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 (c. 41)

ANNEX II U.K.

ANNEX IIC U.K.

FISHING EFFORT FOR VESSELS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE RECOVERY OF WESTERN CHANNEL SOLE STOCKS ICES ZONE VIIe

GENERAL PROVISIONS U.K.

1. Scope U.K.

1.1. The conditions laid down in this Annex shall apply to Community vessels of length overall equal to or greater than 10 metres carrying on board any of the gears defined in point 3, and present in zone VIIe. For the purposes of this Annex, a reference to the year 2007 means the period from 1 February 2007 to 31 January 2008. U.K.

1.2. Vessels fishing with static nets with mesh size equal to or larger than 120 mm and with track records of less than 300 kg live weight of sole according to the EC logbook in 2004 shall be exempt from the provisions of this Annex on the conditions that: U.K.

(a)

such vessels catch less than 300 kg live weight of sole in 2007, and

(b)

such vessels shall not tranship any fish at sea to another vessel, and

(c)

each Member State concerned makes a report to the Commission by 31 July 2007 and 31 January 2008 on these vessels' track records for sole in 2004 and catches of sole in 2007.

When either of these conditions is not met, the vessels shall with immediate effect no longer be exempted from the provisions of this Annex.

2. Definition of day present with the area U.K.

For the purpose of this Annex, a day present within an area shall be any continuous period of 24 hours (or part thereof) during which a vessel is present within zone VIIe and absent from port. The time from which the continuous period is measured is at the discretion of the Member State whose flag is flown by the vessel concerned.

3. Fishing gear U.K.

For the purposes of this Annex, the following groupings of fishing gears shall apply:

(a)

Beam trawls of mesh size equal to or greater than 80 mm;

(b)

Static nets including gill-nets, trammel-nets and tangle-nets with mesh size less than 220 mm.

IMPLEMENTATION OF FISHING EFFORT LIMITATIONS U.K.

4. Vessels concerned by fishing effort limitations U.K.

4.1. A Member State shall not permit fishing with a gear belonging to a grouping of fishing gear defined in point 3 in the area by any of its vessels which have no record of such fishing activity in the years 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 or 2006 in that area unless it ensures that equivalent capacity, measured in kilowatts, is prevented from fishing in the regulated area. U.K.

However, a vessel with a track record of using a gear belonging to a grouping of fishing gear defined in point 3 may be authorised to use a different fishing gear, provided that the number of days allocated to this latter gear is greater than or equal to the number of days allocated to the first gear.

4.2. A vessel flying the flag of a Member State having no quotas in the area defined in point 1 shall not be permitted to fish in that area with a gear belonging to a grouping of fishing gear defined in point 3, unless the vessel is allocated a quota after a transfer as permitted according to the Article 20(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 and is allocated days at sea according to point 13 of this Annex. U.K.

5. Limitations in activity U.K.

Each Member State shall ensure that, when carrying on board any of the groupings of fishing gear referred to in point 3, fishing vessels flying its flag and registered in the Community shall be present within the area for no more than the number of days set out in point 7.

6. Exceptions U.K.

A Member State shall not count against the days allocated to any of its vessels under this Annex either any days when the vessel has been present within the area but unable to fish because it was assisting another vessel in need of emergency aid or any days when a vessel has been present within the area but unable to fish because it is transporting an injured person for emergency medical aid. The Member State shall provide justification to the Commission within one month of any decisions taken on this basis with associated evidence of the emergency from the competent authorities.

NUMBER OF DAYS PRESENT WITHIN THE AREA ALLOCATED TO FISHING VESSELS U.K.

7. Maximum number of days U.K.

7.1. The maximum number of days per year for which a vessel may be present within the area having carried on board and used any one of the fishing gears referred to in point 3 is shown in Table I. U.K.

7.2. The number of days per year for which a vessel is present within the total area covered by this Annex and Annex IIA shall not exceed the number shown in Table I of this Annex. However the number of days in which the vessel is present in the areas covered in Annex IIA shall comply with the maximum number fixed in accordance with Annex IIA. U.K.

