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, and in particular Article 15(2) thereof,
Whereas:
(1)
Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 provides for the landing of all catches of species which are subject to catch limits and, in the Mediterranean, also catches of certain species which are subject to minimum sizes (‘the landing obligation’). Article 15(1) of that Regulation covers fishing activities in Union waters or by Union fishing vessels outside Union waters in waters not subject to third countries' sovereignty or jurisdiction.
(2)
The landing obligation will apply from 1 January 2015 at the latest to the small and large pelagic fisheries, fisheries for industrial purposes and fisheries for salmon in the Baltic sea.
(3)
The Union is a contracting party to a number of regional fisheries management organisations (‘RFMOs’) and is, therefore, bound by measures established by the RFMOs concerned.
(4)
Certain RFMO measures provide for fishing vessels fishing in their purview to discard certain catches which in principle fall under the landing obligation.
(5)
Article 15(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 empowers the Commission to adopt delegated acts for the purpose of implementing international obligations into Union law, including, in particular, derogations from the landing obligation.
(6)
It is therefore necessary to clarify the situations in which the landing obligation does not apply, in order to ensure compliance by the Union with its international obligations and create legal certainty for fishermen.
(7)
In accordance with Recommendation 11-01 of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (‘ICCAT’) on a multiannual conservation and management programme for bigeye and yellowfin tunas, certain fishing vessels should not be allowed to fish, retain on board, tranship, transport, transfer, process or land bigeye tunas in the Atlantic.
(8)
ICCAT Recommendation 13-07 establishes a discard obligation for vessels and traps catching Eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna in certain situations. In particular, paragraph 29 of that Recommendation states that bluefin tuna below a minimum reference weight or size is to be discarded. That minimum size is currently laid down in Council Regulation (EC) No 302/2009. That discard obligation applies to all Eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna fisheries, including recreational and sports fisheries.
(9)
Furthermore, paragraph 31 of ICCAT Recommendation 13-07 establishes a discard obligation for bluefin tuna weighing between 8 and 30 kg or with fork length between 75 and 115 cm, caught as incidental catch by vessels and traps actively fishing for this species and exceeding 5 % of the total bluefin tuna catches.
(10)
The weight category for the incidental catch of bluefin tuna established by Article 9(12) of Regulation (EC) No 302/2009 is different from that established by paragraph 31 of ICCAT Recommendation 13-07, which was adopted after the entry into force of that Regulation. Pending the review of Regulation (EC) No 302/2009, paragraph 31 of that ICCAT Recommendation should be implemented in Union law by this Regulation.
(11)
Paragraph 32 of ICCAT Recommendation 13-07 states that vessels not fishing actively for bluefin tuna are not authorised to retain bluefin tuna above 5 % of their total catch by weight or number of pieces.
(12)
Paragraphs 34 and 41 of ICCAT Recommendation 13-07 establish a release obligation for bluefin tuna caught alive in the framework of recreational and sport fisheries.
(13)
ICCAT Recommendation 13-02 for the conservation of North Atlantic swordfish establishes a discard obligation for vessels fishing for North Atlantic swordfish in certain situations. In particular, paragraph 9 states that swordfish below a minimum reference weight or size should be discarded. That minimum size is currently fixed in Council Regulation (EC) No 520/2007.
(14)
Furthermore, the same paragraph of Recommendation 13-02 establishes a discard obligation for swordfish weighing less than 25 kg live weight or 125 cm lower jaw fork length, caught as incidental catch and exceeding 15 % of the number of swordfish of the vessel's total swordfish catch per landing.
(15)
In order to ensure consistency between ICCAT recommendations 11-01, 13-07 and 13-02 and Union law, the landing obligation should not apply to Union vessels participating in the fisheries covered by those recommendations.
(16)
Article 5, Article 6.3 and Annex I.A of Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (‘NAFO’) conservation and enforcement measures establish a discard obligation for any catch of capelin above established quota or above the allowed by-catch percentage. Annex I.A currently establishes a total allowable catch (‘TAC’) of zero for capelin. In addition, capelin by-catch in other fisheries that fall under the landing obligation is, under certain conditions, also subject to a discard obligation in accordance with NAFO rules.
(17)
In order to ensure consistency between NAFO conservation and enforcement measures and Union law, the landing obligation should not apply to the fisheries covered by those measures.
(18)
In view of the time-frame laid down in Article 15(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013, this Regulation should enter into force immediately after the publication,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: