REPORT on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the submission by Member States of statistics on aquaculture

7.1.2008 - (COM(2006)0864 – C6‑0005/2006 – 2006/0286(COD)) - ***I

Committee on Fisheries
Rapporteur: Philippe Morillon

DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the submission by Member States of statistics on aquaculture

(COM(2006)0864 – C6‑0005/2006 – 2006/0286(COD))

(Codecision procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

–   having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council (COM(2006)0864),

–   having regard to Articles 251(2) and 285(1) of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C6‑0005/2006),

–   having regard to Rule 51 of its Rules of Procedure,

–   having regard to the report of the Committee on Fisheries (A6‑0001/2008),

1.  Approves the Commission proposal as amended;

2.  Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it intends to amend the proposal substantially or replace it with another text;

3.  Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and Commission.

Text proposed by the Commission	Amendments by Parliament
Amendment 1 Recital 2 a (new)
	(2a) The increasing importance of hatcheries and nurseries for aquaculture activity requires detailed data for a suitable monitoring and management of this sector within the Common Fisheries Policy.
Justification
Addition of an explanation to justify the need for collecting data on hatcheries and nurseries.
Amendment 2 Recital 5 a (new)
	(5a) In order to ensure smooth transition from the regime applicable under Regulation (EC) 788/96, this Regulation should allow for a transitional period of up to three years to be granted to Member States where its application to their national statistical systems would require major adaptations and would be likely to cause significant practical problems.
Amendment 3 Recital 7 a (new)
	(7a) The collection and submission of statistical data is an essential tool for the sound management of the Common Fisheries Policy.
Justification
Addition of an explanation to justify opting for a committee procedure based on management rather than on rules.
Amendment 4 Recital 8
(8) Since the measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission	(8) The measures necessary for the implementation of this Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission.
Amendment 5 Recital 9
(9) In particular, powers should be conferred on the Commission to adapt the Annexes to this Regulation. These measures of general scope designed to amend non-essential elements or supplement this Regulation by the addition of new non-essential elements should be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny laid down to in Article 5a of Council Decision 1999/468/EC.	(9) In particular, power should be conferred on the Commission to adopt technical changes to the Annexes to this Regulation. Since those measures are of general scope and are designed to amend non-essential elements of this Regulation, including supplementing it by the addition of new non-essential elements, they must be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny provided for in Article 5a of Decision 1999/468/EC.
Justification
This amendment aims to clearly limit the Commission powers to adopt only technical changes to the Annexes.
Amendment 6 Article 1
Member States shall submit to the Commission yearly statistics on all the aquaculture activities conducted on their territory, in inland or seawater.	Member States shall submit to the Commission statistics on all the aquaculture activities conducted in freshwater and salt waters on their territory.
Amendment 7 Article 2, point -1 (new)
	-1. ‘Community statistics’ has the same meaning as in Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 322/97.
Justification
This amendment makes reference to the existing legal definition of ‘Community statistics’ contained in Regulation (EC) 322/97 of 17 February 1997 on Community statistics. It is important that this definition be referred to in a regulation dealing with Community statistics in a specific area, given that a legal definition already exists.
Amendment 8 Article 2, point 1
1. ‘aquaculture’: the rearing or cultivation of aquatic organisms using techniques designed to increase the production of the organisms in question beyond the natural capacity of the environment; the organisms remain the property of a natural or legal person throughout the rearing or culture stage, up to and including harvesting;	1. ‘aquaculture’has the same meaning as in Article 3(d) of Regulation (EC) Nº 1198/2006.
Amendment 9 Article 2, point 2
2. “Capture-based aquaculture” means the practice of collecting “seed” material, from early life stages to adults, from the wild and subsequent on-growing to marketable size using aquaculture techniques.	2. “Capture-based aquaculture” means the practice of collecting specimens from the wild and their subsequent use in aquaculture.
Justification
Amendment to improve the consistency of the text and introduce clarification by improving the wording.
Amendment 10 Article 2, point 3
3. "Production" means the output of primary products from the aquaculture sector. It may involve the use of intensive or extensive techniques and it includes output for industrial purposes.	3. "Production" means the output from aquaculture at first sale, including production from hatcheries and nurseries offered for sale.
Justification
The definition of ‘production’ has been deleted. The formulation is obscure and badly worded in French and adds nothing extra to the meaning of the text.
Amendment 11 Article 2, point 4
4. "Volume" means:	deleted
(a) for fish, crustaceans and molluscs and other aquatic organisms (except plants), the live weight equivalent of the product (in tonnes). For molluscs it shall include the weight of the shell.