8. Management periods U.K.

8.1. Member States may divide the days present within the area given in Table I into management periods of durations of one or more calendar months. U.K.

8.2. The number of days for which a vessel may be present within the area during a management period shall be fixed at the discretion of Member States concerned. U.K.

8.3. In any given management period a vessel that has used the number of days present within the area for which it is eligible shall remain in port or out of the area for the remainder of the management period unless using a gear for which no maximum number of days has been fixed. U.K.

9. Allocation of additional days for permanent cessations of fishing activities U.K.

[F1 9.1. An additional number of days on which a vessel may be present within the area when carrying on board any of the groupings of fishing gear referred to in point 3 may be allocated to Member States by the Commission on the basis of permanent cessation of fishing activities that have taken place since 1 January 2004 either in accordance with Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 2792/1999 or resulting from other circumstances duly motivated by Member States. Any vessels that can be shown to have been definitively withdrawn from the area may also be considered. The effort expended in 2003 measured in kilowatt days of the withdrawn vessels using the gear in question in the relevant area shall be divided by the effort expended by all vessels using that gear during the same year. The additional number of days shall then be calculated by multiplying the ratio so obtained by the number of days originally allocated. Any part of a day resulting from this calculation shall be rounded to the nearest whole day. This point shall not apply where a vessel has been replaced in accordance with point 4.1 or when the withdrawal has already been used in previous years to obtain additional days at sea.] U.K.

Textual Amendments

F1 Substituted by Council Regulation (EC) No 1533/2007 of 17 December 2007 amending Regulations (EC) No 2015/2006 and (EC) No 41/2007, as regards fishing opportunities and associated conditions for certain fish stocks.

9.2. Member States may re-allocate the additional number of days to any vessel or group of vessels using the conversion mechanism foreseen in point 11. U.K.

9.3. Member States wishing to benefit from the allocations referred to in point 9.1. shall submit a request to the Commission with reports containing the details of the permanent cessation of fishing activities in question. U.K.

9.4. On the basis of such a request the Commission may amend the number of days defined in point 7.1 for that Member State in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 30(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002. U.K.

Any additional number of days resulting from permanent cessation of activity previously allocated by the Commission remains allocated in 2007.

10. Allocation of additional days for enhanced observer coverage U.K.

10.1 Three additional days on which a vessel may be present within the area when carrying onboard any of the groupings of fishing gear referred to in point 3 may be allocated between 1 of February 2007 and 31 of January 2008 to Member States by the Commission on the basis of an enhanced programme of observer coverage in partnership between scientists and the fishing industry. Such a programme shall focus in particular on levels of discarding and on catch composition and go beyond the requirements on data collection, as laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1543/2000, Regulation (EC) No 1639/2001 and Regulation (EC) No 1581/2004 for the minimum and extended programme levels. U.K.

10.2 Member States wishing to benefit from the allocations referred to in point 11.1 shall submit a description of their enhanced observer coverage programme to the Commission. U.K.

10.3 On the basis of this description, and after consultation with STECF, the Commission may amend the number of days defined in point 7.1 for that Member State and for the vessels, the area and gear concerned by the enhanced programme of observers in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 30(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002. U.K.

Table I

Maximum number of days a vessel may be present within the area by fishing gear per year

Gearpoint 3	DenominationOnly the groupings of fishing gear referred to in point 3 are used	Western Channel
3.a.	Beam trawls of mesh size ≥ 80 mm	192
3.b.	Static nets with mesh size < 220 mm	192

EXCHANGES OF FISHING EFFORT ALLOCATIONS U.K.

11. Transfer of days between fishing vessels flying the flag of a Member State U.K.

11.1. A Member State may permit any of its fishing vessels flying its flag to transfer days present within the area for which it is eligible to another of its vessels flying its flag within the area provided that the product of the days received by a vessel and its engine power in kilowatts (kilowatt days) is equal to or less than the product of the days transferred by the donor vessel and the engine power in kilowatts of that vessel. The engine power in kilowatts of the vessels shall be that recorded for each vessel in the Community fishing fleet register. U.K.

