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Principle

Commercial fishing within Slovenian waters is subject to a licensing system (Article 8 (4) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

The Marine Fisheries Act of 2006 establishes two broad categories of commercial fishing permits:

1. regular commercial fishing permits to operate within Slovenian waters; and

2. special commercial fishing permits authorizing commercial fishing activities: (i) in areas in which or periods during which fishing is otherwise prohibited in accordance with the provisions of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006; or (ii) in accordance with international treaties to which Slovenia is a party (Article 17 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Application

Application for a commercial fishing permit is made to the Ministry responsible for marine fisheries. In order to be eligible, any applicant must fulfil the following conditions:

1. where the applicant is a natural person:

   1. he/she who wants to acquire status ob fisherman – natural person accordance to the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006, must not be owner or co-owner of commercial company or mustn’t be registered as a legal person, mustn't be pension beneficiary and has to declare in writing, that he/she will practice only commercial fishing;

   2. he/she must satisfy professional qualification standards to conduct commercial fishing operations;

   3. he/she must use a fishing vessel meeting required technical standards;

   4. he/she must not be prohibited from engaging in commercial fishing activities pursuant to any legal decision or ruling issued by a court of law or by any other competent authority;

2. where the applicant is a legal person:

   1. its head office must be located in the Republic of Slovenia;

   2. it must be registered as a fishing company;

   3. it must employ at least one person satisfying professional qualification standards to conduct commercial fishing operations;

   4. it must use fishing vessels meeting required technical standards;

   5. it must not be prohibited from engaging in commercial fishing activities pursuant to any legal decision or ruling issued by a court of law or any other competent authority (Article 11 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Issuance

Commercial fishing permits are issued by the Minister responsible for marine fisheries (Article 10(1) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006). A separate commercial fishing permit is issued in respect of each vessel for which such a permit is sought (Article 18 (2) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2002).

Special commercial fishing permits are issued by the Minister responsible for marine fisheries on the basis of a valid commercial fishing permit or of an international treaty to which Slovenia is a party. Several commercial fishing permits may be issued in respect of one fishing vessel (Article 25 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2002).

Conditions of use

No fishing gear or tools other than those mentioned in the commercial fishing permit must be carried on board the authorized vessel (Article 19 (4) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

No authorized vessel must engage in commercial fishing within Slovenian waters, unless there is at least one professionally qualified person on board (Article 11 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Duration

Commercial fishing permits are issued for an indefinite period of time (Article 12 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Suspension or revocation

A commercial fishing permit ceases to be valid upon (Article 13 (1) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006):

1. the death of the permit holder (natural person);

2. the cessation of any commercial fishing activity;

3. the cessation of sole proprietor;

4. the cessation of any commercial fishing activity;

5. retirement off fisherman - natural person;

6. change off data which are inscribed in commercial fishing permit;

7. removal of natural person from the register of fishermen – natural persons according to Marine Fisheries Act of 2006;

8. the cessation of registration or intended use of vessel;

9. removal of vessel from Register of European Community vessels;

10. the cessation of conditions which are obligatory (Article 11 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006) to get commercial fishing permit.

A commercial fishing permit must be taken away temporarily or permanently by Minister responsible for marine fisheries ex officio:

1. in case of serious violations of European Community rules, which impose compulsory measure of temporal or permanent seizure of commercial fishing permit;

2. when the permit holder for the third consecutive time violates European Community rules which prescribe temporary seizure of commercial fishing permit (permit is taken away permanently).

