Case 72259 — Union Waters Deeper than 800m

The case in brief

Assessed and closed: rule cannot be established on any evidence available to us.

Case

#72259

Observation

Apparent fishing (satellite vessel tracking)

Closed area

Union Waters Deeper than 800m (EU 2016/2336)

What is prohibited there

trawling prohibited

When

2026-09-11 19:04 UTC → 2026-09-12 03:03 UTC

Position

59.9259°, -7.0061°

Vessel

VENTURE IV BF

MMSI

232045095

Flag

GBR

Gear (satellite-inferred)

Trawlers

Gear (verified by hand)

Demersal Stern Trawl — high confidence

How this case was judged

Every CAUGHT case is assessed on three independent questions, and the weakest of the three decides. A case reads CAUGHT only when all three are established and a person has reviewed it.

• Activity strong

  Was it fishing, here, and then?

  • Apparent fishing recorded at a position inside the closure, over an event lasting 8.0 h — the recorded extent of this fishing event is not contained by the closure, so the share of those hours spent inside it is not measured.

• Vessel strong

  What gear does this boat actually use?

  • Bottom-towed gear established: demersal stern trawl.

• Rule unknown

  What was prohibited there, then, for that gear?

  • Rule reviewed and NOT resolved: A breach cannot be established from position and behaviour alone. Three independent reasons, any one of which is sufficient — see `analysis` below.

Not established: rule. A case is only as strong as its weakest factor, so this one cannot read CAUGHT until that is settled.

Check it yourself

Nothing here asks to be taken on trust. The full report sets out every source, every measurement and everything we could not establish.

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