PURPOSE: to amend Council Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008 establishing a long-term plan for cod stocks and the fisheries exploiting those stocks.
LEGISLATIVE ACT: Regulation (EU) 2016/2094 of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008 establishing a long-term plan for cod stocks and the fisheries exploiting those stocks.
CONTENT: Council Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008 establishes a long-term plan for cod stocks in the Kattegat, the North Sea, the Skagerrak and the eastern Channel, the west of Scotland and the Irish Sea, and for the fisheries exploiting those stocks.
The scientific evaluation of the performance of Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008 carried out by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) has shown a number of problems with the application of that Regulation.
With the application of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council as from 1 January 2014, the management framework for cod has changed fundamentally, in particular through the introduction of a landing obligation.
It also introduced a measure which obliges the Council to set the total allowable catches (TACs).
The fishing effort regime set out in Regulation (EC) No 1342/2008 resulted in a number of achievements concerning selectivity and other measures to avoid catching cod, but it has become an obstacle to the implementation of the landing obligation. Therefore, it is necessary to put an end to the fishing effort management regime.
Therefore, this Regulation amends the 2008 Regulation establishing a long-term plan for cod stocks as follows:
Objective of the plan: the Regulation stipulated that the plan aims to ensure exploitation that restores and maintains the cod stocks above levels which can produce maximum sustainable yield (MSY).
Any management measure taken pursuant to this Regulation shall be consistent with the requirements laid down in the common fisheries policy and with the principles and aims of that Regulation.
Minimum and precautionary biomass levels: when adopting management measures, minimum and precautionary biomass levels for each of the cod stocks shall be consistent with the objectives of the common fisheries policy.
Setting of TACs in poor data conditions: where, due to a lack of sufficiently accurate and representative information, fishing opportunities cannot be determined, the fixing of fishing opportunities shall be based on the precautionary approach, taking into account trends in the cod stock and in the fishing activity, and ensuring at least a comparable degree of conservation of the relevant stocks.
Fishing authorisations and capacity ceilings: the amended Regulation lays down the obligation for the Member States to ensure that, in each of the geographical areas covered by the plan, the fishing capacity shall not be greater than that observed in 2006 or 2007.
ENTRY INTO FORCE: 7.12.2016.
APPLICATION: from 1.1.2017.