(1)

Council Regulation (EU) 2016/72 (1) fixes for 2016 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in Union waters and, for Union vessels, in certain non-Union waters.

(2)

Regulation (EU) 2016/72 fixes the total allowable catch (TAC) for sandeel at zero. Sandeel is a short-lived species and scientific advice only became available on 22 February, while the fishery starts in April. The catch limits for this species should now be amended in line with the scientific advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). According to ICES, real-time monitoring is scientifically suitable for establishing the abundance of sandeel in management area 1, and results could be used to re-evaluate that scientific advice and to set an in-year TAC. However, that requires sufficient data (catches and biological sampling). The catch limit for sandeel in management area 1 should thus be set at a level allowing the collection of sufficient data on stock abundance.

(3)

According to the scientific advice from ICES, catches of small-eyed ray within ICES divisions VIId and VIIe-k and of blonde ray within ICES subarea IV should be reduced. As a consequence, local management measures limiting catches and providing better scientific information should be developed. ICES advised that in divisions VIIf and VIIg catches of small-eyed ray should be limited to no more than 188 tonnes. Therefore, it is appropriate to modify the corresponding fishing opportunities tables to allow for such catches and landings and to adapt the reporting provisions accordingly.

(4)

According to the scientific advice from ICES, the total catches for horse mackerel and associated by-catches in Union waters of ICES divisions IIa and IVa, subarea VI, divisions VIIa-c, VIIe-k, VIIIa, VIIIb, VIIId and VIIIe, Union and international waters of Vb and international waters of subareas XII and XIV should be fixed at 108 868 tonnes. Therefore, it is appropriate to correct the initial TAC in the fishing opportunities table in order to allow for an increased level of catches corresponding to the scientific advice from ICES.

(5)

Annex IB to Regulation (EU) 2016/72 provides that the fishing opportunities table for by-catches in Greenland waters should be corrected to allow for proper reporting of those by-catches.

(6)

In the light of consultations with Norway, it is appropriate to allocate 25 000 tonnes of blue whiting to Norway in exchange for Arctic cod and haddock, ling and some other species.

(7)

The quota allocations for cod in ICES subarea I and division IIb established in Annex IB to Regulation (EU) 2016/72 should be corrected to respect the quota distribution set out in Council Decision 87/277/EEC (2).

(8)

A reporting code needs to be included in Annex IF to Regulation (EU) 2016/72 for by-catches of orange roughy in SEAFO Sub-Division B1.

(9)

At its fourth annual meeting in 2016, the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) fixed a TAC for jack mackerel. That measure should be implemented in the Union law.

(10)

An error should be corrected in Appendix I to Annex IIa to Regulation (EU) 2016/72 regarding the maximum allowable fishing effort in kilowatt days for the Netherlands in the North Sea for the regulated gear BT1.

(11)

The number of fishing authorisations to be granted to Venezuela for vessels fishing for snappers in French Guiana waters and the maximum number of vessels that may be present at any time need to be established in Annex VIII to Regulation (EU) 2016/72.

(12)

The catch limits provided for in Regulation (EU) 2016/72 apply from 1 January 2016. The provisions of this Regulation concerning catch limits should therefore also apply from that date. Such retroactive application is without prejudice to the principles of legal certainty and protection of legitimate expectations as the fishing opportunities concerned have not yet been exhausted.

(13)

Regulation (EU) 2016/72 should therefore be amended accordingly,

(1)

Annex III to Commission Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 (2) sets out the list of third countries whose systems of production and control measures for organic production of agricultural products are recognised as equivalent to those laid down in Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

(2)

The recognition of Canada pursuant to Article 33(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 currently applies to, inter alia, processed agricultural products for use as food and for use as feed with organic ingredients that have been grown in Canada. Canada has submitted a request to the Commission to expand its recognition to processed products for use as food and for use as feed with organic ingredients imported from third countries and certified in accordance with Canada's legislation on organic products. Examination of the information submitted with that request, subsequent clarifications provided by Canada and an on-the-spot examination of the production and control measures applied to processed products with imported ingredients have led to the conclusion that in that country the rules governing production and control of processed products with imported organic ingredients are equivalent to those laid down in Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 889/2008 (3). Consequently, the recognition of the equivalence of Canada's systems of production and control measures should also apply to processed products for use as food and for use as feed with imported organic ingredients certified in accordance with Canadian legislation.

(3)

Moreover, Canada's existing recognition excludes organic wine. Canada has submitted a request to the Commission to expand its recognition to organic wine certified in accordance with Canada's legislation on organic products. Examination of the information submitted with that request and subsequent clarifications provided by Canada have led to the conclusion that in that country the rules governing production and control of organic wine are equivalent to those laid down in Regulations (EC) No 834/2007 and (EC) No 889/2008. Consequently, the recognition of the equivalence of Canada's systems of production and control measures should also apply to organic wine certified in accordance with Canadian legislation.

