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Agreement on Fisheries between the Government of Canada and the European Economic Community [1979] CATSer 23 (3 December 1979)

E101421 - CTS 1979 No. 33

AGREEMENT ON FISHERIES BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA AND THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY

THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA AND THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY (hereinafter referred to as the "Community")

RECALLING the close relations between Canada and the Community and, in particular, the Framework Agreement for Commercial and Economic Co-operation between Canada and the European Communities signed in Ottawa on 6 July 1976;

HAVING REGARD to their common desire to ensure the conservation and rational management of the living resources of the waters adjacent to their coasts and their concern for the welfare of their coastal communities and the living resources of the adjacent waters upon which these communities depend;

NOTING that the Government of Canada has extended its jurisdiction over the living resources of its adjacent waters to a limit of up to two hundred nautical miles from its coast and exercises within this limit sovereign rights for the purposes of exploring and exploiting, conserving and managing these resources; and having regard to the fact that the Member States of the Community have agreed that the limits of their fishery zones (hereinafter referred to as the fishery zone of the Community) shall extend up to two hundred nautical miles from the coast, fishing within these limits being subject to the common fisheries policy of the Community;

TAKING into account the need to co-ordinate the management of certain living marine resources which occur both in waters under the fisheries jurisdiction of Canada and in the fishery zone of the Community;

NOTING the intention of the two Parties to participate in multilateral co-operation for the conservation and management of the living marine resources in the Northwest Atlantic area beyond the limits of national fisheries jurisdiction;

TAKING into account the work of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea and resulting state practice;

AFFIRMING that the exercise of sovereign rights by coastal states within their areas of jurisdiction over the living marine resources for the purpose of exploring, exploiting, conserving and managing these resources, should be conducted in accordance with the principles of international law;

TAKING into account the interest of each Party in developing fisheries in the fishery zone of the other Party;

DESIROUS of establishing the terms and conditions pertaining to fisheries of mutual concern;

NOTING their intention to pursue negotiations for a long-term agreement on fisheries, to develop further co - operation between the two Parties and, in the context of these negotiations, to pursue, in particular, discussion on the nature of Canada's interest in the stocks of the Grand Banks-Flemish Cap area seaward of Canadian fisheries waters;

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

ARTICLE I

The Government of Canada and the Community undertake to co-operate closely in matters pertaining to the conservation and utilization of the living resources of the sea. They shall take appropriate measures to facilitate such co-operation and shall consult and co-operate in international negotiations and organizations with a view to achieving common fisheries objectives.

ARTICLE II

1. In addition to the access granted under the Agreement between Canada and France on their Mutual Fishing Relations, signed in Ottawa on 27 March 1972;

(a) the Government of Canada undertakes to grant access to vessels of Member States of the Community to fish within the area off the East Coast of Canada, brought under Canadian fisheries jurisdiction after 31 December 1976, for allotments, as appropriate, of parts of total allowable catches surplus to Canadian harvesting capacity, in accordance with the provisions of this Article;

(b) the Community undertakes to grant access to Canadian vessels to fish within the fishery zone of the Community for allotments, as appropriate, of parts of total allowable catches surplus to Community harvesting capacity, in accordance with the provisions of this Article.

2. Each Party shall determine annually for the waters under its fisheries jurisdiction referred to in paragraph 1, subject to adjustment when necessary to meet unforeseen circumstances;

(a) the total allowable catch for individual stocks or complexes of stocks taking into account the best scientific evidence available to it, the interdependence of stocks, the work of appropriate international organizations and other relevant factors;

(b) its harvesting capacity in respect of such stocks; and,

(c) after appropriate consultations, allotments, as appropriate, for fishing vessels of the other Party of parts of surpluses of stocks or complexes of stocks and the areas within which these allotments may be fished.

3. Each Party may require that fishing in its area of fisheries jurisdiction by fishing vessels of the other Party shall be subject to licensing requirements. Such licences will be issued to the extent necessary to allow the Party concerned the fishing effort required to take the allocations granted under this Agreement. Fishing vessels of one Party shall, when fishing within the area of fisheries jurisdiction of the other Party, comply with all laws governing fishing activities in that area. Advance notice shall be given where practicable of any new measures, conditions or provisions applying to such fisheries.

ARTICLE III

1. Each Party shall take all necessary measures to ensure that its vessels operate in compliance with the provisions of this Agreement and with any measures agreed upon from time to time pursuant to the provisions of this Agreement.

2. Each Party may take within its area of fisheries jurisdiction such measures, in conformity with international law, as may be necessary to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Agreement by vessels of the other Party.

ARTICLE IV

The two Parties undertake to co-operate, either bilaterally or through appropriate international organizations, in order to ensure the proper management and conservation of stocks occurring both within the area under the fisheries jurisdiction of Canada and within the fishery zone of the Community, and stocks of associated species. In particular, they shall endeavour to harmonize the regulatory measures applicable to these stocks, and shall consult frequently and exchange relevant fisheries statistics for this purpose.

ARTICLE V

1. The Government of Canada and the Community affirm the need to ensure the conservation of the living resources beyond the limits of national fisheries jurisdiction. The Two Parties accordingly undertake to co-operate in the light of this principle, either bilaterally or through appropriate international organizations, in order to ensure the proper management and conservation of these living resources.

2. Where the same stock or stocks of associated species occur both within and seaward of Canadian fisheries waters in the Grand Banks-Flemish Cap area, and Community vessels participate or wish to participate in fisheries for such stocks within the area seaward of Canadian fisheries waters, the two Parties shall seek either bilaterally or through appropriate international organizations to agree upon measures for the conservation and management of these stocks within the area seaward of Canadian fisheries waters, taking into account the need for consistency between the measures applying within Canadian fisheries waters and those applying seaward of such waters.

