#32026R1026EU extends Balearic Islands boat seine fishing derogation until 2029
AI-generated summary for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. See the original source for the authoritative text.
This regulation lets a limited group of Spanish vessels in the Balearic Islands keep using boat seines closer to the coast and in shallower waters than EU Mediterranean fishing rules normally allow. It applies to fishing for transparent gobies, Ferrer’s gobies and lowbody picarel, and runs from 1 May 2026 to 30 April 2029. The practical effect is continuity for a traditional local fishery, but only under tight limits. Spain must keep the fishery under its management plan, cap authorisations at existing vessels, avoid increased fishing effort, protect sensitive habitats such as Posidonia seagrass beds, and send monitoring reports to the Commission starting by 30 September 2027 and then every year.
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Key Changes
- Extends Spain’s Balearic Islands derogation for boat seine fishing near the coast until 30 April 2029.
- Limits eligibility to already authorised vessels with more than five years of track record and no increase in fishing effort.
- Requires Spain to report monitoring results to the European Commission by 30 September 2027 and annually after that.
Obligations
What this law requires
Spain must ensure that any vessel using the derogation for boat seines targeting transparent gobies, Ferrer’s gobies, and Lowbody picarel in Balearic Islands territorial waters is registered in the maritime census managed by the Directorate-General for Fisheries and Marine Environment of the Balearic Islands.
Vessels may rely on the derogation only if they have a track record in the relevant fishery of more than five years and their participation does not involve any future increase in fishing effort deployed.
Vessels using boat seines under the derogation must hold a fishing authorisation and operate under Spain’s management plan adopted under Article 19(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1967/2006.
Spain must limit fishing authorisations for this fishery to a maximum of 55 vessels that are already authorised and listed in the management plan, with each vessel limited to 12 metres in size and 198.5 kW in power.
Fishing under the management plan must not take place above Posidonia oceanica, maërl, or coralligenous habitats.