11.2. The total number of days present within the area, multiplied by the engine power in kilowatts of the donor vessel, shall not be higher than the donor vessel's average annual days track record in the area as verified by the Community logbook in the years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 multiplied by the engine power in kilowatts of that vessel. U.K.

11.3. The transfer of days as described in point 12.1. shall be permitted only between vessels operating within the same gear grouping referred to in point 3 and during the same management period. U.K.

11.4. On request from the Commission, Member States shall provide reports on the transfers that have taken place. A detailed format of spreadsheet for making these reports available to the Commission may be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 30(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002. U.K.

12. Transfer of days between fishing vessels flying the flag of different Member States U.K.

Member States may permit transfer of days present within the area for the same management period and within the area between any fishing vessels flying their flags provided the same provisions as laid down in points 5.1, 5.2, 6 and 12. Where Member States decide to authorize such a transfer, as a preliminary they shall notify the Commission before such transfers take place of the details of the transfer, including the number of days transferred, the fishing effort and, where applicable, the fishing quotas relating thereto, as agreed between them.

USE OF FISHING GEAR U.K.

13. Notification of fishing gear U.K.

Before the first day of each management period the master of a vessel or his representative shall notify to the authorities of the flag Member State which gear or gears he intends to use during the forthcoming management period. Until such notification is provided the vessel shall not be entitled to fish within the area defined in point 1 with any of the groupings of fishing gear referred to in point 3.

14. Non-fishing related activities U.K.

In any given management period a vessel may undertake non-fishing related activities, without that time being counted against its days allocated under point 7, provided that the vessel first notifies its flag Member State of its intention to do so, the nature of its activity and that it surrenders its fishing licence for that time. Such vessels shall not carry any fishing gear or fish on board during that time.

TRANSIT U.K.

15. Transit U.K.

A vessel shall be allowed to transit across the area provided that it has no fishing permit to operate in the area or it has first notified its authorities of its intention to do so. While that vessel is within the area any fishing gears carried on board must be lashed and stowed in accordance with conditions laid down in Article 20(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93.

MONITORING, INSPECTION AND SURVEILLANCE U.K.

[F1 16. Fishing effort messages U.K.

Articles 19b, 19c, 19d, 19e and 19k of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 shall apply to vessels carrying on board the groupings of fishing gear defined in point 3 of this Annex and operating in the area defined in point 1 of this Annex. Vessels equipped with vessel monitoring systems in accordance with Articles 5 and 6 of Regulation (EC) No 2244/2003 shall be excluded from the hailing requirements set out in Article 19c of Regulation (EC) No 2847/93.]

17. Recording of relevant data U.K.

Member States shall ensure that the following data received pursuant to Articles 8, 10(1) and 11(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2244/2003 are recorded in a computer-readable form:

(a)

entry into, and exit from port;

(b)

each entry into, and exit from maritime areas where specific rules on access to waters and resources apply.

18. Cross-checks U.K.

Member States shall verify the submission of logbooks and relevant information recorded in the logbook by using VMS data. Such cross-checks shall be recorded and made available to the Commission on request.

19. Alternative control measures U.K.

Member States may implement alternative control measures to ensure compliance with the obligations referred to in point 16 which are as effective and transparent as these reporting obligations. Such alternative measures shall be notified to the Commission before being implemented.

20. Prior notification of transhipments and landings U.K.

The master of a Community vessel or his representative wishing to tranship any quantity retained on board or to land in a port or landing location of a third-country shall inform the competent authorities of the flag Member State at least 24 hours prior to transhipping or to landing in a third-country the information referred to in Article 19b of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93.

21. Margin of tolerance in the estimation of quantities reported in the logbook U.K.

By way of derogation from Article 5(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 2807/83, the permitted margin of tolerance, when estimating quantities, in kilograms retained on board of vessels referred to in point 16 shall be 8 % of the logbook figure. Where no conversion factors are laid down in Community legislation, the conversion factors adopted by the Member states whose flag the vessel is flying shall apply.

