EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM FOR EUROPEAN UNION LEGISLATION
12963/16
12963/16 ADD 1
13272/16
13272/16 ADD 1
C(2016) 6272 FINAL
C(2016) 6272 FINAL - ANNEX 1
C(2016) 6439 final
C(2016) 6439 FINAL - ANNEX 1
COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) …/... OF 4.10.2016 ESTABLISHING A DISCARD PLAN FOR CERTAIN DEMERSAL FISHERIES IN THE NORTH SEA AND IN UNION WATERS OF ICES DIVISION IIA
ANNEX TO THE COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION ESTABLISHING A DISCARD PLAN FOR CERTAIN DEMERSAL FISHERIES IN THE NORTH SEA AND IN UNION WATERS OF ICES DIVISION IIA
COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) …/... OF 12.10.2016 ESTABLISHING A DISCARD PLAN FOR CERTAIN DEMERSAL FISHERIES IN NORTH-WESTERN WATERS
ANNEX TO THE COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) .../.... ESTABLISHING A DISCARD PLAN FOR CERTAIN DEMERSAL FISHERIES IN NORTH-WESTERN WATERS
Submitted by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
October 2016
SUBJECT MATTER
1. Following lengthy negotiations between the European Institutions, the reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) (Regulation (EU) no 1380/2013) entered into force on 1 January 2014. The reform included:
a) A legally binding commitment to set fishing rates at sustainable levels by 2015 where possible, and by no later than 2020 at the latest.
b) A genuine process of decentralisation in decision making (commonly referred to as regionalisation).
c) A phased introduction of a landing obligation on quota stocks which will end the practice of discarding.
2. These Delegated Regulations have been adopted by the Commission in line with the provisions of paragraph 6 of article 15 of Regulation 1380/2013. They contain the detailed discard plans that are necessary to support the phased implementation of the landing obligation for the demersal fisheries of the North-Western Waters (NWW) and the North Sea (NS). The demersal landing obligation for these areas is subject to a phased introduction between 1 January 2016 and 1 January 2019. In both sea areas the United Kingdom has significant fishing and management interests. The regulations set out the terms of the agreement reached between Member State regional groups for the second year of this period. The agreements that have been reached will see additional fisheries become subject to the landing obligation in 2017.
3. The process to develop these Regulations has seen Member States that participate in these fisheries in the NWW and NS take advantage of the regionalisation process to provide joint recommendations on how to tailor the rules of the landing obligation to resolve specific challenges in each region. In both cases the recommendations set out:
a) The precise geographical regions affected, the fish species involved and the fishing gears employed.
b) Scientifically justified exemptions to the landing obligation based on high survival rates when fish that have been caught are returned to the sea post capture.
c) A small number of scientifically justified de minimis exemptions to the landing obligation where landing unwanted fish would have had a disproportionate cost to the businesses affected or where further selectivity was not possible in the short term.
4. In both instances the Regulations that have been brought forward by the Commission have included, in full, the joint recommendations made by the Member State regional groups.
SCRUTINY HISTORY
5. The Parliamentary scrutiny history relevant to this proposal is contained in the attached Annex A.
MINISTERIAL RESPONSIBILITY
6. Responsibility lies with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Scottish Ministers, Welsh Ministers and Northern Ireland Executive Ministers.
INTEREST OF THE DEVOLVED ADMINISTRATIONS
7. The Devolved Administrations have fishing interests in the NWW and NS and have been consulted in the preparation of this Explanatory Memorandum.
LEGAL AND PROCEDURAL ISSUES
8. i. Legal basis
Article 43(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Articles 15(6) and 18(1) and (3) of Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU) No 1380/2013.
The Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) opt-in is not a consideration.
ii. European Parliament Procedure
The parliament can vote on the act and reject it if they have a majority.
iii. Voting procedure
Qualified Majority Voting.
iv. Impact on United Kingdom Law
The proposed Regulation would be directly applicable and no further legislative action would be required to implement the basic proposal.
v. Application to Gibraltar
Not applicable.
vi. Fundamental rights analysis
No fundamental rights arise from this Document.