A commercial fishing permit is temporary revoked when the permit holder files in written pleading to Minister responsible for marine fisheries (Article 16 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

A special commercial fishing permit ceases to be valid upon expiry of the period for which it was issued or ceases to be valid upon expiry of commercial fishing permit. Violation of any condition inscribed in the special commercial fishing permit results in such a permit to be automatically revoked (Article 18 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

A sports fishing permit is required to engage in sport fishing within Slovenian waters, whereas a daily or weekly fishing ticket is required for any person wishing to engage in recreational marine fishing within those waters. It should be noted, however, that no permit or ticket is required for engaging in sport and recreational fishing activities from the shore (Article 26 (7) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006). An underwater sports fishing permit is required to engage in sport fishing using an underwater gun (Article 28 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

To be issued a sports fishing permit a person does not have to be a member of a sport marine fishing organization. However a person wishing to apply for an underwater sport permit must be a member of a sport fishing organization (Article 28 (1) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Issuance of a sport fishing permit and of a recreational fishing ticket are subject to the payment of a fee to be determined by the Minister responsible for marine fisheries (Article 26 (5) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

No person is allowed to conduct scientific research operations within Slovenian waters without having first obtained a non-commercial fishing permit issued by the Minister responsible for marine fisheries (Article 25 (2) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

The EU Council has the general competence for fishery management regulations, that means European Commission and Member States have implementation functions.
EU Council regulations are self-executing in Member States. So EU Council regulations represent the fundamental corpus of rules applied by Italian and Slovenian fishing fleets.
Member States may take measures for the conservation and management of stocks in waters under their sovereignty or jurisdiction provided that:

1. they apply solely to fishing vessels flying the flag of the Member State concerned and registered in the Community or, in the case of fishing activities which are not conducted by a fishing vessel, to persons established in the Member State concerned; and

2. they are compatible with the objectives set out in the Common Fishery Policy and no less stringent than existing Community legislation.

Concerning sustainable fishery development in the Adriatic Sea and in other Mediterranean waters, it is necessary to take note of the following basic regulations:

1. Council Reg. 3690/1993/EEC;

2. Council Reg. 1626/1994/EEC;

3. Council Reg. 2371/2002/EC.

The paragraph concerning access regimes to fishery resources (commercial fishing licenses, recreational fishing and scientific permits) explains above all Council Reg. 3690/1993/EEC and the Article 17 Reg. 2371/2002/EC.

Council Reg. 1626/1994/EEC and other norms of Council Reg. 2371/2002/EC shall be discussed in detail in the following paragraphs.

Council Reg. 3690/1993/EEC (Art. 2 and 3) fix the minimum information to be mentioned in the license: size of vessel in GT, power of engine in KW, length of vessel, EU registration number, name of the license holder, fishing zones and gear that can be carried on board and used from the vessel. Inside or outside European waters, no vessel can be used for commercial fishing purposes without first having been granted a license by a Member State as a ‘flag State’.

Council Reg. 2371/2002/EC repeals Council Reg. 3760/92/EEC and concerns the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the newly adopted Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) whose objective should therefore be to provide for the sustainable exploitation of living aquatic resources and of aquaculture in the context of sustainable development, taking account of the environmental, economic and social aspects in a balanced manner. The scope of CFP is followed according to the precautionary principle referred to in Article 174 of the European Treaty and bearing in mind the provisions of Article 117 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, without prejudice to the primary responsibility of the flag State.
Article 17 of Reg. 2371/2002/EC establishes the following general rules on access to waters and resources:

1. Community fishing vessels shall have equal access to waters and resources in all Community waters other than those referred to in paragraph 2, subject to the measures adopted under Chapter II.

2. In the waters up to 12 nautical miles from baselines under their sovereignty or jurisdiction, Member States shall be authorised from 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2012 to restrict fishing to fishing vessels that traditionally fish in those waters from ports on the adjacent coast, without prejudice to the arrangements for Community fishing vessels flying the flag of other Member States under existing neighbourhood relations between Member States and the arrangements contained in Annex I, fixing for each Member State the geographical zones within the coastal bands of other Member States where fishing activities are pursued and the species concerned.

3. By 31 December 2011 the Commission shall present to the European Parliament and the Council a report on the arrangements set out in this paragraph. The Council shall decide before 31 December 2012 on the provisions which will follow the abovementioned arrangements.

