| Author (Corporate) | European Commission: DG Mobility and Transport |
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| Series Details | COM (2023) 273 |
| Publication Date | 01/06/2023 |
| Content Type | Policy-making |
Summary:Legislative initiative tabled by the European Commission on 1 June 2023, introducing amendments to Directive 2005/35/EC on ship-source pollution and on the introduction of penalties, including criminal penalties, for pollution offences. This is a text with EEA relevance. Further information:The policies of the European Union (EU) on preventing pollution from ships were developed in the 2000s, in the wake of two major maritime accidents which caused substantial oil spills. Directive 2005/35/EC - also known as the Ship-Source Pollution Directive or SSP Directive - regulates penalties for illegal discharges of oil and noxious liquid substances from ships into the sea. Its main objective is to incorporate international standards into EU law and to ensure that those responsible for illegal discharges of polluting substances are subject to dissuasive, effective and proportionate penalties in order to improve maritime safety and to better protect the marine environment from pollution by ships. The Directive also sets out an enforcement system where monitoring and verification activities carried out by the Member States lead to penalties on those responsible for infringements. The European Commission carried out the first ex-post evaluation of the Directive in 2022. It concluded that it successfully contributed to the incorporation of international rules on ship-source pollution into Member State law and improved the detection of pollution from ships. However, it also identified several shortcomings. Notably, not all relevant polluting substances of the international regime are within scope, information exchange and expertise is irregular across EU Member States and generally insufficient, there is an unbalanced dissuasive effect of the penalties, and national reporting lack detailed information. The proposed Directive seeks to address those vulnerabilities. It seeks to incorporate international standards into EU law, support Member States in building their capacity to detect pollution incidents, verify, collect evidence and effectively penalise identified offenders in a timely and harmonised manner, ensure that persons responsible for illegal discharges are subject to effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties, and ensure simplified and effective reporting on ship-source pollution incidents and follow-up activities. This draft law was adopted by the European Commission on 1 June 2023 as part of a legislative package focusing on maritime safety. It delivers on actions relevant to the European Green Deal, the Smart and Sustainable Mobility Strategy and the Zero Pollution Action Plan. The plenary of the European Parliament endorsed a negotiating position on 22 November. The Council of the European Union adopted its general approach to the draft law on 4 December. An informal agreement between the co-legislators on a compromise text for this file was reached on 15 February 2024. |
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| Source Link | https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=COM:2023:273:FIN |
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| Subject Categories | Environment, Mobility and Transport |
| Subject Tags | Waterway Transport |
| Keywords | Maritime Safety, Ships, Water Pollution |
| International Organisations | European Union [EU] |
