LEGISLATION

According to the Norwegian authorities the term capture-based aquaculture embraces “the trade where fish are caught in the wild, stored for a certain time in a so called recovery/short-term storage phase and thereafter, as a main rule, fed to market-size under an aquaculture licence” (Fiskeridirektoratet and Mattilsynet, 2006).

The vast majority of Norwegian fish stocks, including cod, are subject to strong regulations in order to keep catch within precautionary limits. The Norwegian catch regulations are based on a core act, the salt water fisheries act, and several regulations pursuant to this, the most important being the regulations relating to marine fisheries.
Central elements of the regulations are total quotas, closed access, vessel and gear restrictions, vessel quotas and minimum fish size.
CBA has to comply with the full set of regulations, and in addition some specific regulations. Hence, the catch of juveniles for on-growing is not allowed. The minimum size for cod is presently 47 cm, so CBA has to target fish of this size or larger. After a long debate amongst CBA fishers and the authorities, the present regulations for CBA came into force on 22 December 2005. The main objectives are to ensure fish welfare and provide stable conditions for fishers.
The new CBA-specific regulations have been developed to ensure that it is clear where participants are subject to provisions, and which provisions apply for the capture process, the recovery/short-term storage phase and the aquaculture phase. Consideration of fish welfare in all phases of CBA is fixed more clearly by these laws.

Farming of fish is regulated by the aquaculture act and its accompanying regulations. The main objective is to favour profitability and competitive advantages of the aquaculture industry within the boundaries of sustainable development. Central elements are limited licenses, environmental conditions and operational requirements. Not all CBA is subject to this regulatory framework. It applies when fish are fed or fish are transferred to a licensed farm site.
The following discussion provides an overview of the specific regulations concerning CBA, covering the process from catch to short-term storage and the legal implications of the aquaculture regulations for CBA.

Catch, transport, recovery and short-term storage phase

Provisions regarding capture, transport recovery and short-term storage are covered in the new regulations regarding the requirements for vessels fishing and transporting catches. The regulations also apply to all vessels fishing and transporting live fish of all species other than herring, mackerel, sprat, eel and saithe. However they do not apply to fishing and the transportation of shellfish, e.g. lobster, crawfish or molluscs.
The new regulations are in addition to standard regulations concerning vessels that participate in fisheries. All vessels and their equipment must be approved by the Norwegian Food Safety Authority before being allowed to participate in the catch of live cod. The requirements are aimed at ensuring fish welfare, and the most important points are:
• any gear or device on board the vessel shall not inflict any harm on the fish or unnecessary stress;
• hauling the fish on board must be done by either a water filled bag or vacuum pump;
• shallow grading bins on deck that are partially filled with water must be installed; • fish must be transferred to holding tanks without harm or being exposed to free falling. It should be possible to automatically count the fish; and
• live fish holding tanks must have a flat and perforated bottom giving an even up-welling of water. Water circulation should be at least 0.5 litres of water per kilogram fish/minute.
Provisions concerning the catch of fish, where fish are to be held alive, placed in recovery or short-term storage, are stated in the regulation regarding fishing in the sea (Chapter XVII of the regulations). Here it is defined that operations shall always be conducted with regard to fish welfare and thus training is required. Some technical requirements are placed on the design and use of Danish seine for live capture and transportation time is limited to eight hours. For the storage and recovery of fish important points are:
• cages shall be placed at least 2.5 kilometres from the nearest aquaculture farm, and health control is required before delivery to a site with an aquaculture license;
• cages for recovery must have a flat bottom-panel. During recovery, cages must be supervised daily. Cages must not hold more fish than 50 kilograms/m? bottom panel area; and
• after recovery, short-term storage cages must be regularly supervised. The fish have to be fed daily if stored for more than four weeks.
Quota control is essential in modern fisheries management. Provisions concerning vessel registration, weighing, obligation to fill landing and sales forms and quota settlement, are specified in the regulation of cod, haddock and saithe, north of 62 °N latitude and in the regulation concerning the duty of disclosure when landing and selling fish. Before fishing commences, vessels have to register at the Directorate of Fisheries’ regional offices where they are given quotas in live weight. Quota deduction is based on a conversion of the final product weight, most often headed and gutted, to live weight using standard conversion rates. In order to maintain control of the amount fished, separate provisions have been made for CBA. The main points are:
• before landing the live fish a 12-hour notice should be given to the Fisherman’s sales organization to enable it to check on the quota granted to the individual vessel;
• all fish must be weighed when landed. At first time landing of live fish (not including shellfish or molluscs) from fishing vessels to the recovery cages. The weight can be set by counting all the fish and only weighing a representative selection of fish to determine an average weight/individual;
• a landing form must be completed and returned to the authorities when the fish are transferred to the recovery cages. When the fish is sold a sales form must be completed;
• deduction from the vessels quota is based on the first landing document. Adjustments can be made if the weight has changed as a result of factors which the fishers are not in control of. Examples are spawning, digestion of nutrition or escapees from the cages (not due to lack of fisher control); and
• fish which die during storage are deducted from the vessels quota.
To maintain food safety, Norwegian authorities have standards for food items for human consumption. For fish, these are stated in the regulation of quality. Adjustments have been made to this regulation to accommodate CBA. Fish caught in the wild, which die during transportation from the fishing grounds to the recovery pens, can be sold for human consumption. This is based on traditional fisheries where all fish are dead before delivery and the fact that the fisher maintains the quality of this fish on board the vessel.