(b) for aquatic plants, the fresh weight of the product (in tonnes).
Amendment 12 Article 2, point 5
5. "Unit value" means the total value of production (excluding invoiced value-added tax) at first sale, expressed in the national currency in use in the relevant country, divided by the total volume of production.	deleted
Justification
These two definitions were moved to Annex I as they are not of major importance. Furthermore the definitions were improved.
Amendment 13 Article 2, subparagraph 1 a (new)
	All other definitions for the purposes of this Regulation are set out in Annex -I.
Justification
This amendment makes reference to the existence of the other definitions that were moved from Annex V to Annex I.
Amendment 14 Article 3, paragraph 1
1. Member State may use sample surveys or other relevant sources to produce data covering at least 90% of the production by volume: data covering the remaining part of the production may be estimated.	1. Member States shall use surveys or other statistically validated methods covering at least 90% of the total production by volume or by number for the production of hatcheries and nurseries, without prejudice to paragraph 4. The remaining part of the total production may be estimated. To estimate more than 10% of the total production, a request for derogation may be submitted under the conditions provided for in Article 8.
Amendment 15 Article 3, paragraph 2
2. Use of sources other than surveys shall be subject to provision of an ex-post assessment of the statistical quality of the other sources.	2. Use of sources other than surveys shall be subject to provision of an ex-post assessment of the statistical quality of those sources.
Amendment 16 Article 3, paragraph 3
3. A Member State having a total annual production of less than 500 tonnes may submit summary data estimating the total production.	3. A Member State having a total annual production of less than 1000 tonnes may submit summary data estimating the total production.
Amendment 17 Article 3, paragraph 3 a (new)
	3a. Member States shall identify the production by species. However the production of those species which individually do not exceed 500 tonnes and do not represent more than 5% in weight of the production by volume in a Member State may be estimated and aggregated. The production of hatcheries and nurseries in number of those species may be estimated.
Amendment 18 Article 4
The statistics shall relate to the reference calendar year and shall indicate:	The data shall relate to the reference calendar year and shall cover:
- the production (volume and unit value) of aquaculture for each species by environment (freshwater and saltwater) and by technology;	1. the annual production (volume and unit value) of aquaculture;
- the input (volume and unit value) to capture-based aquaculture;	2. the annual input (volume and unit value) to capture-based aquaculture;
- the production of hatcheries supplying material (e.g. eggs or young fish) for release to a controlled environment or to the wild.	3. the annual production of hatcheries and nurseries;
- information on the structure of the aquaculture sector.	4. the structure of the aquaculture sector.
Justification
This amendment aims to improve the wording and clarifies the text.
Amendment 19 Article 5, titre
Submission of statistical data	Transmission of data
Amendment 20 Article 5, subparagraph 1
The Member States shall submit the statistics referred to in Annexes I, II and III to the Commission within nine months of the end of the reference calendar year. The first reference year shall be 2007.	1. The Member States shall submit the data referred to in Annexes I, II and III to the Commission (Eurostat) within twelve months of the end of the reference calendar year. The first reference year shall be 2008.
Amendment 21 Article 5, subparagraph 2
Starting with the data for the year 2007 and at intervals of three years thereafter, the statistics on structures referred to in Annex IV shall be submitted within nine months of the end of the reference calendar year.	2. Starting with the data for the year 2008 and at intervals of three years thereafter, the data on structures referred to in Annex IV shall be submitted within twelve months of the end of the reference calendar year to the Commission (Eurostat).
Amendment 22 Article 5, subparagraph 3
The variables for which statistics shall be submitted and the format in which they shall be submitted are indicated in Annexes I, II, III and IV.	deleted
Amendment 23 Article 5, subparagraph 4
The definitions to be applied to the variables are indicated in Annex V	deleted
Amendment 24 Article 6, title
Methodological report	Quality assessment
Amendment 25 Article 6, paragraph 1
1. At the first submission of the data, Member States shall submit to the Commission a detailed methodological report describing how the data were collected and compiled. This report shall include details of any sampling techniques, and of sources used other than surveys and an evaluation of the quality of the resultant estimates. A proposed format for the methodological report is indicated in Annex VI.	1. Member States shall provide the Commission (Eurostat) with a yearly report on the quality of the data transmitted. At the first submission of the data, Member States shall submit to the Commission a detailed methodological report describing how the data were collected and compiled. In the quality report, Member States shall describe how the data were collected and compiled. This report shall include details of sampling techniques, estimation methods and of sources used other than surveys and an evaluation of the quality of the resultant estimates. A proposed format for the methodological report is indicated in Annex VI.
Amendment 26 Article 6, paragraph 3
