Workshop on measures to combat illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing AGR IND/EXP The current state of regulatory support of combating IUU fishing in EU countries The state of implementation of combating IUU fishing legislation in Lithuania. Mutual influence and relations of the EU and third countries legal systems Rūta Birutė DAUKŠIENĖ Customs Department under the Ministry of Finance, Lithuania Kiev, Ukraine 17 October, 2011

Definition of IUU fishing Illegal – conducted without the permission of the State or in contravention of its legislation Unreported – which have not been reported, or have been misreported to the relevant national authority, in contravention of national legislation Unregulated –conducted by fishing vessels without nationality or conducted in the area of application a relevant RFMO (regional fisheries management organisation) by fishing vessels of a State non party of that RFMO

Threats of IUU fishing To environment - to the sustainable exploitation of living aquatic resources and to maritime biodiversity To employment and security in fishing sector To economy – legitimate vessels, traders and market To developing coastal countries (in particular countries of Africa)

Combating IUU fishing. Legal basis (1/2) the UN FAO (United Nations Fisheries and Agriculture Organisation) international plan of action to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing the EU plan of action to eliminate IUU fishing 2008 m. –Council Regulation (EC) No1005/2008 establishing a Community system to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, amending Regulations (EEC) 2847/93, (EC) and (EC) 601/2004 and repealing Regulations (EC) No 109/94 and (EC) No 1447/1999 (the IUU fishing Regulation) last amended by Regulation (EU) No 202/2011

Combating IUU fishing. Legal basis (2/2) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1010/2009 laying down detailed rules for the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008 establishing a Community system to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing last amended by Regulation (EU) No 202/ –Commission Regulation (EU) No 468/2010 establishing the EU list of vessels engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing last amended by Regulation (EU) No 724/2011

Scope of the IUU fishing Regulation Regulation is applicable to  All fishing vessels within maritime waters  To fishery products with the exception of freshwater and aquaculture products ( Annex I of IUU fishing regulation)

Measures for combating IUU fishing Enforcement of scheme of inspections in port for third country fishing vessels, controls of landing and transshipment operations Enforcement of catch certification scheme Establishment of “black list” of IUU fishing vessels Establishment of a list of non-cooperating third countries Imposing sanction for serious infringements

Fishing vessel. Definition ‘ fishing vessel’ means any vessel of any size used or intended for use for the purposes of commercial exploitation of fishery resources, including support ships, fish processing vessels, vessels engaged in transhipment and carrier vessels equipped for the transportation of fishery products, except container vessels (Art. 2 of the IUU fishing Regulation)

Inspections in port scheme Designated ports Prior notice Authorisation to access the port Recording of landings or transhipment operations Inspection procedure Procedure in the event of infringement Chapter II of the IUU fishing Regulation

Designated ports Access to port services and and the conduct of landings or transhipment operations shall be authorised only in designated ports (in Lithuania Klaipeda port)

Prior notice Masters of third country fishing vessels or their representatives shall notify the competent authorities of MS at least three working days before the estimated time of arrival of the following information :  vessel identification;  name of the designated port and the purposes of the call, landing, transhipment or access to services;  fishing authorisation  estimated date and time of arrival at port  quantities of each species retained on board  zones where catch was made or transhipment took place  quantities of each species to be landed or transhiped Accompanied by a catch certificate

Authorisation to access the port Authorisation shall be granted only if:  Information of prior notice is complete  Fishery products are accompanied by a catch certificate Authorisation shall not be granted if: information is not complete or its verification is pending Fishery products are kept in storage under control of the competent authorities. If the process is not completed within 14 days MS may confiscate and dispose fishery products

Recording of landings or transhipment operations Masters of third country fishing vessels or their representatives shall submit to the authorities of Member States (if possible by electronic means) prior to landing or transhipment operations, a declaration indicating:  quantity of fishery products by species to be landed or transhipped  date and place of each catch. Masters and their representatives shall be held responsible for the accuracy of such declarations Fishery products are accompanied by a catch certificate MS shall keep the originals of declarations (or hard copies) for a period of three years

Inspection procedure Based on risk management (at least 5 % of fishing vessels) Fishing shall be inspected in cases:  prior notification has not been submitted  catch certificate has not been validated by the CA  the vessel engaged in activities considered as IUU fishing  the vessel reported in under Community’s alert system  the appearing in a “black list”

