S.L. 425.16 Art. 20Random controls.

(1) Without prejudice to other controls according to these regulations, the Director shall order that each aquaculture establishment is subject to controlled transfers of all the BFT from such cages as the Director may require, to those other cages which the Director may require, which transfers shall be referred to as random controls:

Provided that such random control shall be monitored and controlled by video, inclusive of video recorded with stereoscopic cameras, as the Director may require:

Provided further that any random control ordered according to this regulation shall be notified to the operator of the concerned aquaculture establishment within a maximum period of forty-eight (48) hours from the expected commencement of the random control, but the actual cages affected shall only be communicated on site upon the arrival of the relevant fisheries protection officers.

(2) Random controls according to this regulation may be ordered at any time between the first caging operation at the aquaculture establishment within a particular year and the first such caging operation in the following year.

(3) If following a random control according to this regulation there is any resulting discrepancy between the BFT that should have been caged according to the relevant declarations and the BFT resulting following the random control, and said discrepancy is above that established according to international law, then the Director shall investigate the matter.

(4) On the basis of the results of the investigation referred in sub-regulation (3), the Director may make the necessary adjustments in the number and, or weight in the respective eBCDs to reflect the BFT actually caged and he may also order a number of BFT to be released by the aquaculture establishment operator according to such conditions as the Director may order.

(5) No compensation between the BFT in one cage and the BFT in another cage is permissible for any discrepancy resulting according to sub-regulation (3).