Aquaculture phase

When the fish have been transferred to holding cages, the owner can decide on the storing time. The fish can be stored short-term to exploit price variations or for quality enhancement. Long-term storage implies feeding to increase the available quantity.
Enterprises are subject to a specific regulation regarding the operation of their aquaculture installations. The provisions in this regulation are founded on the aquaculture act, the food production and food safety act and the animal welfare act. The main requirements are that operations must be technically, biologically and environmentally safe, as well as epidemiologically safe, i.e. fish shall be protected against unnecessary stress, pain and suffering. This involves trained workers, health control, accurate production journals and reporting to authorities.
Live cod are covered by the CBA regulations until weaning commences. After this, the aquaculture act comes into force with its more comprehensive and resource demanding provisions and requirements, as covered in detail below. During short-term storage, the owner is required to supervise the fish regularly. There are no provisions concerning slaughter.
The maximum time fish can be kept without feeding is set by the CBA regulations at four weeks. This restriction is much debated. Some wish to store live fish for a longer period of time without feeding, or to avoid the extra considerations imposed when entering the aquaculture legal framework. This could be the case in periods when prices for fresh cod are expected to increase, while the quantity of caught cod is expected to decrease. The authorities have so far argued that a short period is important due to precautionary considerations of fish welfare. The issue has been solved by allowing the fisherman to retain and feed the fish for up to 12 weeks without entering the aquaculture legislation. However, the limit is under revision and the authorities have signalled an increase of up to 12 weeks.
When fish are fed, the aquaculture act comes into force, and several extra considerations need to be made. The aquaculture regulations require enterprises to hold a valid licence for farming marine species; the regulation concerning the licence for aquaculture for species other than Atlantic salmon, trout and rainbow trout of 22 December 2004.
Unlike short-term storage without feeding, aquaculture operations must adhere to extensive regulations concerning slaughter; i.e. proper sedation is required and slaughter has to take place at a licensed plant. New legislation and slaughtering procedures of aquaculture organisms were launched on 1 January 2007 to improve welfare and quality of farmed fish. This includes a ban on the use of carbon dioxide for sedation (effective from Summer 2009).
Marine aquaculture licences are given to a specific company for farming of specific species at appointed sites and life stages. Given that the application satisfies a set of conditions, licences are granted. These conditions are defined by various sector laws: the harbour act, the food production and food safety act and the pollution control act. In addition to the regular fish farming licences, a special licence for CBA has been designed. This allows a smaller quantity of live cod to be stored; it requires less information to be collected for the application, is less costly and involves less bureaucracy.