Council Regulation (EC) No 1035/2001 of 22 May 2001 establishing a catch documentation scheme for Dissostichus spp

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1035/2001

of 22 May 2001

establishing a catch documentation scheme for Dissostichus spp.

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

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

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (¹),

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (²),

(1) The Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, hereinafter called ‘the Convention’, was approved by Decision 81/691/EEC (³) and entered into force with regard to the Community on 21 May 1982.

(2) The Convention provides a framework for regional cooperation on the conservation and management of Antarctic marine fauna and flora through the establishment of a Commission for the conservation of Antarctic marine living resources, hereinafter called ‘CCAMLR’, and the adoption of conservation measures which become binding on the Contracting Parties.

(3) At its eighteenth Annual Meeting in November 1999, CCAMLR adopted conservation measure 170/XVIII establishing a catch documentation scheme for Dissostichus spp.

(4) The introduction of a catch documentation scheme for Dissostichus spp. is intended to improve monitoring of international trade in the species and to identify the origins of all Dissostichus spp. imported from or exported to the territories of the CCAMLR Contracting Parties.

(5) The catch document should also make it possible to determine whether Dissostichus spp. has been harvested in the Convention area in a manner consistent with the CCAMLR conservation measures and to collect catch data in order to facilitate the scientific evaluation of stocks.

(6) Conservation measure 170/XVIII became binding on all Contracting Parties on 9 May 2000. The Community should therefore implement it.

(7) In order to enable CCAMLR to achieve its objective of conserving the species, the obligation to present a catch document should be applied in respect of all imports of Dissostichus spp.

(8) The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission (⁴),

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

General provisions

Article 1

Purpose

This Regulation lays down the general rules and conditions governing the implementation by the Community of the Catch Documentation Scheme for Dissostichus spp. adopted by CCAMLR.

Article 2

Scope

(a)landed or transhipped by Community fishing vessels; or

(b)imported into, or exported or re-exported from the Community.

For the purpose of this paragraph, a by-catch of Dissostichus spp. means a quantity of Dissostichus spp. representing no more than 5 % of the total catch of all species and no more than 50 tonnes for an entire fishing trip by a vessel.

Article 3

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation:

(a) ‘Dissostichus spp’: means fish of the species Dissostichus eleginoides and Dissostichus mawsoni;

(b)‘Catch document’: means a document containing the information specified in Annex I and presented in accordance with the specimen shown in Annex II;

(c)‘CCAMLR area’: means the area of application defined in Article I of the Convention;

(d)‘import’ means the physical entering or bringing of a catch into any part of the geographical territory under the control of a State, except where the catch is landed or transhipped within the definitions of ‘landing’ or ‘transhipment’ set out in points (e) and (f);

(e)‘landing’ means the initial transfer of catch in its harvested or processed form from a vessel to dockside or to another vessel in a port or free trade zone where the catch is certified by an authority of the Port State as landed;

(f)‘transhipment’ means: —the transfer of a catch in its harvested or processed form from a vessel to another vessel or means of transport, and, where such transfer takes place within the territory under the control of a Port State, for the purpose of effecting its removal from that State, —temporarily placing a catch on land or an artificial structure to faciliate such transfer where the catch is not landed within the definition of point (e);

(g)‘export’ means any movement of a catch in its harvested or processed form from territory under the control of a State or free trade zone of landing, or, where that State or free trade zone forms part of a customs union, any other Member State of this customs union;

(h)‘re-export’ means any movement of a catch in its harvested or processed form from territory under the control of the State, free trade zone, or Member State of a customs union of import unless that State, free trade zone, or any Member State of that customs union of import is the first place of import, in which case the movement is an export within the definition in point (g);

(i)‘Port State’ means the State that has control over a particular port area or free trade zone for the purposes of landing, transhipment, importing, exporting and re exporting and whose authority serves as the authority for landing or transhipment certification.

