The countries of the European Union (EU) signed an agreement on Monday strengthen regulations regulating, at community level, pollution emitted by ships engaged in maritime transportand agreed with that, among other things to throw waste from a ship is considered an illegal discharge.

The Council of the EU, the body representing the governments of each country in the Union, has agreed at a meeting between the Transport Ministers of the Twenty-Seven to extend the scope of the European directive regulating pollution from ships.

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Except litter, too agreed to classify the release of packaged harmful substances as illegal dumping, waters residuals and wastein addition to establishing “a strengthened legal framework” to punish these practices.

However, the countries agreed that they can do this alone under this new directive administrative sanctions are imposed on those who do not comply with its provisionswhereby the justice of each Member State retains the possibility of intervening in criminal law.

In a statement, the EU Council emphasized that EU countries, with its agreement, have also “made more flexible” the obligations that states will have to verify and report incidents of illegal discharges or pollution.

According to the Twenty-Seven, these changes are changing they want to “avoid the imposition of excessive administrative burdens and recognize the diverse situations of Member States in terms of geographical location, resources and capacities.”

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With this agreement, the Council of the EU sets out its position to conclude negotiations with the European Parliament on the final text of the future Ship Pollution Directive, which was presented this spring by the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm.

In addition to this regulation, the Transport Ministers of the Twenty-Seven also adopted the common position of the Council of the EU to negotiate with the European Parliament the reform of three other directives related to maritime transport, which have also been adopted by the European Commission suggested.

These are the Maritime Transport Accident Investigation Directive, the Flag State Control Directive (i.e. the country where a ship is registered) and the Port State Control Directive (which regulates the conditions under which EU countries must manage their ports).

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In this latest regulation, the countries of the The EU agreed to “bring the European directive into line” with international standards and proceduresin addition to ensuring “the protection of fishing vessels, their crews and the environment.”

Regarding the Flag State Control Directive, EU countries agreed to “establish appropriate inspections of flagged ships and monitor the supervision of recognized organizations working on behalf of the flag State”.

However, the Council of the EU has limited the scope of the directive to ships with international certificates engaged in international voyages, as explained by the institution, thus amending the European Commission’s original proposal.

In the agreement reached on the accident investigation directive, transport ministers agreed to extend the scope of the rule to smaller fishing vessels, with the aim of ‘improving’ their safety.

Future legislation in this area aims to simplify and clarify definitions and conditions so that the authorities in each EU country responsible for investigating maritime accidents can do so in a harmonized way across the community club. (JO)