22. Separate stowage U.K.

When quantities of sole greater than 50 kg are stowed on board a vessel, it shall be prohibited to retain on board a fishing vessel in any container any quantity of Sole mixed with any other species of marine organism. The masters of Community vessels shall give inspectors of Member States such assistance as will enable the quantities declared in the logbook and the catches of sole retained on board to be cross checked.

23. Weighing U.K.

23.1. The competent authorities of a Member State shall ensure that any quantity of sole exceeding 300 kg caught in the area shall be weighed using auction room scales before sale. U.K.

23.2. The competent authorities of a Member State may require that any quantity of sole exceeding 300 kg caught in the area and first landed in that Member State is weighed in the presence of controllers before being transported from the port of first landing. U.K.

24. Transport U.K.

By way of derogation from Article 13 of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93, quantities greater than 50 kg of any species in fisheries referred to in Article 7 of this Regulation which are transported to a place other than that of landing or import shall be accompanied by a copy of one of the declarations provided for in Article 8(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 pertaining to the quantities of these species transported. The exemption provided for in Article 13(4)(b) of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 shall not apply.

25. Specific monitoring programme U.K.

By way of derogation from Article 34c(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93, the specific monitoring programme for any of the stocks in fisheries referred to in Article 7 may last more than two years from their date of entry into force.

REPORTING OBLIGATIONS U.K.

26. Collection of relevant data U.K.

Member States, on the basis of information used for the management of fishing days present within the area as set out in this Annex, shall collect for each annual quarter the information about total fishing effort deployed within the area for towed gears and static gears and effort deployed by vessels using different types of gear in the area concerned by this Annex.

27. Communication of relevant data U.K.

27.1. On request of the Commission, Members States shall make available to the Commission a spreadsheet with the data referred to in point 26 in the format specified in Tables II and III by sending it to the appropriate electronic mailbox address, which shall be communicated to the Member States by the Commission. U.K.

27.2. A new format of spreadsheet for the purpose of making the data referred to in point 26 available to the Commission may be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 30(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002. U.K.

Table II

Reporting format

Country	CFR	External marking	Length of management period	Area fished	Gear(s) notified				Special condition applying to notified gear(s)				Days eligible using notified gear(s)				Days spent with notified gear(s)				Transfer of days
					No1	No2	No3	…	No1	No2	No3	…	No1	No2	No3	…	No1	No2	No3	…
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)	(6)	(6)	(6)	(6)	(7)	(7)	(7)	(7)	(8)	(8)	(8)	(8)	(9)	(9)	(9)	(9)	(10)

Table III

Data format

a Relevant information for transmission of data by fixed-length formatting.
Name of field	Maximum number of characters/digits	AlignmentaL(eft)/R(ight)	Definition and Comments
(1) Country	3	n/r	Member State (Alpha-3 ISO code) in which vessel is registered for fishing under Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002. In the case of the donor, it is always the reporting country
(2) CFR	12	n/r	Community Fleet Register number Unique identification number of a fishing vessel. Member State (Alpha-3 ISO code) followed by an identifying series (9 characters). Where a series has fewer than 9 characters additional zeros must be inserted on the left hand side.
(3) External marking	14	L	Under Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1381/87
(4) Length of management period	2	L	Length of the management period measured in months.
(5) Area fished	1	L	Non relevant information in the case of Annex IIC.
(6) gear(s) notified	5	L	Indication of gear grouping notified in accordance with point 3 to Annex IIC (a or b)
(7) Special condition applying to notified gear(s)	2	L	Non relevant information in the case of Annex IIC.
(8) Days eligible using notified gear(s)	3	L	Number of days for which the vessel is eligible under Annex IIC for the choice of gear groupings and length of management period notified.
(9) Days spent with notified gear(s)	3	L	Number of days the vessel actually spent present within the area and using a gear corresponding to grouping gear notified during the notified management period according to Annex IIC.
(10) Transfers of days	4	L	For days transferred indicate ‘– number of days transferred’ and for days received indicate ‘+ number of days transferred’