To date the EU Council has not introduced relevant regulations on this matter. There are some guidelines and general advice to control sustainability and to collect data, above all for species managed by international commissions such as ICCAT.

Inclusion of definitions of key concepts and terms in basic fisheries legislation is primarily designed to facilitate the good understanding of the Act and thus avoid any problem of interpretation in implementing the provisions of this Act. In addition, it enables lawmakers to modify (restrict or broaden) the meaning of common words for the specific purpose of the Act and implementing regulations. For instance, the meaning of the word fish is commonly broadened so as to include not only fish, but also crustaceans, molluscs and other types of aquatic organisms.

Key concepts and terms that are examined in this chapter are as follows: breeding of marine organisms, fishing permit, fishing gear, fisheries reserves and fisherman.

Breeding of marine organisms is defined as “breeding in accordance with the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006 and in accordance with rules on nature conservation and it's purpose of placing it on the market” (Article 4 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Fishing permit is defined “as a permit for recreational fishing”.

Fishing gear is defined “as a gear for performing commercial fishing and non-commercial fishing”.

Fisheries reserve is defined “as an area designed for fish protection”.

Fisherman - natural person is defined “as a individual, which has the right to perform commercial fishing”.

Council Reg. 2371/2002/EC repeals Council Reg. 3760/92/EEC and concerns the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fisheries resources under the new adopted Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), whose objective should therefore be to provide for sustainable exploitation of living aquatic resources and of aquaculture in the context of sustainable development, taking account of the environmental, economic and social aspects in a balanced manner. The scope of CFP is followed according to the precautionary principle referred to in Article 174 of the European Treaty and bearing in mind the provisions of Article 117 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, without prejudice to the primary responsibility of the flag State.
Article 3 establishes the following definitions:

1. "Community waters" means the waters under the sovereignty or jurisdiction of the Member States with the exception of waters adjacent to the territories mentioned in Annex II to the Treaty;

2. "living aquatic resources" means available and accessible living marine aquatic species, including anadromous and catadromous species during their marine life;

3. "fishing vessel" means any vessel equipped for commercial exploitation of living aquatic resources;

4. "Community fishing vessel" means a fishing vessel flying the flag of a Member State and registered in the Community;

5. "sustainable exploitation" means the exploitation of a stock in such a way that the future exploitation of the stock will not be prejudiced and that it does not have a negative impact on the marine eco-systems;

6. "fishing mortality rate" means the catches of a stock over a given period as a proportion of the average stock available to the fishery in that period;

7. "stock" means a living aquatic resource that occurs in a given management area;

8. "fishing effort" means the product of the capacity and the activity of a fishing vessel; for a group of vessels it is the sum of the fishing effort of all vessels in the group;

9. "precautionary approach to fisheries management" means that the absence of adequate scientific information should not be used as a reason for postponing or failing to take management measures to conserve target species, associated or dependent species and non-target species and their environment;

10. "limit reference points" means values of fish stock population parameters (such as biomass or fishing mortality rate), which should be avoided because they are associated with unknown population dynamics, stock collapse or impaired recruitment;

11. "conservation reference points" means values of fish stock population parameters (such as biomass or fishing mortality rate) used in fisheries management, for example with respect to an acceptable level of biological risk or a desired level of yield;

12. "safe biological limits" means indicators of the state of a stock or of its exploitation inside which there is a low risk of transgressing certain limit reference points;

13. "catch limit" means a quantitative limit on landings of a stock or group of stocks over a given period unless otherwise provided for in Community law;

14. "fishing capacity" means a vessel's tonnage in GT and its power in kW, as defined in Articles 4 and 5 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2930/86(9). For certain types of fishing activity, capacity may be defined by the Council using for example the amount and/or the size of a vessel's fishing gear;

15. "exit from the fleet" means the removal of a fishing vessel from the fishing fleet register of a Member State, provided that Article 15(1) is complied with;

16. "entry into the fleet" means the registration in the fishing fleet register of a Member State of a fishing vessel;

17. "fishing opportunity" means a quantified legal entitlement to fish, expressed in terms of catches and/or fishing effort;

18. "Community fishing opportunity" means the fishing opportunities available to the Community in Community waters, plus the total Community fishing opportunities outside Community waters, less the Community fishing opportunities allocated to third countries.