(4)

Annex IV to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 contains a list of control authorities and control bodies competent to carry out controls and issue certificates in third countries for the purpose of equivalence. As a consequence of the expansion of Canada's recognition to processed products for use as food and for use as feed with imported organic ingredients and to organic wine certified in accordance with Canadian legislation and the corresponding amendments of Annex III to that Regulation, the relevant control bodies recognised until now for the import of processed products for use as food with imported organic ingredients and of organic wine (product category D) from Canada should be deleted from Annex IV to that Regulation.

(5)

Annexes III and IV to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(6)

In order to allow the control bodies listed in Annex IV to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 that are recognised for Canada as regards processed products for use as food with imported organic ingredients and organic wine to adapt to the amendments made by this Regulation, the amendment of Annex IV to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 should apply only after a reasonable time period.

(7)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee on organic production,

(1)

Annex III is amended in accordance with Annex I to this Regulation;

(2)

Annex IV is amended in accordance with Annex II to this Regulation.

(1)

Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 implements in the law of the Union the commitments set out in the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (hereinafter ‘the Convention’) approved by Council Decision 2006/507/EC (2) on behalf of the Community, and in the Protocol to the 1979 Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution on Persistent Organic Pollutants approved by Council Decision 2004/259/EC (3), on behalf of the Community.

(2)

At the sixth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention from 28 April to 10 May 2013, it was agreed to add hexabromocyclododecane (hereinafter ‘HBCDD’) to Annex A (elimination) to the Convention. The elimination of HBCDD under the Convention was, however, made subject to a specific exemption, namely the use of HBCDD in expanded polystyrene and extruded polystyrene in buildings and the production of HBCDD for that purpose.

(3)

In view of the amendment of the Convention, it is necessary to amend Annexes IV and V to Regulation (EC) No 850/2004, adding HBCDD to the annexes and indicating the corresponding concentration limits, in order to ensure that wastes containing HBCDD are managed in accordance with the provisions of the Convention. HBCDD should be listed in Annexes IV and V to Regulation (EC) No 850/2004.

(4)

The proposed concentration limits in Annexes IV and V to Regulation (EC) No 850/2004 have been set applying the same methodology that was used for establishing the limit values in previous amendments of Annexes IV and V (4). The proposed concentration limits are considered the most appropriate to ensure a high level of protection of human health and the environment in view of the destruction or irreversible transformation of HBCDD. In order to take account of technical developments, and in particular of the review of the technical guidelines (5) of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, the concentration limit in Annex IV should be reviewed by the Commission within 3 years of the date of entry into force of this Regulation with a view to lowering the threshold.

(5)

In order to allow companies and competent authorities sufficient time to adapt to the new requirements, this Regulation should apply only from 6 months after the date of publication.

(6)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the committee established by Article 39 of Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (6),

(1)

In accordance with Article 67(3) of Regulation (EC) No 726/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (2), the revenue of the European Medicines Agency consists of a contribution from the Union and fees paid to it by undertakings. Regulation (EC) No 297/95 lays down the categories and levels of such fees.

(2)

Those fees should be updated by reference to the inflation rate of 2015. The inflation rate in the Union, as published by the Statistical Office of the European Union, was 0,2 % in 2015.

(3)

For the sake of simplicity, the adjusted levels of the fees should be rounded to the nearest EUR 100.

(4)

Regulation (EC) No 297/95 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(5)

For reasons of legal certainty, this Regulation should not apply to valid applications which are pending on 1 April 2016.

(6)

In accordance with Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 297/95, the update is to be made with effect from 1 April 2016. It is therefore appropriate that this Regulation enters into force as a matter of urgency and applies from that date,

(1)

Article 3 is amended as follows:

(2)

in Article 4, in the first paragraph, ‘EUR 69 300’ is replaced by ‘EUR 69 400’;

(3)

Article 5 is amended as follows:

(4)

in Article 6, in the first paragraph, ‘EUR 41 700’ is replaced by ‘EUR 41 800’;

(5)

in Article 7, in the first paragraph, ‘EUR 69 300’ is replaced by ‘EUR 69 400’;

(6)

Article 8 is amended as follows:

(1)

In order to monitor the application by Member States of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 and Directive 2005/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (2) the Commission should conduct inspections. The organisation of inspections under the supervision of the Commission is needed to verify the effectiveness of national quality control systems and maritime security measures, procedures and structures.