3. Member States shall inform the Commission of any change in the information provided for under paragraph 1 within three months of its introduction.	deleted
Amendment 27 Article 7
Transitional periods for implementation of this Regulation lasting not more than three years from the date of its entry into force may be granted to Member States in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 10(2)	1. Full calendar year transitional periods for implementation of this Regulation lasting not more than three years from the date of its application may be granted to Member States, in so far as the application of this Regulation to their national statistical systems requires major adaptations and is likely to cause significant practical problems, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 10(2).
	2. To this end, a Member State shall present a duly motivated request to the Commission before 31 December 2008.
Amendment 28 Article 8, paragraph 1
1. In cases where inclusion in the statistics of a particular sector of aquaculture activities would cause difficulties to the national authorities not commensurate with the importance of that sector, a derogation may be granted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 10(2), permitting that Member State to exclude data covering that sector from the national data submitted or to employ sampling techniques to collect data for that sector.	1. In cases where inclusion in the statistics of a particular sector of aquaculture activities would cause difficulties to the national authorities not commensurate with the importance of that sector, a derogation may be granted in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 10(2), permitting that Member State to exclude data covering that sector from the national data submitted or to employ estimation methods used to provide data for more than 10% of the total production.
Amendment 29 Article 9
Update of the Annexes	Technical provisions
Technical changes shall be made to the Annexes in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 10(3).	1. Technical changes to the Annexes shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in Article 10(3).
	2. The format in which statistics shall be transmitted shall be adopted in accordance with the management procedure referred to in Article 10(2).
Justification
The text was improved in order to make it clear which comitology procedure is to be applied. Furthermore, it includes a reference to the adoption by the Commission of the transmission format, according to the management procedure.
Amendment 30 Article 10, paragraph 2
2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 4 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to Article 8 thereof. The period laid down in Article 4(3) of that Decision shall be set at three months.	2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 4 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof. The period laid down in Article 4(3) of that Decision shall be set at three months.
Justification
Amendment to introduce clarification and improve the wording.
Amendment 31 Article 11, subparagraph 1
Within three years of the date of entry into force of this Regulation and every three years thereafter, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and to the Council on the statistics compiled pursuant to this Regulation and, in particular, on their relevance and quality.	Within a period of three years starting from the date of entry into force of this Regulation and every three years thereafter, the Commission shall submit an evaluation report to the European Parliament and to the Council on the statistics compiled pursuant to this Regulation and, in particular, on their relevance and quality.
Justification
This amendment aims to improve the wording and stresses the need for the Commission to report on a regular basis and the benefit to Member States of this kind of statistical data collection.
Amendment 32 Article 11, subparagraph 2
The report shall also analyse the cost-effectiveness of the system used for collecting and processing the statistics and shall put forward best practices to lessen the workload for Member States and enhance the usefulness and quality of the data.	This kind of report shall also undertake a cost-effectiveness analysis of the system introduced to collect and draw up the statistics and shall indicate best practices to lessen the workload for Member States and enhance the usefulness and quality of the data.
Justification
This amendment aims to improve the wording and stresses the need for the Commission to report on a regular basis and the benefit to Member States of this kind of collection of statistical data.
Amendment 33 Article 12
Regulation (EC) No. 788/96 is hereby repealed.	1. Without prejudice to paragraph 3, Regulation (EC) No. 788/96 is hereby repealed.
References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation.	2. References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation.
	3. By way of derogation from Article 13(2), a Member State having been granted a derogation in accordance with Article 7 shall continue to apply the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 788/96 for the duration of the transitional period granted.
Justification
This amendment aims to ensure that Member States that request a derogation continue to respect the provisions of the repealed Regulation.
Amendment 34 Article 13
This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.	1. This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
	2. This Regulation shall apply from 1 January 2009.
Amendment 35 Annex -I (new)
	ANNEX -I
	Definitions to be used in transmission of aquaculture data
	"Freshwater" means water which has a constantly negligible salinity.
