Maritime and fisheries policy

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Technical Measures for the Protection of Marine Organisms

Overall state of play:

Evaluation: finalised in July 2014, external evaluation study,
Proposal adopted on 11 March 2016, COM(2016) 134
Legal Act: adopted on 20 June 2019, Regulation (EU) 2019/1241
Triannual report: the first report adopted in September 2021, COM(2021)583 and then every 3 years (Article 31 Regulation 2019/1241)

State of play, main conclusions, outlook

Across all Union sea basins and non-Union waters in which Union vessels operate there were more than 30 applicable regulations which contained technical measures. The evaluation of those technical measures regulations showed that the previous measures were overly complex and largely ineffective. They did not have clear, well-defined objectives and targets nor did they provide positive incentives which would reward responsible practices and incentivise compliance. Control of the measures was considered costly and the governance structure was found to be inflexible and very much top-down with limited consultation with stakeholders.

The Commission proposal aimed at simplifying the framework of technical measures in the context of the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and making it more effective, by integrating the different technical measures regulations in an overall regulation and implementing rules per sea-basins.

State of Play:

Finalised in 2014, external evaluation study

Scope:

The technical measures regulations were not considered effective by Member States and stakeholders, which found them to be too complex, over-prescriptive, and difficult to understand, control and enforce. Therefore, the Commission carried out a retrospective evaluation of the technical measures regulations.

Evaluation findings:

The external evaluation study assessed the technical measures regulations against the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and acceptability criteria. The evaluation showed that the technical measures are still needed and continue to be relevant as management tools utilised to regulated fishing mortality and impacts of fishing on the marine ecosystem. Some shortcomings were identified as regards the effectiveness of the measures as regards avoiding catches of juvenile fish or unwanted fish species and as regards minimising interactions with protected species.

State of Play:

Adopted by the Commission on 11 March 2016, COM(2016) 134

Which objective(s) did the Commission pursue?

The Commission aimed at creating the flexibility required to adjust technical measures by facilitating regionalised approaches (consistent with the objectives in Union law).

Developing a new simplified technical measures framework in the context of the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) also involved integrating the different technical measures regulations in an overall regulation and implementing rules per sea-basins. A similar integration was achieved as regards control in 2009 with dispersed provisions being gathered into a single consistent instrument.

The new landing obligation required existing legal and practical impediments to be removed. While the new framework was developed, the “Omnibus Regulation” to amend, among other, the existing technical measures can be seen as a first step to adapt the “acquis” to the new CFP.

State of Play:

Adopted on 20 June 2019, Regulation (EU) 2019/1241; in force since 14 August 2019.

Outcome of Legislative Procedure

The proposed simplification objectives were retained with no significant variations from the Commission proposal.

State of Play:

Regulation (EU) 2019/1241 - application with effect from 14/08/2019
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/967, laying down certain rules on the characteristics of acoustic deterrent devices as referred to in Part A of Annex XIII of Regulation (EI) 2019/1241- application with effect from 02/08/2020.

Implementation reported by the Commission

The Commission has to submit a triannual report to the European Parliament and to the Council, on the implementation of the regulation. The first report was due in 2020, but due to delays in the scientific advice process due to COVID19 pandemic, it was adopted in September 2021¹. This report was based on the information assessed by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) and information supplied by Member States and the relevant Advisory Councils. It also contained advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) on the progress or the impact of innovative gear.

¹ https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2021:583:FIN