15.8.2008   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 209/30

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Declare that:

the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 1(1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2241/87 (1) of 23 July 1987 establishing certain control measures for fishing activities and Article 2(1) and Article 31(1) and (2) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 (2) of 12 October 1993 establishing a control system applicable to the common fisheries policy;

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order the Italian Republic to pay the costs.

1.

Since it was introduced in 1992, the prohibition on retaining on board and using drift-nets of a length greater than 2.5 Km and, since 2001, drift-nets of any length, has been systematically infringed on a massive scale by the Italian fishing fleet.

2.

According to the Commission, the extent and seriousness of the situation are directly attributable to the inefficiencies in the Italian system for monitoring compliance with that prohibition and the inadequacy of the penalties imposed under Italian legislation for infringement of that prohibition.

3.

In that connection, the Commission observes that the supervision of the use of drift-nets is conducted by numerous organisations which are competing with each other and in such a way that other tasks entrusted to them take precedence over that supervision, which is, moreover, not adequately coordinated. The lack of human resources, time and the necessary means prevents effective control being carried out.

4.

Adequate strategic programming and planning for the control of the use of drift-nets is also lacking. The Commission observes that the controls should be carefully programmed on the basis of specific risk factors and a comprehensive, integrated and rational strategy. There should also be a greater focus on certain periods of the year and on specific regions and control posts. At present, however, no such action is being taken by the Italian authorities.

5.

The authorities responsible for surveillance of the use of drift-nets do not have access to information on the location of fishing vessels gathered by the satellite vessel monitoring system (VMS) provided for in Article 3 of Regulation No 2847/93. It is apparent from an investigation carried out by the Commission that a significant number of fishing vessels are still not equipped with the satellite-tracking devices necessary for the proper functioning of the VMS. As regards the collection of data, the computerisation of logbooks, landing declarations and sales notes required under Regulation No 2847/93 and, a fortiori, the cross-analysis of those data with the information collected by the VMS, are far from being fully implemented.

6.

If the surveillance of the use of drift-nets carried out by the Italian authorities appears to be wholly unsatisfactory, then no more efficient is their prevention of infringements of Community provisions on the retention and use of such nets.

7.

In that connection, the Commission observes, first of all, that, contrary to Article 9a of Regulation No 3094/86 (3) and the measures which subsequently repeated and expanded the content of that provision, the Italian legislation in force governing penalties prohibits, essentially, only the use or attempted use of drift-nets but not their simple retention on board.

8.

Secondly, when it is found that an infringement of the prohibition on the use of drift-nets has actually occurred, it is not duly reported by the local surveillance authorities to the competent authorities, principally due to existing social pressures, and it is not in any event effectively pursued and penalised. The number and range of penalties imposed is, in fact, derisory.

9.

The Commission therefore considers that it has been amply demonstrated that the system of controls and penalties put in place in Italy to ensure compliance with the Community provisions on drift-nets is wholly inadequate for the purposes of securing compliance with the obligations imposed on the Member States by Article 1(1) of Regulation No 2241/87 and Article 2(1) and Article 31(1) and (2) of Regulation No 2847/93.