(2)

The Commission is assisted in the performance of the inspection tasks by the European Maritime Safety Agency established by Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council (3). In the performance of the inspection tasks in the context of the European Economic Area (EEA) the Commission calls upon the assistance of national inspectors listed by European Free Trade Association (EFTA) States in accordance with Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 116/2008 (4).

(3)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 (5) establishes procedural rules for conducting Commission inspections in the field of maritime security in a transparent, effective, harmonised and consistent manner.

(4)

In the light of the experience gained since 2008, it is necessary to ensure that Commission inspections under Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 are conducted in a consistent manner in accordance with the set procedure, including a standard methodology. The measures to enhance the cooperation with the Member States and exercise of Commission powers should be efficient and transparent.

(5)

Definitions of the terms used in the context of the conduct of Commission inspections should be further developed. The revisions do not extend the scope of inspections beyond the existing remit.

(6)

The Commission and the Member States should work in cooperation together during the preparation and the conduct of the Commission inspections.

(7)

The Commission should have the possibility of including in its inspection teams qualified national inspectors made available by the Member States that meet the necessary qualification and training criteria.

(8)

To ensure a transparent and efficient conduct of Commission inspections the provisions should be clear and further developed, notably in the case of a ship inspection which concludes in a port of a Member State other than that of the port of embarkation. The issue of inspection of EU flagged ships at a location outside the European Union should be clarified to deal with the specific logistical constraints of such inspections.

(9)

Sensitive but non-classified information related to an inspection should be handled under strict security measures to guarantee its confidentiality and non-disclosure.

(10)

Regulation (EC) No 324/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(11)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 11(1) of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004,

(1)

Article 2 is amended as follows:

(2)

Article 3 is replaced by the following:

(3)

in Article 4, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

(4)

Article 5 is amended as follows:

(5)

Article 6 is replaced by the following:

(6)

Article 7 is amended as follows:

(7)

Article 8 is amended as follows:

(8)

Article 10 is amended as follows:

(9)

in Article 11, paragraphs 4 and 5 are replaced by the following:

(10)

in Article 12, the following paragraph 3 is added:

(11)

Articles 14 and 15 are replaced by the following:

(12)

in Article 16, the first paragraph is replaced by the following:

‘If an inspection discloses a major non-conformity with Regulation (EC) No 725/2004 or Directive 2005/65/EC which is deemed to have a significant impact on the overall level of maritime security in the Union and that cannot be immediately addressed at least by corrective measures of a provisional nature, the Commission shall inform the other Member States after having notified that major non-conformity to the Member State concerned.’.

(1)

Implementing Regulation (EU) No 543/2011 lays down, pursuant to the outcome of the Uruguay Round multilateral trade negotiations, the criteria whereby the Commission fixes the standard values for imports from third countries, in respect of the products and periods stipulated in Annex XVI, Part A thereto.

(2)

The standard import value is calculated each working day, in accordance with Article 136(1) of Implementing Regulation (EU) No 543/2011, taking into account variable daily data. Therefore this Regulation should enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union,

(1)

Commission Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU (4) lays down animal health control measures in relation to African swine fever in certain Member States. The Annex to that Implementing Decision demarcates and lists certain areas of those Members States in Parts I, II, III and IV of that Annex differentiated by the level of risk based on the epidemiological situation. That list includes certain areas of Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

(2)

Since February 2015, no outbreaks of African swine fever in domestic pigs have been notified in the areas of Poland that are listed in Part III of the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU. In addition, supervision of biosecurity measures has been implemented in a satisfactory manner in holdings in those areas based on the national programme for biosecurity aimed at the prevention of the spread of African swine fever. These facts indicate an improvement in the epidemiological situation. Accordingly, those areas of that Member State should now be listed in Part II, instead of Part III, of the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU.

(3)

In February 2016, one case of African swine fever in wild boar occurred in Estonia in the areas listed in Part II of the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU, in close proximity to the areas listed in Part I of that Annex. Accordingly, certain areas listed in Part I should be listed in Part II of the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU.

(4)

The evolution of the current epidemiological situation in the Union as regards African swine fever should be considered in the assessment of the risk represented by the animal health situation as regards that disease in Estonia and Poland. In order to focus animal health control measures and to prevent the further spread of African swine fever, as well as to prevent any unnecessary disturbance to trade within the Union and to avoid unjustified barriers to trade by third countries, the Union list of areas subject to the animal health control measures set out in the Annex to Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU should be amended to take into account the changes in the current epidemiological situation as regards that disease in Estonia and in Poland.

(5)

Implementing Decision 2014/709/EU should therefore be amended to modify the areas listed in Parts I and II of Estonia and in Parts II and III of Poland.

(6)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,