Procedure in the event of infringement IN case of suspicion that a fishing vessel has engaged in IUU fishing the official shall: Record the suspected infringement in the inspection report Take all necessary actions to ensure safekeeping of the evidence Forward the inspection report to the competent authority

Catch Certification Scheme (CCS) (1/2) Objective of CCS – to ensure that the fishery products obtained from the IUU fishing do not enter the EU market

Catch Certification Scheme (CCS) (2/2) Template in Annex II of the IUU fishing Regulation (Art. 12) Processing statement in Annex IV of the IUU fishing Regulation Simplified catch certificate for small vessels Recognised RFMO Schemes Excluded products in Annex I of the IUU fishing Regulation

Catch certificate All maritime fishery products to be imported to the EU must be accompanied by validated catch certificates Catch certificate:  Certifies that fishery products have been obtained legally  Ensures traceability of fishery products from a net to “a table” Issued in any official language of the EU

EU catch certificate form

Catch certificate validation (1/2) Submited to the competent authority for validation prior exportation, with the following information:  Fishing vessel details  Details of the consignment of fishery products to be exported  Applicable conservation and management measures  Transhipment details, if applicable  Transport details Validation – responsibility of the competent authority in the flag state of the fishing vessel All maritime fishery products to be imported to the EU must be accompanied by validated catch certificates Catch certificate:

Catch certificate validation (2/2) The catch certificate shall be validated if:  The authority is satisfied with information in the catch certificate  There are no grounds to doubt the accuracy and compliance with applicable management and conservation measures The catch certificate shall not be validated if:  The authority is not sure about the reliability of the information indicated in the catch certificate  The compliance with applicable conservation and management measures is not clear  Any infringements to the Common Fishery Policy were committed

Catch certificate. Product information A clear indication of the product shall be provided  For processed products several species can be mentioned  The product code 8 digit Combined Nomenclature (CN) code – 6 digits of the Harmonised System (HS), plus 2 digits of CN  The product must comply with Common Fisheries Policy  Weight of the consignment of fishery products to be exported in the box “Estimated live weight”

Catch certificate. Applicable conservation and management measures The box 4 is related to the species for which the catch certificate was issued and and the vessel has to comply It can either be the rules of the Control System for Fisheries (Common Fishery Policy) or measures adopted by RFMO An indication of the quota shall be provided

Catch certificate. Transshipment The transshipment can occur within a port (section 7) The declaration of the transshipment within a port is validated by the competent authority responsible for such control

Catch certificate. Transport details To ensure full traceability the transport details form shall be filled and signed by the exporter The information is related with the product transportation from the place where the exportation occurs If the products are exported from fishing vessel or from the transshipment receiver vessel, the fields should appear with the same information as in the CC

Validation. Final notes The CC can only be be validated if the information stated indicates a clear compliance with the legislation Validation means the acceptance of all stated in the CC The CC cannot be replaced or amended afterwards No CC can be validated for catches obtained by IUU activity

Importation to the EU

The Community IUU vessel list

Establishment of the IUU vessel list Vessel engaged in IUU fishing and whose flag State have not complied with the official requests to take all necessary measures Before placing to the list the Commission provides owner and operator with a detailed statement The Commission imposes obligations Notifies owner and operator of the vessel and flag State The Commission requests flag State :  Notify fishing vessels of the reasons and consequences  Take all necessary measures to eliminate IUU fishing and inform the Commission

Removal from the IUU vessel list The fishing vessel is no longer engaged in IUU fishing (at least 2 years) Proportionate, dissuasive and effective sanctions have been applied The vessel has sunk or has been scrapped

Non cooperating third countries A third country may be identified as a non- cooperating country if it fails to discharge the duties under international law as a flag, coastal or market state, to take actions to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing Fishing vessels flying the flag of non cooperating country shall not be granted access to the port of MS, except in case of force majeure (chapter VI of the IUU fishing Regulation)

Sanctions for serious infringements Serious infringements:  Activities considered to constitute IUU fishing  Conduct of business connected to IUU fishing  Falsification of documents Sanctions:  Effective, proportional and dissuasive  Of at least five times the value of fishery products  Repeated in a five-year period- of at least eight times the value of fishery products  Criminal sanctions

Thank you for your attention! Contacts: Ruta Birute Dauksiene Tel. + (370 5) Customs Department, Lithuania