Regulation 2010/1013 - Implementing rules on the Union Fleet Policy as defined in Chapter III of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 (Codified version) - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 293/1

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1438/2003 of 12 August 2003 laying down implementing rules on the Community Fleet Policy as defined in Chapter III of Council Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 (2) has been substantially amended several times (3). In the interests of clarity and rationality the said Regulation should be codified.

The adjustment in fishing capacity of the Union fishing fleet should be monitored closely to bring it into line with the available resources. To that end, Chapter III of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 sets out a number of specific measures.

Rules should be laid down to ensure the correct implementation of Chapter III of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 by the Member States, taking into account all relevant parameters for the management of fleet capacity, in terms of tonnage (GT) and power (kW), provided for in that Regulation and also in Council Regulation (EC) No 2792/1999 of 17 December 1999 laying down the detailed rules and arrangements regarding Community structural assistance in the fisheries sector (4). This Regulation should take account of the Accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia on 1 May 2004 and of Bulgaria and Romania on 1 January 2007.

Reference levels for fishing capacity should be fixed at 1 January 2003 for the fleet of each Member State listed in Annex I, Part A, with the exception of their fleets registered in the outermost regions.

Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 allows Member States to rebuild 4 % of the annual average tonnage scrapped with public aid between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2006 and 4 % of the tonnage scrapped with public aid as from 1 January 2007.

Article 13 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 takes account of the requirement, as currently laid down in Article 25(3)(b) and (c) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006 of 27 July 2006 on a European Fisheries Fund (5), to reduce by at least 20 % the power of an engine that has been replaced with public aid, excluding engine replacements in the small-scale coastal fisheries as defined in that Regulation.

It is necessary to establish rules for the adjustment of the reference levels to take account of Article 11(4), (5) and (6), and, for reasons of transparency, Article 13(1)(b)(ii) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 and of the remeasurement of the Union fishing fleet. After completion of the measurement of all fishing vessels, the adjustment rule should be maintained for a strict application of the entry-exit regime in terms of tonnage.

Requests by the Member States listed in Annex I, Part A submitted to the Commission before 31 December 2002 to increase their objectives in the Fourth Multiannual Guidance Programme (MAGP IV), as was provided for in Article 6(2) of Regulation (EC) No 2792/1999, and Article 3 and Article 4(2) of Council Decision 97/413/EC (6), are to be taken into account where appropriate for the determination of reference levels.

It is necessary to establish a calculation method in order to assess whether Member States manage entries into and exits from their fleet of fishing vessels in compliance with Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002.

The exemption from the entry-exit regime for the vessels that joined the fleet as from 1 January 2003 or, for the Member States listed in Annex I, Part B, as from the accession date, should take into account an administrative decision adopted respectively before 1 January 2003 or before the accession date. For the calculation of the overall fishing capacity of the fleet at 1 January 2003 special treatment should be given to entries into the fleet of vessels for which such administrative decisions were taken, provided that those vessels entered the fleet not later than 5 years after the date of the administrative decision by the concerned Member State.

Implementing rules are needed for decisions by Member States on the eligibility of modernisation works to improve safety, working conditions, product quality and hygiene on board vessels as referred to in Article 11(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002, in order to ensure a transparent assessment and an equal treatment of the requests, while preventing any increase in fishing effort as a result of such works.

Increases in enclosed volume over the main deck do not affect the tonnage of vessels under 15 m in length overall, in accordance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 2930/86 of 22 September 1986 defining characteristics for fishing vessels (7). Therefore, the modernisation of these vessels above the main deck is not taken into account when adapting the reference levels according to Article 11(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002.

Member States should be allowed to grant a limited increase in tonnage to new or existing vessels in order to improve safety, hygiene, working conditions and product quality on board, provided it does not increase the ability of the vessels to catch fish and gives priority to small-scale coastal fisheries within the meaning of Article 26 of Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006. That increase should be linked to their efforts to adjust fishing capacity with public aid between 1 January 2003 or 1 May 2004 and 31 December 2006 and from 1 January 2007 onwards.

It is necessary to lay down implementing rules to ensure that clear rules and procedures are set for the way Member States transmit data to the Union fishing fleet register and new validation rules are needed to guarantee the quality and the reliability of such data.

The annual reports and the summary thereof made by the Commission in accordance with Article 14 of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 should give a clear picture of the equilibrium between fleet fishing capacity and fishing opportunities.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture,

exclusively used in aquaculture as defined in Article 3(d) of Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006; or

registered in the outermost regions of France, Portugal and Spain as indicated in point 1 of Article 355 of the Treaty.

‘GTa1’ or ‘the total tonnage of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2006’ means the total tonnage of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2006. In the formula concerning the reference level in tonnage in Article 4 this value is only taken into account for the amount of capacity that went beyond the tonnage reduction necessary to comply with the reference levels under Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002.

For the Member States listed in Annex I, Part B, ‘GTa1’ or ‘the total tonnage of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between 1 January 2003 and 31 December 2006’ means the total tonnage of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between the accession date and 31 December 2006;

‘GTS’ or ‘the total tonnage increases granted under the provisions of Article 11(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002’ means the total tonnage increases granted under Article 11(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 and registered before the date for which GTt is calculated;

‘GTa2’ or ‘the total tonnage of vessels leaving the fleet with public aid after 31 December 2006’ means the total tonnage of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between 1 January 2007 and the date for which GTt is calculated. In the formula concerning the reference level in tonnage in Article 4 this value is only taken into account for the amount of capacity that went beyond the tonnage reduction necessary to comply with the reference levels under Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002;

‘GT100’ or ‘the total tonnage of vessels of more than 100 GT entering the fleet with public aid granted after 31 December 2002’ means the total tonnage of vessels of more than 100 GT that entered into the fleet between 1 January 2003 and the date for which GTt is calculated, and for which an administrative decision by the Member State concerned to grant aid was taken after 31 December 2002.

For the Member States listed in Annex I, Part B ‘GT100’ or ‘the total tonnage of vessels of more than 100 GT entering the fleet with public aid granted after 31 December 2002’ means the total tonnage of vessels of more than 100 GT that entered into the fleet between 1 May 2004 and the date for which GTt is calculated, and for which an administrative decision by the Member State concerned to grant aid was taken after 30 April 2004;

‘kWa’ or ‘the total power of vessels leaving the fleet with public aid after 31 December 2002’ means the total power of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between 1 January 2003 and the date for which kWt is calculated. In the formula concerning the reference level in power in Article 4 this value is only taken into account for the amount of capacity that went beyond the power reduction necessary to comply with the reference levels under Article 12(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002.

For the Member States listed in Annex I, Part B ‘kWa’ or ‘the total power of vessels leaving the fleet with public aid after 31 December 2002’ means the total power of vessels that left the fleet with public aid between 1 May 2004 and the date for which kWt is calculated;

‘kW100’ or ‘the total power of vessels of more than 100 GT entering the fleet with public aid granted after 31 December 2002’ means the total power of vessels of more than 100 GT that entered into the fleet between 1 January 2003 and the date for which kWt is calculated, and for which an administrative decision by the Member State concerned to grant aid was taken after 31 December 2002.

For the Member States listed in Annex I, Part B ‘kW100’ or ‘the total power of vessels of more than 100 GT entering the fleet with public aid granted after 31 December 2002’ means the total power of vessels of more than 100 GT that entered into the fleet between 1 May 2004 and the date for which kWt is calculated, and for which an administrative decision by the Member State concerned to grant aid was taken after 30 April 2004;

‘GTt’ means the total tonnage of the fleet, calculated at any given date after 1 January 2003;

‘Δ(GT-GRT)’ or ‘the result of the remeasurement of the fleet’ means the difference between the total capacity in terms of tonnage of the fleet on 1 January 2003 and the same value recalculated once the remeasurement of the fleet in GT is completed in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 2930/86;

‘kWt’ means the total power of the fleet calculated at any date after 1 January 2003;

‘main deck’ means the ‘upper deck’ as defined by the International Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships, 1969;

‘kWr’ or ‘the total power of the engines replaced with public aid conditional to a power reduction’ means the total power of the engines replaced with public aid after 31 December 2006 under the provisions of Article 25(3)(b) and (c) of Regulation (EC) No 1198/2006.

deducting:

and adding the total tonnage increases granted under the provisions of Article 11(5) of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002 (GTS).

deducting:

and adding:

the total power of vessels leaving the fleet with public aid after 31 December 2002 (kWa);

20 % of the total power of the engines replaced with public aid conditional to a power reduction (kWr);

35 % of the total power of vessels of more than 100 GT entering the fleet with public aid granted after 31 December 2002 (kW100).

deducting:

and adding:

the total power of vessels leaving the fleet with public aid on or after the accession date (kWa);

20 % of the total power of the engines replaced with public aid conditional to a power reduction (kWr);

35 % of the total power of vessels of more than 100 GT entering the fleet with public aid granted on or after the accession date (kW100).

the vessel has not already been granted an increase in tonnage under those provisions;

the vessel has an overall length of 15 m or more;

the age of the vessel, calculated as the difference between the date of receipt of the application and the date of entry into service as defined in Article 6 of Regulation (EEC) No 2930/86, is at least 5 years;

the increase in tonnage is the result of modernisation works to be performed with the purpose of improving safety on board, working conditions, hygiene or product quality;

the works referred to in point (d) do not increase the volume under the main deck;

the works referred to in point (d) do not result in additional volume devoted to fish holds or fishing gear.

each entry into or exit from the fleet;

each modernisation of a vessel that affects its fishing capacity.

the internal number and the name of the vessel;

the fishing capacity of the vessel in GT and kW;

the port of registration of the vessel;

the nature and dates of the following events:

whether the event is supported with public aid;

if appropriate, the date of the administrative decision by the Member State to grant that aid;

in the case of a modernisation, the modification of power (in kW), the modification of tonnage (in GT) above and below the main deck.

national implementing rules and instruments to ensure compliance with Chapter III of Regulation (EC) No 2371/2002;

administrative procedures for fleet monitoring and surveillance and information on which authorities are involved;

information on the development of fleet capacity, in particular on withdrawals and renewals with public aid;

plans to reduce the fleet in order to comply with the reference levels where appropriate;

information on the development of fleet capacity in their outermost regions in relation to transfers of vessels between the mainland and the outermost regions;

information on the impact on fleet capacity of effort limitation schemes, in particular when they are part of a recovery plan or a multiannual management plan;

any other information deemed relevant and useful for the purpose of the exchange of information and best practices between Member States.

a description of the fishing fleets in relation to fisheries: development(s) during the previous year, including fisheries covered by multiannual management or recovery plans;

the impact on fishing capacity of fishing effort reduction schemes adopted under multiannual management or recovery plans or, if appropriate, under national schemes;

information on the compliance with the entry/exit scheme and with the level of reference;

a summary report on the weaknesses and strengths of the fleet management system together with a plan for improvements and information on the general level of compliance with fleet policy instruments;

any information on changes of the administrative procedures relevant to the management of the fleet.

Bulgaria

Czech Republic

Estonia

Cyprus

Latvia

Lithuania

Hungary

Malta

Poland

Romania

Slovenia

Slovakia

‘GTFR’ means the fishing capacity of the fleet on 1 January 2003 in terms of tonnage as calculated on the basis of the Union fishing fleet register;

‘GT1’ means the total tonnage of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 with public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002, for which an associated capacity was withdrawn without public aid between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002;

‘GT2’ means the total tonnage of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 with public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 2002 and 30 June 2002 in an MAGP IV segment that did not comply with its objectives, for which an associated capacity withdrawal without public aid has taken place after 31 December 2002;

‘GT3’ means the total tonnage of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 without public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002, for which an associated capacity was withdrawn without public aid between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002;

‘GT4’ means the total tonnage of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 with public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2001 in an MAGP IV segment that did not comply with its objectives, for which an associated capacity withdrawal without public aid has taken place 31 December 2002;

‘kWFR’ means fishing capacity of the fleet on 1 January 2003 in terms of power as calculated on the basis of the Union fishing fleet register;

‘kW1’ means the total power of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 with public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002, for which an associated capacity was withdrawn without public aid between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002;

‘kW2’ means the total power of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 with public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 2002 and 30 June 2002 in an MAGP IV segment that did not comply with its objectives, for which an associated capacity withdrawal without public aid has taken place 31 December 2002;

‘kW3’ means the total power of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 without public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002, for which an associated capacity was withdrawn without public aid between 1 January 1998 and 31 December 2002;

‘kW4’ means the total power of vessels which entered the fleet after 31 December 2002 with public aid based on an administrative decision taken between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2001 in an MAGP IV segment that did not comply with its objectives, for which an associated capacity withdrawal without public aid has taken place 31 December 2002.

‘GTFR’ means the fishing capacity of the fleet on the date of accession in terms of tonnage as calculated on the basis of the Union fishing fleet register;

‘GT1’ means the total tonnage of vessels which entered the fleet after the accession date based on an administrative decision taken up to 5 years before the accession date;

‘kWFR’ means fishing capacity of the fleet on the date of accession in terms of power as calculated on the basis of the Union fishing fleet register;

‘kW1’ means the total power of vessels which entered the fleet after the accession date based on an administrative decision taken up to 5 years before the accession date.