EU Council regulations are self-executing for all European Member States. That means Council Reg. (EC) No. 1967/2006 concerning management measures for the sustainable exploitation of fishery resources in the Mediterranean Sea, amending Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 and repealing Council Reg. EC No. 1626/94 has direct application in Italy and Slovenia. These two Member States can only introduce more restrictive norms in order to improve marine resources protection without impacting on other community fishery fleets.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia has the legal obligation to devise and adopt a fishing development plan. Such program must include the following particulars:

• the state of the fishery resources;

• the strategy to achieve optimum exploitation of fishery resources throughout Slovenian waters;

• the goals to be achieved;

• the structural and other measures for the realization of these goals; and

• a financial plan for the implementation of the fishing development program (Article 9 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

In 2007 Republic of Slovenia prepared management plan (FMP). On fist management plan STECF replied and since then Slovenia submitted 3 versions of management plan, last version in 2011. The management plan for fisheries in waters within the jurisdiction of the Republic of Slovenia (hereinafter FMP – Fisheries Management Plan) relates exclusively to commercial marine fishing in Slovenia’s territorial seas and has no effect on the fishing vessels of other Member States. The FMP has been compiled in accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 1967/2006 of 21 December 2006 concerning management measures for the sustainable exploitation of fishery resources in the Mediterranean Sea, amending Regulation (EEC) No 2847/93 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1626/94, Article 19 of which requires Member States to adopt management plans for certain fisheries in territorial waters; the FMP also takes into account Article 9 of the Marine Fisheries Act (OGRS, 115/2006). In accordance with the first paragraph of Article 19 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1967/2006, the FMP addresses the following types of fishing gear: trawl nets, boat seines, shore seines, surrounding nets and dredges.

The FMP is divided into three sections. The first section is intended to provide a general overview of marine fisheries, and is supplemented with an analysis of the socio-economic situation of Slovenian fisheries. The second section analyses in detail the data for those segments of fisheries that must be included in the FMP pursuant to the provisions of Council Regulation (EC) No 1967/2006, as well as those that employ passive fishing gear, in accordance with the second paragraph of Article 19 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1967/2006. In the section covering an analysis of fishing using purse seines (PS), Slovenia resubmits the request for the derogation regarding the size of the surrounding nets contained in previous proposed FMPs. The third and final section, which follows the conclusions, contains the management plans, which are drafted in such a way that they: (1) incorporate a cautious approach to fisheries management; (2) cover a period of several years and set out the anticipated timeframes for achieving the set objectives; (3) direct the set objectives towards the sustainable exploitation of stocks and keep the impact of fishing activities on the marine ecosystem at a sustainable level.

a) Fishing effort
In order to ensure the sustainable exploitation of the fishery resources within Slovenian waters, the number of commercial fishing permits must be commensurate to fishing possibilities. If such number exceeds estimated fishing possibilities, the Minister responsible for marine fisheries must stop issuing any new commercial fishing permits, except when the new vessel is intended to replace an authorized vessel (Article 10 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

b) Fishing gear
In Slovenian internal and territorial waters, it is strictly prohibited to:

1. use St Andrew’s crosses or similar equipment for harvesting corals;

2. use or carry on board fishing vessels any toxic or corrosive substances, electric shock generators or explosive substances;

3. use pneumatic hammers for gathering fishery resources;

4. use any type of dredges;

5. use surrounding nets and seine nets from a fishing vessel in a way that enables fishing from the shore; and

6. use any type of device enabling underwater breathing.