	"Saltwater" means water where the salinity is appreciable. This may be water where the salinity is constantly high (e.g. sea water) or where the salinity is appreciable but not at a constantly high level (e.g. brackish water): the salinity may be subject to periodic variation due to the influx of fresh or sea waters.
	"Species" means the species of aquatic organisms identified using the international alpha-3 code as defined by the FAO (ASFIS List of Species for Fishery Statistics Purposes)
	"FAO major areas" means the geographical areas identified using the international numerical-2 code as defined by the FAO (CWP Handbook of Fishery Statistical Standards. Section H: Fishing Areas for Statistical Purposes)
Code Area   01 Inland waters (Africa)   05 Inland waters (Europe)   27 Northeast Atlantic   34 Atlantic Eastern Central   37 Mediterranean and Black Seas   … Other Areas (to be specified)
"Ponds" means relatively shallow and usually small bodies of still water or water with a low refreshment rate, most frequently artificially formed, but can also apply to natural pools, tarns, meres or small lakes.   "Hatcheries and nurseries" means places for the artificial breeding, hatching and rearing through the early life stages of aquatic animals. For statistical purposes, hatcheries are limited to the production of fertilised eggs. First juvenile stages of aquatic animals are considered as being produced in nurseries.   "Enclosures and pens" means areas of water confined by nets, mesh and other barriers allowing uncontrolled water interchange and distinguished by the fact that enclosures occupy the full water column between substrate and surface; pens and enclosures generally enclose a relatively large volume of water.   "Cages" means open or covered enclosed structures constructed with net, mesh or any porous material allowing natural water interchange. These structures may be floating, suspended or fixed to the substrate but still permitting water interchange from below.   "Tanks and raceways" means artificial units constructed above or below ground level capable of high rates of water interchange or with a high water turnover rate and highly controlled environment but without water recirculation.   "Recirculation systems" means systems where the water is re-used after some form of treatment (e.g. filtering).   "Transferred to a controlled environment" means the intentional release for further aquaculture practices.   "Released to the wild" means the intentional release for the restocking of rivers, lakes and other waters other than for aquaculture purposes. These releases may then be available for capture by fishing operations.   "Volume" means:   (a) for fish, crustaceans and molluscs and other aquatic animals, the live weight equivalent of the product. For molluscs it shall include the weight of the shell.   (b) for aquatic plants, the wet weight of the product.   "Unit value" means the total value (excluding invoiced value-added tax) of the production (in national currency) divided by the total volume of the production in live weight equivalent.
This text was Annex V to COM(2006)0864, with a few changes.
Amendment 36 Annex I
Text proposed by the Commission
Production from aquaculture
Country:  Year:
Species cultured   Freshwater culture Saltwater culture Total 3-alpha code National name Scientific name FAO major area Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency)                     FISH (live weight)                 Ponds                                                         Tanks                                                           Enclosures and pens                                                         Cages                                                           Raceways                                                         Recirculation systems                                                           Other methods                                                           Species cultured   Freshwater culture Saltwater culture Total 3-alpha code National name Scientific name FAO major area Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) CRUSTACEANS (live weight)                 Ponds                                                     Tanks                                                         Enclosures and pens                                                         Other methods                                                           MOLLUSCS (live weight)                 On bottom                                                           Off bottom                                                           Other methods                                                           SEAWEED (wet weight)                                      OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS (live weight)
Amendments by Parliament
Production from aquaculture excluding nurseries and hatcheries a)
Country:  Year:
Species produced FAO Major Area Freshwater Saltwater TOTAL   3-alpha code Common name Scientific name Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) Volume (metric tonnes) Unit value (national currency) FISH (live weight) Ponds                     Tanks and raceways                     Enclosures and pens                     Cages                     Recirculation systems                     Other methods                     CRUSTACEANS (live weight)  Ponds                     Tanks and raceways                     Enclosures and pens                     Other methods                     MOLLUSCS (live weight)  On bottom                     Off bottom                     Other methods                     SEAWEEDS (wet weight)                     Fish eggs (intended for consumption) b)                      OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS weight[…]
a) With the exclusion of aquarium and ornamental species
b) The fish eggs intended for consumption considered under this item refer only to extracted eggs destined for consumption at first sale.
Amendment 37 Annex II
