Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/952 of 9 February 2022 amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 establishing fisheries conservation measures for the protection of the marine environment in the North Sea

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy, amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1954/2003 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulations (EC) No 2371/2002 and (EC) No 639/2004 and Council Decision 2004/585/EC (1), and in particular Article 11(2) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Pursuant to Article 11(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013, Member States are empowered to adopt fisheries conservation measures in their waters that are necessary to comply with their obligations under Article 6 of Council Directive 92/43/EEC (‘Habitats Directive’) (2), Article 4 of Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (‘Birds Directive’) (3) and Article 13(4) of Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (‘Marine Strategy Framework Directive’) (4).

(2) Article 6 of the Habitats Directive requires Member States to establish the necessary conservation measures for special areas of conservation that correspond to the ecological requirements of those natural habitat types and species present on the sites as listed in the Annexes of that Directive.

(3) Article 4 of the Birds Directive requires Member States to establish special conservation measures concerning the habitat of the species mentioned in its Annex I. It also requires Member States to take similar conservation measures for regularly occurring migratory species not listed in its Annex I.

(4) Pursuant to Article 13(4) of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, Member States are to adopt programmes of measures to achieve or maintain good environmental status, including spatial protection measures that contribute to coherent and representative networks of marine protected areas, and adequately cover the diversity of the constituent ecosystems, such as special areas of conservation pursuant to the Habitats Directive, special protection areas pursuant to the Birds Directive and marine protected areas as agreed by the Union or Member States concerned in the framework of international or regional agreements to which they are parties.

(5) Where a Member State considers that measures need to be adopted to comply with its obligations under Union environmental legislation and other Member States have a direct management interest in the fishery to be affected by such measures, the Commission is empowered to adopt such measures by means of delegated acts upon a joint recommendation submitted by the Member States.

(6) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 (5) establishes conservation measures in certain marine protected areas in the Kattegat and the marine protected area Bratten area in the North Sea.

(7) After consulting the North Sea Advisory Council, Denmark, Sweden and Germany submitted to the Commission two joint recommendations to manage fisheries in certain areas of the Kattegat on 2 February 2021. Denmark submitted a joint recommendation to protect soft seabed and reef structures from fisheries with mobile bottom contacting gears in six Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) areas and one Natura 2000 site in the Danish part of the Kattegat. Sweden submitted a joint recommendation to protect sensitive species and habitat types by only allowing certain fishing gears in four marine protected areas in the Swedish part of the Kattegat.

(8) The Commission presented these measures by written procedure to an expert group consisting of representatives of the Member States in October 2021.

(9) The Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (‘STECF’) reviewed these joint recommendations and concluded (6) that the measures represent a positive step forward towards minimising the negative impacts of fishing activities on the habitats concerned. These joint recommendations are also expected to contribute to the adequate protection of designated and sensitive species and habitat types including the associated ecological functions in the marine protected areas.

(10) The measures proposed by Denmark aim at prohibiting mobile bottom contacting gears in the designated areas. The STECF concluded (7) that prohibiting these gears in these vulnerable habitats entails a better protection of soft seabed and reef structures (habitat type 1170) from the impact of fishing activities, thereby contributing to achieving environmental targets.

(11) The measures proposed by Sweden aim at designating restricted fishery areas and areas where fishing operations are prohibited. The STECF concluded (8) that the impact of the proposed fishing gears in restricted fishery areas is likely to be low and that the measures proposed will represent a positive step forward towards minimising the negative impacts of fishing activities on the habitats concerned. The Commission also notes that Member States committed in the joint recommendation to propose further adjustments and restrict the gillnet fishery if deemed necessary.

(12) Member States suggested control and enforcement measures based on the use of automatic identification system (‘AIS’) for specific areas. The STECF concluded (9) that AIS should be sufficient to undertake real-time monitoring in these areas.

(13) Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 should be amended to include Scottish pair seine (SPR) in the definition of mobile bottom contacting gear. SPR was unintentionally excluded from the joint recommendations submitted by Denmark in 2015 and 2016 to prohibit the use of mobile bottom contacting gears in Areas 1. Member States requested the Commission to correct this omission.

(14) Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 and the joint recommendation submitted by Denmark cover only bottom contacting gears that are mobile. For the sake of clarity, the term ‘mobile‘ should therefore be included in the definition of the bottom contacting gears that this Regulation provides for.

(15) Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(16) This Delegated Regulation is without prejudice to the need for additional conservation measures necessary to comply with the relevant provisions and the Commission’s position regarding compliance by the interested Member States with their obligations under the relevant Union environmental legislation,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 is amended as follows:

(4) Annex I is amended in accordance with point 1 of the Annex to this Regulation;

(5) Annex II is amended in accordance with point 2 of the Annex to this Regulation;

(6) Annexes IV and V are added in accordance with points 3 and 4 of the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

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

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

Done at Brussels, 9 February 2022.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 22.

(2) Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora. (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7).

(3) Directive 2009/147/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds. (OJ L 20, 26.1.2010, p. 7).

(4) Directive 2008/56/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 establishing a framework for community action in the field of marine environmental policy (Marine Strategy Framework Directive) (OJ L 164, 25.6.2008, p. 19).

(5) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/118 of 5 September 2016 establishing fisheries conservation measures for the protection of the marine environment in the North Sea (OJ L 19, 25.1.2017, p. 10).

(6) https://stecf.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/43805/2850498/STECF+PLEN+21-01.pdf/874bc98a-5c5a-46a5-a3e5-e9711285b193

(7) https://stecf.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/43805/2850498/STECF+PLEN+21-01.pdf/874bc98a-5c5a-46a5-a3e5-e9711285b193

(8) https://stecf.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/43805/2850498/STECF+PLEN+21-01.pdf/874bc98a-5c5a-46a5-a3e5-e9711285b193

(9) https://stecf.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/43805/2850498/STECF+PLEN+21-01.pdf/874bc98a-5c5a-46a5-a3e5-e9711285b193