- The Council of the EU has adopted the so co-called ‘maritime safety’ package, the aim of which is to support safe, clean, and modern shipping in the Union.
- The legislative package amends current existing directives, namely the ones on investigation of accidents in the maritime transport sector, ship-source pollution, compliance with flag state requirements, and port state control.
To promote clean, safe, and modern shipping in the EU, the Council has adopted four new pieces of legislation as part of the ‘maritime safety’ legislative package. These revisions aim to strike a balance between ensuring high-quality shipping, maintaining the competitiveness of the European shipping sector, and keeping costs reasonable for operators and member states’ administrations.
The revised package aligns EU rules with international standards and enhances cooperation between European and national authorities to improve implementation and enforcement. One of the key directives amended is the one on ship-source pollution, which incorporates international standards into EU law to better protect the marine environment.
Key changes to the Ship-Source Pollution Directive
- Expanded Scope: The revised directive now covers illegal discharges of harmful substances in packaged form, sewage, garbage, and discharged waters and residues from exhaust gas cleaning systems.
- Strengthened Legal Framework: A robust framework for administrative penalties has been established, enabling national authorities to impose dissuasive and consistent sanctions for ship-source pollution incidents across all European seas.
- Separation of Sanctions Regimes: The administrative sanctions regime has been separated from the criminal sanctions regime, which is now outlined in the new draft environmental crimes directive.
- International Coherence: The revised law ensures clarity and coherence with international rules and procedures, particularly those of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL).
The Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2005/35/EC as regards ship-source pollution and on the introduction of administrative penalties for infringements can be accessed here.
All four legislative acts will be published in the EU’s Official Journal in the coming weeks, following the signatures by the presidents of the Council and the European Parliament. Twenty days after publication, they will enter into force. Member states will then have 30 months to transpose the provisions into their national legislation.
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Source: EU Council