Text proposed by the Commission
Supply of material to capture-based aquaculture
Country:  Year:
Species Unit (specify)a) Value (national currency) 3-alpha code National name Scientific name
a) Number or tonnes
Amendments by Parliament
Input to capture-based aquaculture a)
Country:          Year:
Species Unit (specify) b) Unit Value (national currency 3-alpha code Common name Scientific name FISH                                                     CRUSTACEANS                                                     MOLLUSCS
a) With the exclusion of aquarium ornamental species and plant speciesb) Weight or number; if numbers are provided, a conversion factor to weight must be provided as well.
Amendment 38 Annex III
Text proposed by the Commission
Output of hatcheries
Country:                                                                                                                                                       Year:
Species Stage in life cycle Number (millions) 3-alpha code National name Scientific name Eggsa) Young fisha) Transferred to a controlled environment (for on-growing) Released to the wildb) Intended for processing (e.g. caviar) Destination unknown Total
a) Enter “X” in the appropriate column
b) Voluntary
Amendments by Parliament
Production of hatcheries and nurseries (a)
Country:                                                                                                                                             Year:
Species Stage in life cycle Intended uses 3-alpha code Common name Scientific name Eggs (millions) Juveniles (millions) Transferred to a controlled environment (for on-growing) b) (in millions) Released to the wild b) (in millions)    Eggs | Juveniles    Eggs | Juveniles           | |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |             |   |
a) With the exclusion of aquarium and ornamental species
b) Voluntary
Amendment 39 Annex IV
Text proposed by the Commission
Data on the structure of the aquaculture sector
Country:                                                                                             Year:
Method of culture FAO major area Freshwater culturea) Saltwater culturea) Totala) m3 in 000 Hectares m3 in 000 Hectares m3 in 000 Hectares FISH               Ponds                                               Tanks                                               Enclosures and pens                                               Cages                                               Raceways                                               Recirculation systems                                               Other methods
a) Enter the size of the facilities in the appropriate column ("m3 in 000" or "Hectares")
Method of culture FAO major area Freshwater culturea) Saltwater culturea) Totala) m3 in 000 Hectares m3 in 000 Hectares m3 in 000 Hectares CRUSTACEANS             Ponds                                               Tanks                                               Enclosures and pens                                               Other methods                                               MOLLUSCS               On bottom                                               Off bottom                                               Other methods                                               SEAWEEDS                                           OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS
a) Enter the size of the facilities in the appropriate column ("m3 in 000" or "Hectares")
Amendments by Parliament
Data on the structure of aquaculture sector (a)
Country:  Year:
Freshwater Saltwater Total   FAO Major Area    Size of the facilities (c)   Size of the facilities (c)   Size of the facilities (c) m3 in '000 Hectares m3 in '000 Hectares m3 in '000 Hectares FISH Ponds                     Tanks and raceways                     Enclosures and pens                     Cages                     Recirculation systems                     Other methods                     CRUSTACEANS  Ponds                     Tanks and raceways                     Enclosures and pens                     Other Methods                     MOLLUSCS  On bottom                     Off bottom b)                     Other Methods b)                     SEAWEEDS
a)        With the exclusion of aquarium and ornamental species
b)        If shellfish are grown on ropes, length unit may be used
c)        Should be considered the potential capacity
Amendment 40 Annex V
	This annex is deleted
Amendment 41 Annex VI, point 2, subparagraph 2
· Describe the methods used to collect the data (e.g. postal questionnaires, personal interviews, censuses or sampling, and frequency of surveys) for each part of the aquaculture sector.	· Describe the methods used to collect the data (e.g. postal questionnaires, personal interviews, censuses or sampling, frequency of surveys, estimation methods) for each part of the aquaculture sector.
Amendment 42 Annex VI, point 3, introductory part
Reliability and representativeness of the data.	Quality aspects in line with the “Code of Practice for the European Statistical System”1
	____________________ 1 (COM(2005)0217)
Amendment 43 Annex VI, point 3, subparagraph 1
· If sampling techniques are used for some elements of the data, describe the methods used, and estimate the level of use and reliability of such methods.	· If estimation techniques are used for some elements of the data, describe the methods used, and estimate the level of use and reliability of such methods.
Amendment 44 Annex VI, point 3, subparagraph 1
· If sampling techniques are used for some elements of the data, describe the methods used, and estimate the level of use and reliability of such methods.	· If estimation techniques are used for some elements of the data, describe the methods used, and estimate the level of use and reliability of such methods.

