles contained in the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 dealing inter
               alia with mi litary activity and territorial claims in ,the Antarctic .
                These           provisions referring to the Antarctic Treaty fall entirely
               outside the field of Community jurisdiction .
               Moreover , some Member States exercise sovereignty or jurisdiction over terri­
               tories whose surrounding waters fall within the area to which 1 the proposed
               convention applies . These territories appear in Annex IV to the Treaty of
               Rome , and the Community is therefore not empowered to act on their behalf ,
               although it should be noted that the activity of Community fishing vessels
               in the waters surrounding these areas would fall under Community jurisdiction .
III . Community objectives v                                >
        5.     Some Member States of the Community have an interest in activities related
           ' 4 to the exploitation of living resources in the area covered by the draft
               convention as well as in the protection of the natural environment , and
               certain Member States play a particularly important role in this area .
               In view of these existing interests , and of the potential importance of the
               fisheries resources which would be subject to control under the
               convention , it is in the Community 's interests to participate in the nego-
      ,        tiations about the establishment of such a convention .
 ---pagebreak---   Having regard to the particular provisions of the Convention falling outside
  the Community 's power and jurisdiction and the particular interests and
  situations of some Member States , some or all of them may wish to sign
  the Convention in their own right . However , as the functions of the regulatory
  Commission to be set up under the proposed Convention fall entirely within
  the Community 's power and jurisdiction , it would be appropriate that only the
  Community and those Member States exercising sovereignty or jurisdiction
  over the territories referred to in paragraph 4 above should become Members
  of the said Commission . Appropriate arrangements must be made , as in other
  conventions which involve the participation of the Community and its Member
  States , to make clear to the other parties that the matter gives rise to a
  division of powers between the Community and its Member States . The exact
  nature of that division is an internal question which the Community will
  decide upon in each case and in which the 'other parties to the Convention
  have no right to intervene .                                             £
 In the opinion of the Commission , the substance of the attached convention
 is acceptable to the Community . The essential provisions , namely the establish­
 ment of a regulatory Commission and an advisory Scientific Committee , and
 agreed procedures to ensure    that regulations are respected, are similar
 to those found in other international fisheries conventions . The Commission
therefore proposes that the Community accept the main principles foreseen
 in the draft , subject to the necessary amendments to allow -for the Community
to become a signatory , while reserving the right to make proposals con­
 cerning any part of the draft convention in the light of the development
of negotiations .
For the reasons set out above the Commission recommends that the Council
adopt the attached decision authorizing the Commission to negotiate for
the establishment of a convention on the conservation of Antarctic Marine
Living Resources .                                          ■   »
 ---pagebreak--- COUNCIL DECISION AUTHORISING THE COMMISSION TO NEGOTIATE ON BEHALF OF THE
COMMUNITY FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CONVENTION ON THE CONSERVATION OF
ANTARCTIC MARINE LIVING RESOURCES .
The Council of the Europe'an Communities ,
                                   . t
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community,
Having regard to the Recommendation from the Commission ,
Whereas on 3 November 1976 the Council adopted a set of resolutions
concerning certain external and internal aspects of the common fisheries
policy ;
Whereas it is necessary to preserve the ecologioal "balance of the seas t
and to this enc it is appropriate to ensure the conservation of certain
species of fish and marine mammals and in particular to prevent an exces­
sive development of fishing effort ;
Whereas the Consultative Parties of the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 have
proposed that a Convention on the conservation of Antarctic Marine Living .
Resources should be established;
Whereas fishermen of the European Economic Community are already exploiting
marine living resources of the area to be covered by the proposed convention;
Whereas the European Economic Community should therefore participate in (
international cooperation for the conservation and management of marine living
resources in the area concerned ;
Whereas it is therefore necessary to establish directives for Community
participation in the forthcoming negotiations for the said convention ;
HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS :
                                  Sole Article
The Commission is hereby authorised to negotiate on behalf of the Community ,
in accordance with the directives annexed hereto , for the establishment of a
Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources .
The Commission shall conduct the negotiations assisted by the representatives
of the Member States .
Done at Brussels ,                                For the Council
                                                   The President
 ---pagebreak---                               ANNEX
The main elements of the draft Convention on the Conservation of
Antarctic Marine Living Resources established by the Consultative
Parties to the Antarctic Treaty during their meetings in 1978 , namely :
- the establishment of a regulatory authority ( the Commission ) and
  an advisory Scientific Committee
- procedures for reporting , surveillance , and control of fishing
  activity within the area covered by the Convention
are acceptable to the Community , provided that appropriate amendments
are made in order to achieve the objective set out in paragraph 2 below .
The draft Convention should contain provisions which allow the European
Economic Community to become a signatory of the Convention , in parallel
with those Member States which wish to become Contracting Parties because
of the relationship between the proposed Convention and the Antarctic
Treaty of 1959 . It shall be ensured in the negotiations that such participation
in the Convention by Member States shall in no way limit the exercice by , the
Community of the powers and jurisdiction conferred upon it under Community
law .
 ---pagebreak---                          FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
The Community 's participation in this convention would imply a yearly
contribution to the operating expenses of the Commission which will be
established under this Convention .
It is not possible at this stage to estimate the size of this contribution .
The Community budget already contains a line to provide for this kind of
expenditure ( item 2987 , " International Agreements on Fisheries").