3. Where discrete stocks occur in the Grand Banks-Flemish Cap area seaward of Canadian fisheries waters, and Canadian and Community vessels participate or wish to participate in fisheries for such stocks, the two Parties shall seek, either bilaterally or through appropriate international organizations, to agree upon measures for the conservation and management of these stocks.

4. In the event that third party fishing causes a threat to the conservation of the living resources of the waters beyond and adjacent to the areas referred to in Article II, the two Parties shall consult and seek to agree on action which should be taken to overcome that threat.

ARTICLE VI

The two Parties undertake to co-operate, as appropriate in the light of the development of their fisheries relations pursuant to the provisions of Article II, in scientific research required for the purposes of management, conservation and utilization of the living resources of the areas referred to in that Article. For these purposes, scientists of the two Parties shall consult regarding the conduct of such research and the analysis and interpretation of the results obtained.

ARTICLE VII

1. Each Party shall, subject to the availability of facilities and the needs of its own vessels, allow vessels which it has licenced pursuant to this Agreement to enter its ports in accordance with applicable laws, regulations and administrative requirements, for the purpose of purchasing bait, supplies or outfits or effecting repairs, or for such other purposes as that Party may determine.

2. Such authorization shall become null and void in respect of any vessels licenced pursuant to this Agreement upon the cancellation or termination of its licence, except for the purpose of entering port to purchase supplies or effect repairs necessary for its outward voyage.

3. The provisions of this Article shall not affect access to the ports of either Party in cases of distress, medical emergency or force majeure.

ARTICLE VIII

1. The Government of Canada and the Community recognize that states in whose rivers anadromous stocks originate have the primary interest in and responsibility for such stocks, and agree that fishing for anadromous species should not be conducted in areas beyond the limits of national fisheries jurisdiction. They will continue to work together for the establishment of permanent multilateral arrangements reflecting this position.

2. Pursuant to paragraph 1, the Parties shall take measures to prevent their vessels from taking anadromous fish in waters beyond the limits of national fisheries jurisdiction.

3. In the interest of the further conservation of anadromous species, each Party shall ensure, in the context of close scientific co-operation, the regulation of fishing of anadromous species within its area of fisheries jurisdiction. The Government of Canada shall regulate the fishing of Atlantic Salmon in the Canadian area of fisheries jurisdiction in such a manner as to avoid as far as possible the catching of Atlantic Salmon of Community origin, and the Community shall limit fishing by its vessels of Atlantic Salmon west of 44° west longitude to an agreed annual total for 1978 and 1979, and shall ensure that such catches are taken in accordance with the fishing patterns of 1976 and 1977.

4. The Parties agree to request that the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea conduct a scientific review of the current status of North Atlantic salmon stocks, and that this review be completed and a report presented by 30 April 1979.

ARTICLE IX

1. Within the framework provided by the 1976 Framework Agreement for Commercial and Economic Co-operation between Canada and the European Communities, the two Parties will carry out periodic bilateral consultations regarding the development of economic co-operation in the field of fisheries.

2. In such consultations, the two Parties will examine jointly the possibility of expanded bilateral co-operation, including co-operation on such matters as exchanges of technical information and personnel, improvement of utilization and processing of catches, facilitation of co-operative arrangements between Canadian and Community enterprises with a view to the utilization of the living resources of the waters off the Canadian coasts, arrangements for the use of the ports of each Party by fishing vessels of the other Party to ship or discharge crew members or other persons and for such other purposes as may be agreed upon, and expansion of markets for fish and fish products originating in Canada.

ARTICLE X

1. The Parties agree to consult periodically on questions relating to the implementation and proper functioning of this Agreement.

2. In the event of a dispute concerning the interpretation or application of this Agreement such a dispute shall be the subject of consultations between the Parties.

ARTICLE XI

This Agreement shall be without prejudice to the 1972 Agreement between Canada and France on their Mutual Fishing Relations or to any multilateral Convention to which Canada and the Community or any of its Member States are parties, or to the views of either Party with respect to any question relating to the Law of the Sea.

ARTICLE XII

This Agreement shall apply, on the one hand, to the territories in which the Treaty establishing the European Community is applied and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty and, on the other hand, to the territory of Canada.

ARTICLE XIII

Annexes I, II and III to this Agreement shall form an integral part thereof.

ARTICLE XIV

This Agreement shall enter into force on the date on which the parties notify each other of the completion of the procedures necessary for this purpose.

ARTICLE XV

This Agreement shall terminate on 31 December 1979.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, being duly authorized for this purpose, have signed this Agreement.

DONE at Brussels, on the 28th day of June in the year one thousand nine hundred and seventy-nine, in duplicate in the English, French, Danish, German, Italian and Dutch languages, each of these texts being equally authentic.

P. D. Lee

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

Raymond Simonnet

FOR THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY

ANNEX I

Interpretative Note to Article II, Paragraph 3

With reference to this Article, the Parties agree that fishing effort is a function of both the number of fishing vessels for which licences are issued and the number of fishing days for which such licences are valid.

ANNEX II

Interpretative Note to Article VIII

With reference to this Article, the Parties agree that the term "fishing patterns" refers to fishing effort, gear types, seasons and areas of the operation, and note that fishing for salmon off Greenland in 1976 and 1977 did not occur beyond 30 nautical miles from the coast of Greenland.

ANNEX III

Community Declaration concerning Article XII of the Agreement on Fisheries between the European Economic Community and the Government of Canada

Pursuant to the wish expressed by the Government of Canada, the Community confirms that it considers Article XII of the Agreement, which incorporates provisions that are traditionally used in agreements concluded between the European Economic Community and third countries, as having no bearing upon the question of the legal status of the economic zone, currently under discussion at the Third Conference of the United Nations on the Law of the Sea.