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Rationale of the proposal

The Commission proposal aims to replace the current Community legislation, which is based on Council Regulation (EC) 788/96 on the submission by Member States of statistics on aquaculture production.

The relevant Community legislation has been in force for more than ten years. It provides for Member States to submit annual data on the volume of aquaculture production to the Commission. The availability of information gathered in this way has been of benefit to the sector for a number of years.

However, since this text was approved, there has been a considerable increase in aquaculture. The current situation in the sector plays an important socio-economic role in several European regions by enabling the development of a processing industry with a promising future.

The need for a broader range of data has, therefore, become an urgent one, if there is to be rational development and management within the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).

General background and aims of the Commission proposal

In a world in which fish stocks are declining and world demand for fish and seafood is constantly rising, aquaculture is becoming increasingly important.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) even predicts that, in the future, aquaculture might satisfy most of the demand in this area.

European aquaculture might then take advantage of the situation: a sizeable market, a long tradition in shellfish farming and fish farming in fresh and sea water, dynamic, leading-edge research, modern technology, qualified, experienced entrepreneurs and fish farmers, and climatic conditions and sites which are appropriate to the varieties farmed.

The EU’s aquaculture sector totals 1.3 million tons of fisheries products per year, representing some 3 billion euros. This corresponds to around one third of the total value of production in the EU’s fisheries sector and roughly one fifth of its volume. In some Member States the value of farmed products is higher than that of products landed. In others, aquaculture represents a significant proportion of total production.