APPLICATION TO THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA.
9. This proposal will not affect the European Economic Area Agreement.
SUBSIDIARITY
10. This proposal falls under the exclusive competence of the European Union and therefore the Subsidiarity principle does not apply.
POLICY IMPLICATIONS
11. On 23 June, the EU referendum took place and the people of the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation.
12. The new regionalisation process has been developed over the past two years and was the basis for the recommendation on which species to include under the landing obligation in 2017.
13. Content of the discard plans was based on joint recommendations that were developed and agreed by regional groups of Member States including the UK. Member States of both the NWW and NS demonstrated an appetite to use the new process to tailor the rules to best fit the needs of each fishery.
14. In addition to working with other Member States the Ministers and officials from across the UK’s fishing administrations worked closely with UK industry to identify their concerns. This enabled the UK to represent industry effectively and tailor the recommendations appropriately. The fisheries that have been chosen for the second year of the demersal landing obligation are those where it is believed that the industry is best placed to adapt to the new rules. The phased approach provides policy officials with time to deal with issues that have been identified as preventing a smooth introduction of the landing obligation, for example to amend conflicting legislation that prevents fishermen from fishing selectively: it is intended to repeal the Cod Recovery Plan (CRP) before 1 January 2017, in order to allow cod to be introduced under the landing obligation in the North Sea in 2017. It also gives fishers time to adapt fishing gears and further develop onshore markets.
15. The final recommendations, agreed by Member States, for exemptions to the landing obligation were reviewed by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) and found to be scientifically robust. These recommendations were submitted to the Commission by the regional groups in June 2016 and were incorporated into the Commission proposals. Unless the Council of Ministers or European Parliament object, these implementing rules will come into effect on 1 January 2017 and the exemptions will be available to UK industry where they are applicable.
North Western Waters
16. Eight stocks shall be subject to the landing obligation in the North West Waters from 2017, with five stocks to be newly introduced or brought more fully under the landing obligation:
· A landing obligation shall be introduced for all Pollack caught with trammel nets and gill nets in ICES areas VIId and VIIe.
· In the cod, haddock, whiting and saithe fishery in area VI and Union and international waters of area Vb, the landing obligation shall be extended to cover by-catch of sole, plaice and megrim, and the Norway lobster fishery shall be extended to cover by-catch of haddock.
· The 2016 landing obligation shall be extended to include midwater otter trawls (OTM) and midwater pair trawls (PTM) for the Norway lobster; hake; and cod, haddock, whiting and saithe fisheries of ICES areas VI and VII and Union waters of area Vb.
· A greater proportion of some trawl and seine fisheries shall be included under the landing obligation in 2017 through the reduction of thresholds used to define the fisheries, including:
o Hake fisheries (threshold reduced to 20%) and Norway lobster fisheries (ditto 20%) in ICES areas VI and VII and Union and international waters of area Vb.
o Cod, haddock, whiting and saithe fisheries in areas VI and Union and international waters of Vb (5%) and in areas VIIb-k (20%).
o The common sole fishery in area VIIe (5%).
17. An exemption from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013, for species for which scientific evidence demonstrates high survival rates, shall apply in 2017 to catches of common sole (Solea solea) below the minimum conservation reference size, caught with otter gear trawls with cod end mesh size of 80-99mm in ICES area VIId, within six nautical miles of the coast and outside identified nursery areas, by vessels of maximum length 10m and maximum engine power 180kW, fishing in water with a depth of 15m or less and with tow durations of no more than 1:30 hours.
18. An exemption from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 for species for which scientific evidence demonstrates high survival rates was confirmed to continue in 2017 for Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) caught in pots, traps or creels in ICES area VII and extended to cover the whole of area VI.
19. Exemptions from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2016 for catches falling under the de minimis exemptions continue to apply to common sole caught in ICES areas VIId-VIIg by vessels using trammel and gill nets; and for Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) in ICES area VII.