Person performing commercial fishing activities must carry on board evidence on professional competence.

Vessels from witch sport or recreational fishing activities are preformed must not hinder fishing vessels performing commercial fishing activities.

During performance of commercial fishing activities, only fishing gears used for fishing activities and gears listed in commercial fishing permit or special commercial fishing permit can be on board of the fishing unit.

Use of dredges in Slovenian internal and territorial waters may be permitted by the Minister responsible for marine fisheries for scientific research or educational purposes (Article 25 (6) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

c) Protection of juvenile fish
According to Reg. EC No. 1967/2006, excessive catches of undersized individuals should be avoided. Intentional catching of juvenile fish is strictly prohibited throughout Slovenian waters.

d) Fisheries reserves
Two fisheries reserves have been created in Slovenian waters for the protection of fishery resources and aquaculture namely, the Portorož fisheries reserve and the Strunjan fisheries reserve (Article 32 (1) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

In fisheries reserves, commercial fishing activities is prohibited. However, in the event of the appearance of winter schools of fish, the Minister responsible for marine fisheries may permit commercial fishing therein. The period, methods of fishing and other conditions for carrying out such commercial fishing operations must be specified in the special commercial fishing permit issued by the Minister responsible for marine fisheries (Article 17 (2) and (4) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

No non-commercial fishing activities other than sport and recreational fishing from the shore are allowed in fisheries reserves (Article 32 (4) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

No vessel other than those in respect of which a special commercial fishing permit has been issued are authorized to navigate through fisheries reserves (Article 32 (3) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

e) Prohibited fishing areas
In order to protect fishery resources from excessive exploitation, the Minister responsible for marine fisheries may, in a specified area or for specific sorts of fishe, temporarily prohibit practicing commercial fishing, if European Community determines inconsisten of fishing with fishing opportunities, which assure sustainable us of fish (Article 15 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

Article 26 (9) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006 empowers the Minister responsible for marine fisheries to prescribe, inter alia, the fishing gear and methods that may be used in sport and recreational fishing as well as the daily bag limits applicable to such activities.

Article 28 (4) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006 also empowers the Minister responsible for marine fisheries to prescribe, inter alia, the fishing gear and methods that may be used for sport fishing using an underwater gun as well as the daily bag limits applicable to such activities.

Sport fishing using an underwater gun is prohibited from sunset to sunrise (Article 29 (1) of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

All vessels involved in commercial fishing activities must be registered in fleet vessels register (Article 20 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2006) and every legal or individual person who is involved in commercial fishing activities must obtain fishing permit. Slovenia is keeping a permanent record of issued fishing permits (Article 11 of Marine Fisheries Act of 2006).

The tasks of monitoring, control and surveillance are according to the Marine Fisheries Act performed by Inspectorate of the Republic of Slovenia for Agriculture, Forestry and Food.

The tasks of inspectors are defined in Article 44 of the marine Fisheries Act of 2006. More stringent requirements regarding the monitoring and reporting of catches are prescribed in the Republic of Slovenia than those in Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009. The masters of all fishing vessels, also vessels shorter than 10 meters, under the Slovenian flag, have to fill in the fishing logbook and landing declaration. Before landing, the masters of fishing vessels have to record all the species and quantities of the fisheries products caught in the fishing logbook. Immediately after landing, the masters also have to fill in the landing declaration, in which all actually landed quantities have to be recorded for all the species and quantities of the fisheries products caught. Slovenian equipped all vessels above 15 meters with vessel monitoring system and also 4 vessels under 15 meters. Slovenia’s intention is to equip all vessels using trawls with VMS in 2013. Slovenia is in process of implementing electronic log books system in accordance with the Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 of 20 November 2009.

