First hearings of Vega trawler case began

In the end of the first ten days of February 2007 the first hearings of the trawler Persey-3 case started in Norway, according to sources in Murmansk.

Persey-3 trawler is owned by Murmansk-based JSC ZAO NPP Vega. In spring 2006 the trawler conducted cod fishery on the grounds at the southern coast off the Lofoten Islands regarded the most efficient area in terms of catch rates and fish size. According to Norway's Fishery Regulations for foreign vessels (Russian inclusive), the bycatch of saithe in each particular catch should not exceed 49% of the total harvest. According to Vega, the ship's logbook had several records proving that her daily harvest contained 48-49% of saithe bycatch in keeping with the current regulations.