Council Regulation (EC) No 43/2009Show full title

9. Use of gillnets in ICES Zones IIIa, IVa, Vb, VIa, VIb, VIIb, c, j, k, VIII, IX, X and XII

9.1. For the purposes of this point, gillnet and entangling net means a gear made up of a single piece of net and held vertically in the water. It catches living aquatic resources by gilling, entangling or enmeshing.

9.2. For the purposes of this point, trammel net means a gear made up of two or more pieces of net hung jointly in parallel on a single headline and held vertically in the water.

9.3. Community vessels shall not deploy gillnets, entangling nets and trammel nets at any position where the charted depth is greater than 200 metres in ICES Zones IIIa, IVa, Vb, VIa, VIb, VII b, c, j, k, and XII east of 27^o W, and as from 1 October 2009 in ICES zones VIII, IX, X.

9.4. By way of derogation from point 9.3 it shall be permitted to use the following gear:

(a)

Gillnets in ICES Zones IIIa, IVa, Vb, VIa, VIb, VII b, c, j, k and XII east of 27^o W with a mesh size equal to or greater than 120 mm and less than 150 mm, gillnets in ICES Zones VIIIa, b, d and X with a mesh size equal to or greater than 100 mm and less than 130 mm and gillnets in ICES Zones VIIIc and IX with a mesh size equal to or greater than 80 mm and less than 110 mm provided that they are deployed in waters of less than 600 metres charted depth, are no more than 100 meshes deep, have a hanging ratio of not less than 0,5, and are rigged with floats or equivalent floatation. The nets shall each be of a maximum of five nautical miles in length, and the total length of all nets deployed at any one time shall not exceed 25 km per vessel. The maximum soak time shall be 24 hours; or

(b)

Entangling nets with a mesh size equal to or greater than 250 mm, provided that they are deployed in waters of less than 600 metres charted depth, are no more than 15 meshes deep, have a hanging ratio of not less than 0,33, and are not rigged with floats or other means of floatation. The nets shall each be of a maximum of 10 km in length. The total length of all nets deployed at any one time shall not exceed 100 km per vessel. The maximum soak time shall be 72 hours;

(c)

Gillnets in ICES Zones IIIa, IVa, Vb, VIa, VIb, VIIb, c, j, k and XII East of 27^o W with a mesh size equal to or greater than 100 mm and less than 130 mm, provided that:

• they are deployed in waters of more than 200 meters charted depth and less than 600 meters charted depth,

• are no more than 100 meshes deep, have a hanging ratio of not less than 0,5,

• are rigged with floats or equivalent floatation,

• the nets shall each be of a maximum of four nautical miles in length, and the total length of all nets deployed at any one time shall not exceed 20 km per vessel,

• the maximum soak time shall be 24 hours,

• no less than 85 % of the retained catch by weight is comprised of hake,

• the number of vessels participating in the fishery shall not increase above the level recorded in 2008,

• the master of the vessel participating in this fishery shall record in the log-book, prior to leaving port, the quantity and total length of gear carried on board the vessel. A minimum of 15 % of departures shall be subject to inspection,

• the master of the vessel must have on board 90 % of the gear as verified in the Community logbook for that trip at the time of landing, and

• the quantity of all species caught greater than 50 kg, including all quantities discarded greater than 50 kg, must be recorded in the Community logbook.

However, this derogation shall not apply in the NEAFC Regulatory Area.

9.5. Only one of the types of gear described in points 9.4(a) and 9.4(b) shall be carried aboard the vessel at any one time. To allow for the replacement of lost or damaged gear, vessels may carry on board nets with a total length 20 % greater than the maximum length of the fleets that may be deployed at any one time. All gear shall be marked in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 356/2005 of 1 March 2005 laying down detailed rules for the marking and identification of passive fishing gear and beam trawls(1).

9.6. All vessels deploying gillnets or entangling nets at any position where the charted depth is greater than 200 metres in ICES Zones IIIa, IVa, Vb, VIa, VIb, VII b, c, j, k, and XII east of 27^o W, and as from 1 October 2009 in ICES Zones VIII, IX, X, must hold a special fixed net fishing permit issued by the flag Member State.

9.7. The master of a vessel with a fixed net permit referred to in point 9.6 shall record in the logbook the amount and lengths of gear carried by a vessel before it leaves port and when it returns to port, and must account for any discrepancy between the two quantities.

With regard to vessel benefiting from the derogation referred to in point 9.4(c) a minimum of 15 % of departures shall be subject to inspection.

9.8. The naval services or other competent authorities shall have the right to remove unattended gear at sea in ICES Zones IIIa, IVa, Vb, VIa, VIb, VII b, c, j, k, and XII east of 27^o W, and as from 1 October 2009 in ICES Zones VIII, IX, X, in the following situations:

(a)

the gear is not properly marked;

(b)

the buoy markings or VMS data indicate that the owner has not been located at a distance less than 100 nautical miles from the gear for more than 120 hours;

(c)

the gear is deployed in waters with a charted depth greater than that permitted;

(d)

the gear is of an illegal mesh size.

9.9. The master of a vessel with a fixed net permit referred to in point 9.6 shall be recorded in the logbook the following information during each fishing trip:

• the mesh size of the net deployed,

• the nominal length of one net,

• the number of nets in a fleet,

• the total number of fleets deployed,

• the position of each fleet deployed,

• the depth of each fleet deployed,

• the soak time of each fleet deployed,

• the quantity of any gear lost, its last known position and date of loss.

9.10. Vessels fishing with a fixed net permit referred to in point 9.6 shall only be permitted to land in the ports designated by the Member States in accordance with Article 7 of Regulation (EC) 2347/2002.

9.11. The quantity of sharks retained on board by any vessel using the gear type described in point 9.4(b) shall be no more than 5 % by live-weight of the total quantity of marine organisms retained on board.

9.12. The Commission may decide, after consultation of the STECF, to exclude certain fisheries, in ICES Zones VIII, IX, X, from application of points 9.1 to 9.11, where information provided by Member States shows that those fisheries result in a very low level of shark by-catches and of discards.

(1)

OJ L 56, 2.3.2005, p. 8.