a) Fishing fleet registers
Council Reg. (EC) 2371/2002 establishes that each Member State shall keep a register of the Community fishing vessels flying its flag which shall include the minimum information on vessel characteristics and activity that is necessary for the management of measures established at Community level.
The same Reg. EC 2371/2002 dictates that the European Commission shall set up a Community fishing fleet register containing the information that it receives from each Member State and shall make it available to other Member States.
It is opportune to note that the provisions for fleet registers are not a new introduction but originate from previous EC regulations.

b) Monitoring and data collection
Where monitoring, control and surveillance are concerned, Reg. EC 2371/2002 requires that:

• a fishing vessel shall have installed on board fully-working system which allows the detection and identification of the vessel by remote monitoring systems. This requirement applies to vessels exceeding 18 metres overall length as from 1 January 2004 and to vessels exceeding 15 metres overall length as from 1 January 2005;

• the master shall without undue delay record and report information on fishing activities, including landings and transhipments. Copies of the records shall be made available to the authorities. (The Council shall decide on the obligation to transmit such records electronically. In order to assess the technology to be used, Member States, in cooperation with the Commission, shall carry out pilot projects);

• the master shall accept inspectors on board and cooperate with them; and where an observer scheme applies, the master shall also accept observers on board and cooperate with them;

• the master shall respect conditions and restrictions relating to landings, transhipments, joint fishing operations, fishing gear, nets and the marking and identification of vessels.

EC Reg. 2371/2002 also establishes that the marketing of fisheries products shall be subject to the following requirements:

• fisheries products shall only be sold from a fishing vessel to registered buyers or at registered auctions;

• the buyer of fisheries products from a fishing vessel at first sale shall be registered with the authorities;

• the buyer of fisheries products at first sale shall submit invoices or sales notes to the authorities, unless the sale takes place at a registered auction which is itself obliged to submit invoices or sales notes to the authorities;

• all fisheries products landed in or imported into the Community for which neither invoices nor sales notes have been submitted to the authorities and which are transported to a place other than that of landing or import shall be accompanied by a document drawn up by the transporter until the first sale has taken place;

• the persons responsible for premises or transport vehicles shall accept inspectors and cooperate with them;

• where a minimum size has been fixed for a given species, operators responsible for selling, stocking or transporting must be able to prove the geographical origin of the products.

Only a buyer acquiring products that are not thereafter placed on the market but used exclusively for private consumption shall be exempt from the requirements described.

Therefore the responsibilities of Member States is to ensure effective control, inspection and enforcement of the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy in their territory or in the waters subject to their sovereignty or jurisdiction. To achieve this Member States should set up the necessary administrative and technical infrastructure.

Member States are also required to adopt the measures, allocate the financial and human resources and set up the administrative and technical infrastructure necessary to ensure effective control, inspection and enforcement of the Regulations, including satellite based monitoring systems.

It is important to note that in April 2004, the European Commission presented the proposal to create a Community Agency for Fishery Control to Member States. The idea consists in the organization of the Member States’ resources and structure as well as guaranteeing the effectiveness of a common surveillance system.

[1] It was enacted on 27 October 2006 and published in the Official Journal on 10 November 2006.

[2] It was enacted on 30 May 2006 and published in the Official Journal on 13 June 2006.

[3] See the definition of the term fishery resources in Article 4 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2002.

[4]  Here is reproduced the terminology used in the English translation provided to the consultant. However, it seems that this provision aims at integrating EU regulations within Slovenian fisheries law. Therefore, “blossoming aquatic vegetation” is likely to refer to Posidonian beds and other phanerogams as provided for in Article 3.3 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1626/94 of 27 June 1994.

[5] Note that the term third country refers to “any non-EU member state” (Article 4 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2002). As a result, the notification procedure for landing catch in Slovenia by a foreign fishing vessel will cease to apply to EU vessels the day the Republic of Slovenia will have become a full member of the European Union (Article 104 of the Marine Fisheries Act of 2002).