20. Exemptions from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2016 for catches falling under the de minimis exemptions were extended for:
· catches of whiting (Merlangius merlangus) in ICES areas VIId and VIIe by vessels using bottom trawls of less than 100mm was extended to vessels using bottom trawls and seines of less than 100mm and pelagic trawls.
· catches of whiting (Merlangius merlangus) in areas VIIb – VIIj by vessels using bottom trawls of not less than 100mm was extended to vessels using bottom trawls and seines of not less than 100mm and pelagic trawls.
· catches of whiting (Merlangius merlangus) in area VII (except areas VIIa, d and e) by vessels using bottom trawls of less than 100mm was extended to vessels using bottom trawls and seines of not less than 100mm and pelagic trawls.
· catches of Norway lobster (Nephrops norvegicus) in ICES area VIa was extended to the whole of ICES area VI.
· catches of common sole (Solea solea) by vessels using TBB gear with mesh size of 80-119mm with increased selectivity in ICES divisions VIId, VIIe, VIIf and VIIg was extended to also include ICES area VIIh.
North Sea
21. Nine species will be subject to the landing obligation in the North Sea from 2017, with five species included or brought more fully under the discard ban:
· Cod will be brought under the landing obligation for certain gears: trawls using a mesh size not less than 100mm; beam trawls not less than 120mm: gill nets, trammel nets, and entangling nets; and hooks and lines. This shall apply only if the Cod Recovery Plan, Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008, is amended prior to 1 January 2017.
· Whiting will be brought under the landing obligation for most gears: trawls using a mesh size not less than 100mm, and a mesh size of 32-69mm; beam trawls not less than 120mm; gill nets, trammel nets and entangling nets; hooks and lines; and traps.
· Norway lobster (also called Nephrops) will be extended to cover all gears.
· Common sole will be extended to cover all gears.
· Haddock will be extended to cover all gears.
22. Specific technical measures continue to apply in the Skagerrak (area IIIa). This has no impact on the UK fishing fleet, which does not fish in this area.
23. The exemption from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 for species for which scientific evidence demonstrates high survival rates shall apply to catches of Norway lobster under the following updated catch conditions for 2017:
· catches with pots;
· catches in ICES Division IIIa with bottom trawls with a mesh size of at least 70mm equipped with a species selective grid with bar spacing of maximum 35mm;
· catches in ICES Division IIIa with bottom trawls with a mesh size of at least 90mm equipped with a seltra panel;
· In 2017, catches in ICES Division IV with bottom trawls with a mesh size of at least 80mm equipped with a netgrid selectivity device.
24. The exemption from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013, for species for which scientific evidence demonstrates high survival rates, shall apply in 2017 to catches of common sole below the minimum conservation reference size made within six nautical miles of the coast in ICES area IVc and outside identified nursery areas, caught with otter trawls with cod end mesh size of 80-99mm. This exemption only applies to vessels of maximum length 10m and maximum engine power 180hW, when fishing in waters with a depth of 15m or less, and with tow durations of no more than 1:30 hours.
25. The high survivability exemption for sole (24), and the extension to the high survivability exemption to catches of Norway lobster in area IV (23.4), were successfully requested by the UK in order to assist the UK fishing industry.
26. Exemptions from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2016 for catches falling under the de minimis exemptions continue to apply with the same conditions as 2016 to common sole catches by trammel nets and gill nets in ICES areas IIIa and IV and Union waters of ICES area IIa; common sole below minimum conservation reference size caught with beam trawls in area IV; and Norway lobster below minimum conservation reference size caught using bottom trawls in ICES area IV and Union waters of ICES Division IIa.
27. Three other de minimis exemptions apply to fisheries in area IIIa – these are not relevant to the UK as the UK fleet does not fish in this area. Full details on these are in the delegated act.
28. A de minimis exemption from the landing obligation provided for in Article 15(4)(c) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2016 that was applied in 2016 to catches of common sole smaller than 19cm by vessels using beam trawls of mesh size 80-90mm in the southern part of the North Sea (ICES Subarea IV South of 55/56°N), no longer applies in 2017.