CHAPTER II

Obligations of the Flag State

Article 4

Article 5

Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure that each transhipment of Dissostichus spp. to their flag vessels is accompanied by a duly completed catch document.

Article 6

Member States shall provide catch document forms to each of their flag vessels authorised to harvest Dissostichus spp. and only to those vessels.

Article 7

Member States shall ensure that each catch document form that they issue includes a specific identification number as indicated in Annex I.

They shall also enter on each catch document form the number of the fishing licence or permit authorising to fish Dissostichus spp. they have issued to their flag vessel.

CHAPTER III

Obligations of the master

Article 8

(a)he shall ensure that all the mandatory information listed in Annex I is accurately recorded on the catch document;

(b)if a landing or transhipment includes catch of both Dissostichus species, the master shall record on the catch document the estimated total weight of the catch to be landed or transhipped and indicate the estimated weight of each species;

(c)if a landing or transhipment includes catch of both Dissostichus species taken from different subareas and/or statistical divisions, the master shall record on the catch document the estimated weight of each species taken from each subarea and/or statistical division;

(d)the master shall convey to the Flag Member State of the vessel, by the most rapid electronic means available, the catch document number, the dates within which the catch was taken, the species, the processing type or types, the estimated weight to be landed and the area or areas of the catch, the date of landing or transhipment and the port and country of landing or vessel of transhipment and shall request from the Flag Member State a confirmation number. The implementing rules for this point may be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(2).

Article 9

After having verified, by the use of data reports obtained through an automated tamper-proof satellite linked vessel monitoring system (VMS), that the area fished and the catch to be landed or transhipped as reported by its vessel is accurately recorded and consistent with its authorisation to fish, the Flag Member State shall convey a confirmation number to the master by the most rapid electronic means.

The master shall enter the confirmation number on the catch document.

The implementing rules for this Article may be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(2).

Article 10

(a)in the case of a transhipment, obtain the signature on the catch document of the master of the vessel to which the catch is transhipped;

(b)in the case of a landing, obtain on the catch document

—a signed and stamped validation by a responsible official of the Port State of landing or free trade zone who is acting under the direction of either the customs or fisheries authorities of the Port State and is competent with regard to the validation of Dissostichus spp. catch documents, and

—the signature of the person who receives the catch at the port of landing or free trade zone.

The information about the catch mentioned in this paragraph may be amended to apply CCAMLR conservation measures which become obligatory for the Community, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(3).

The implementing rules for this paragraph may be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(2).

Article 11

The master of the Community fishing vessel or his authorised representative shall retain the original signed catch document or documents and return them to the Flag Member State no later than one month after the end of the fishing season.

The implementing rules for this Article may be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(2).

Article 12

—a signed and stamped validation by a responsible official of the Port State of landing or free trade zone who is acting under the direction of either the customs or fisheries authorities of the Port State and is competent with regard to the validation of Dissostichus spp. catch documents, and

—the signature of the person who receives the catch at the port of landing or free trade zone.

The information about the catch mentioned in this paragraph may be amended to apply CCAMLR conservation measures which become obligatory for the Community, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(3).

The implementing rules for this paragraph may be adopted by the Commission in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 25(2).

CHAPTER IV

Obligations of Member States in the event of the landing, importation, exportation or re-exportation of Dissostichus spp.

Article 13

If the Flag State despite this request fails to demonstrate that the catch document was verified with the use of VMS data, the catch document shall be considered as void ab initio and the importation and exportation of the Dissostichus spp. shall be prohibited.

Article 14

Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure that each landing of Dissostichus spp. at their ports is accompanied by a duly completed catch document.

Article 15

(a)includes all the information specified in Annex I and all the necessary signatures; and

(b)includes a certificate signed and stamped by an official agent of the exporting State, attesting to the accuracy of the information contained in the document.

Article 16

Member States shall take all necessary measures to ensure that each shipment of Dissostichus spp. re-exported from their territory is accompanied by the re-export-validated catch document or documents corresponding to the total amount of Dissostichus spp. contained in the shipment.