As well as encompassing important sources of products for European consumers, the aquaculture sector is also a substantial source of employment in regions dependent on fishing.

European aquaculture provides more than 80 000 full and part-time jobs, which is the equivalent of 57 000 full-time jobs.

This is not to say that the European aquaculture sector is not facing difficulties which also affect production, such as the availability of space and good-quality water, and measures to protect public health and the environment.

Aquaculture has developed throughout the EU, in many cases in rural areas or peripheral regions dependent on fishing where other employment opportunities are traditionally lacking.

In Greece, for example, 100 000 of every 200 000 tons of fish are produced by aquaculture.

Some EU countries have a longer tradition of fish cultivation than others, and this explains the diversity of existing structures, ranging from small-scale businesses to industrial multinationals.

The need for wide-scale collection of statistical data on aquaculture stems from the importance of having an accurate and comprehensive overview of aquaculture businesses, their cultivation techniques and the different production environments.

There is a need for Community-level harmonisation of statistical information; the collection and infrastructure necessary to improve and assess the accuracy of such information are primarily the responsibility of Member States.

Rapporteur’s observations and proposed amendments

This proposal is deemed to be generally positive in that it can contribute to an improvement in, and a simplification of, the legislation in force, whilst reducing the administrative burden on Member States.

There are at present considerable differences between the way the statistical systems of different Member States are organised, and the current proposal must not give rise to additional costs for national administrations because of this.

With this in mind, the European Commission has repeatedly allowed Member States greater flexibility in applying the Regulation, notably Articles 7 and 8 on the period for submission and derogations.

There have been further technical discussions with representatives of the Commission, DG Fisheries and Eurostat in order to clarify a number of points in this proposal.

The rapporteur considers that the changes introduced should enable the submission of annual data on the volume of aquaculture production to be improved, and that they will improve the accessibility of the requisite information.

The aim of the suggested amendments is to improve the clarity and coherence of the text, take account of the problems faced by some Member States and make provision for information and regular updates for the Parliament and the Council concerning the application of the Regulation.

We would like to point out that the term ‘statistiques’ should be retained in the French‑language version.

We have found that, in the English version of the Eurostat working group documents, the terms ‘statistics’ and ‘data’ are interchangable.

However, there is a difference between these terms in French: ‘statistiques’ means information which has been processed, a final product, whereas ‘données’ is used for raw data.

It is provided that, within three years of this regulation coming into force, and every three years thereafter, the Commission will submit to the European Parliament and the Council an evaluation report on the compiled statistics, with special regard to the relevance and quality of these.

The report will also include a cost-effectiveness analysis of the system introduced for collecting and processing statistical data and highlight best practices to enable the workload of Member States to be reduced and the usefulness and quality of the data to be increased.

The rapporteur supports the Commission’s proposal, subject to the changes contained in the amendments tabled.

PROCEDURE

Title	Statistics on aquaculture
References	COM(2006)0864 - C6-0005/2007 - 2006/0286(COD)
Date submitted to Parliament	22.12.2006
Committee responsible        Date announced in plenary	PECH 17.1.2007
Rapporteur(s)        Date appointed	Philippe Morillon 25.1.2007
Discussed in committee	10.4.2007
Date adopted	19.12.2007
Result of final vote	+: –: 0:	18 1 0
Members present for the final vote	Elspeth Attwooll, Iles Braghetto, Niels Busk, Luis Manuel Capoulas Santos, Paulo Casaca, Avril Doyle, Carmen Fraga Estévez, Ioannis Gklavakis, Pedro Guerreiro, Heinz Kindermann, Rosa Miguélez Ramos, Philippe Morillon, Seán Ó Neachtain, Willi Piecyk, Struan Stevenson, Catherine Stihler
Substitute(s) present for the final vote	Ole Christensen, Constantin Dumitriu, Thomas Wise
Date tabled	7.1.2008