The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority says the master and operator of a Danish fishing vessel which left Killybegs without landing a catch yesterday chose to do so.
The SFPA says the master of the vessel and the operator objected to the process for weighing upon landing, as set out in the Interim Control Plan. The statement adds the master and operator were offered the use of an industry owned water separator which would preserve the quality of the fish during the process.
However, the SFPA says they opted not to avail of this, and subsequently the Master of the vessel chose to leave port.
The SFPA says it intends to notify the relevant regulatory authority of the EU member state in which this vessel is flagged of this interaction.
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SFPA statement in full –
Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority statement
The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) confirms that on March 31st it sought to undertake an inspection which would include supervising the weighing before transport of a fishing vessel, at Killybegs harbour. Such weighings are required by the interim Control Plan as approved by the European Commission
The interim Control Plan allows for the weighing of up to 92.5% of catch in a factory or processing facility after transport, provided that 7.5% is weighed upon landing prior to transport on non-industry owned, non-industry operated devices.
The SFPA confirms that the master of the vessel and the operator objected to the process for weighing upon landing, as set out in the Interim Control Plan. The master of the vessel and the operator were offered the use of an industry owned water separator which would preserve the quality of the fish during the process. They opted not to avail of this and subsequently the Master of the vessel chose to leave port. The SFPA intends to notify the relevant regulatory authority of the EU member state in which this vessel is flagged of this interaction.
As the competent regulatory authority for sea-fisheries and seafood, the SFPA continuously monitor the activity of all vessels operating in Irish waters throughout their fishing operations within the Irish EEZ and promote, verify and enforce compliance of EU and national regulations.
The SFPA has been actively working to secure approval of a formal Control Plan to enable the derogation of weighing of fishery products after transport in Ireland, which addresses significant EU Commission concerns surrounding Ireland’s control measures and the risk of non-compliance with the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy, particularly in pelagic bulk landings to Ireland, which resulted in the Commission’s revoking of Ireland’s weighing-after-transport Control Plan in 2021. A formal Control plan has now been submitted by the SFPA to the European Commission with a view to achieving permanent approval.
