COUNCIL RESOLUTION

of 11 March 1996

on short sea shipping

(96/C 99/01)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

A. Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Considering the White Paper on the future development of the common transport policy, of 2 December 1992 (1), which was welcomed by the Council at its meetings held on 7 and 8 June and 19 June 1993;

Considering the Commission communication on short sea shipping, of 5 July 1995 (2);

Considering the importance of transport for the economy of the European Union;

Considering the increasing degree of congestion in general and the high costs which characterize land transport infrastructure;

Considering the potential contribution that short sea shipping could make to the achievement of sustainable mobility;

Considering that, in view of the foregoing, efforts are called for both at Community level and at the level of Member States to promote or improve short sea shipping, while respecting the free choice of users;

Considering that, where obstacles prevent the development of short sea shipping, remedial action should be taken by regional, local or port authorities and by the maritime industries themselves;

B. NOTES:

1. the considerable advantages presented by short sea shipping for the European Union in comparison with land transport, in particular:

(a) the general availability of space capacity in short sea shipping;

(b) lower energy consumption and lower levels of emission of pollutants into the atmosphere;

(c) potential contribution to the development of peripheral regions of the European Union;

(d) possibility to extend short sea shipping further with few infrastructure costs;

2. the reports and the agreed multiannual work programmes adopted by various Conferences on shipping in different areas, such as the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea;

3. the reports and proposals by the Maritime Industries Forum on the advisability of promoting short sea shipping as a viable alternative, in economic, energy, safety and environmental terms, to land transport;

C. STATES that the main objectives of short sea shipping policy are:

1. to achieve a balanced growth of this mode of transport; and

2. positive and active integration of short sea shipping, including feeder services, into the intermodal transport chain,

D. INTENDS to pursue these objectives by encouraging the following actions:

1. developing further the environmental benefits of short sea shipping;

2. promoting, in the interest of the users, free and fair competition between modes of transport in which all modes bear their full costs, including external costs;

3. fostering of free and fair competition between Community ports and between shipping lines;

4. improving port efficiency in order to reduce the costs of, and time spent in, port operations;

5. making use of combined transport for the development of short sea shipping;

6. promoting the confidence of shippers and transport undertakings in the possibilities of short sea shipping;

7. streamlining and, where appropriate, coordinating, harmonizing and simplifying customs procedures and other related administrative formalities which arise in harbours;

8. encouraging initiatives by shipping undertakings involved in short sea shipping;

9. drawing up and implementing pilot projects concerning short sea shipping, where these do not distort competition between transport modes or between shipping companies or ports of all Member States, and disseminating the results;

10. supporting training, research and development in the area of short sea shipping and port activities;

11. supporting and expanding electronic data interchange (EDI),

E. IN THE LIGHT OF THE ABOVE:

1. welcomes in general the action programme contained in the Communication by the Commission;

2. notes that the Commission will submit as soon as possible its Green Paper on the internalization of external costs in transport;

3. notes that the Commission will develop as soon as possible guidelines on State aid to shipping and to ports and will consult the Member States and the maritime industries on these guidelines;

4. agrees that the promotion of short sea shipping should continue to be an important element in ongoing Community and Member States' activity such as the trans-European transport network plan and the Fourth Framework Programme on Research and Development;

F. INVITES THE COMMISSION to propose to the Council or to develop, as soon as possible, the measures necessary to attain the objectives stated in part C taking into account its action programme and the subsidiarity principle, and in particular measures which:

1. prevent distortion of competition between ports;

2. promote the increased use of short sea shipping among its potential users;

3. simplify and streamline existing customs procedures and other related administrative formalities which arise in ports, with regard to short sea shipping;

4. encourage initiatives by shipping undertakings involved in short sea shipping;

5. support programmes of training, research and development in this transport sector;

6. encourage the use of information technology for the best development of this mode of transport,

G. INVITES THE MEMBER STATES:

1. to support the objectives and the means stated in parts C and D;

2. to cooperate with the Commission in setting a Community framework to promote the short sea shipping sector;

3. to carry out actions to stimulate short sea shipping, taking into account the proposed action programme of the Commission's communication and to encourage their regional, local and port authorities and maritime industries to do likewise;

4. to promote practical consultations, for example through round tables such as those of the Maritime Industries Forum in which the maritime industries and regional, local and port authorities are represented.

(1) COM(92) 494 final.

(2) COM(95) 317 final.