Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on:

- the "Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the Safety of the seaborne oil trade",

- the "Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 95/21/EC concerning the enforcement, in respect of shipping using Community ports and sailing in the waters under the jurisdiction of the Member States, of international standards for ship safety, pollution prevention and shipboard living and working conditions (port State control)",

- the "Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 94/57/EC on common rules and standards for ship inspection and survey organisations and for the relevant activities of maritime administrations", and

- the "Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accelerated phasing-in of double hull or equivalent design requirements for single hull oil tankers"

(2001/C 22/06)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS,

having regard to the Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 95/21/EC concerning the enforcement, in respect of shipping using Community ports and sailing in the water under the jurisdiction of the Member States, of international standards for ship safety, pollution prevention and shipboard living and working conditions (port State control),

the Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 94/57/EC on common rules and standards for ship inspection and survey organisations and for the relevant activities of maritime administrations and

the Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accelerated phasing-in of double hull or equivalent design requirements for single hull oil tankers (COM(2000) 142 final - 2000/0065 (COD) - 2000/0066 (COD) - 2000/0067 (COD));

having regard to the decision taken by the European Commission on 23 March 2000, under the first paragraph of Article 265 and the second paragraph of Article 80 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, to consult the Committee of the Regions on the matter;

having regard to the decision of the Bureau of the Committee of the Regions of 13 June 2000, under Rule 39 of the Rules of Procedure, to direct Commission 3 (Trans-European Networks, Transport and Information Society) to draw up the relevant opinion;

having regard to Council Directive 93/75/EEC of 13 September 1993 concerning minimum requirements for vessels bound for or leaving Community ports and carrying dangerous or polluting goods;

having regard to Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2158/93 of 28 July 1993 concerning the application of amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, and to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, for the purpose of Council Regulation (EEC) No 613/91;

having regard to the Council Resolution of 8 June 1993 on a common policy on safe seas;

having regard to the Commission Decision of 30 September 1996, 96/587/EEC, on the publication of the list of recognised organisations which have been notified by Member States in accordance with Council Directive 94/57/EC;

having regard to the draft opinion adopted by Commission 3 on 26 June 2000 (CdR 165/2000 rev. 1) (rapporteur: Mr Lamberti (I-PES);

whereas measures to improve transport safety are a matter of Community competence under the terms of Article 75c of Title IV of the Treaty establishing the European Community;

whereas the question of maritime transport safety and the consequences of pollution are of profound importance for the Member States and local authorities, and accidental oil spills from tankers continue to constitute a serious cause of concern to the European Commission, as illustrated by the recent accident involving the oil tanker Erika,

adopted the following opinion at its 35th plenary session of 20 and 21 September 2000 (meeting of 21 September).

1. Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 95/21/EC concerning the enforcement, in respect of shipping using Community ports and sailing in the waters under the jurisdiction of the Member States, of international standards for ship safety, pollution prevention and shipboard living and working conditions (port State control)

The Committee of the Regions

1.1. Approves the line taken by the Commission in refusing access to Community ports to ships which, because of their age, flag and history pose a risk hazard to maritime safety and the marine environment, and highlights the value of the proposed publication and display of the list of ships refused access, through the Sirenac information system.

1.2. Agrees that ships with a high target factor, presenting serious risk of accident or pollution, must be inspected at every Community port of call.

1.3. Welcomes the proposal to subject ships classed in one of the categories of Annex V, section A to an expanded inspection in the first port of call after a period of 12 months since the last expanded inspection carried out in a Member State port, being convinced that this will improve maritime transport safety, and agrees that mandatory guidelines should be established for this type of inspection: this will enable inspectors' margin of discretion in carrying out inspections to be determined, making them as uniform as possible within the Community.

1.4. Agrees that procedures must be laid down for inspectors conducting expanded inspections of certain categories of vessel, since this will enable the inspectors' margin of discretion to be reduced and to harmonise inspections within the Community.

1.5. Considers that clear conditions must be laid down in order to ensure that real, effective and in-depth visual examinations are carried out in all the accessible parts of the ship so that any structural faults can be detected: to this end, the Committee calls upon the Commission to put forward practical and effective instruments for such examinations.

1.6. Agrees with the compulsory application of the expanded inspection regime to oil tankers older than 15 years, since statistics have shown that the majority of deficiencies leading to detention concern ships above this age.

1.7. Also agrees that Member States must ensure that access is refused to all Community ports to ships covered by Annex V part A of the directive, in the situations set out in the new Article 7a, considering that this measure will deter ships belonging to one of the categories mentioned from sailing in Community waters.

1.8. Believes that publication every six months of the information relating to ships that have been refused access to Community ports, for the reasons mentioned in the previous point, is adequate.

1.9. Approves the proposal to improve information on inspections performed in previous ports, also intended to avoid repetition of inspections, with the ensuing increase in the workload of the relevant services.

1.10. Endorses the inclusion in the directive of the statement that the administration of the flag State or the classification society concerned must be informed of the results of inspection, so that they can take early action to counter possible deterioration of the ship and take the necessary remedial measures.

1.11. Agrees with the inclusion in the directive of an obligation upon inspectors to check the presence on board oil tankers carrying more than 2000 tonnes of oil in bulk of an insurance or other financial guarantee covering pollution damage; this measure should, by means of appropriate instruments, ensure full cover of the costs incurred by regions in dealing with any environmental disasters: the Committee attaches particular importance to this aspect of the proposal, bearing in mind the direct interests of the authorities in the areas affected.

1.12. Agrees that the transparency of information relating to ships inspected and detained should be boosted, in order to deter the use of ships which fail to meet established safety standards.

1.13. Agrees that the directive should include a real obligation upon Member States to forward the information specified in Annex X to the Commission on an annual basis, enabling it to intervene more rapidly to prevent anomalies in the application of the directive: such anomalies create the risk of varying levels of safety and consequently distortion of competition between EU ports and regions. The Committee recommends that practical mechanisms and instruments are devised to ensure that the Member States fulfil this requirement.

1.14. Lastly, while hoping that in the light of the extreme urgency of taking action on the safety of maritime oil transport - as recently illustrated by the Erika accident - the amendments to the directive will be adopted as soon as possible, the Committee would nevertheless make the following recommendations:

1.15. With regard to the inclusion among the tasks to be carried out by inspectors of technical checks on ships' structures, the Committee would stress that Article 4 should oblige the Member States to ensure on-going training and refresher courses for inspectors, on the basis of programmes coordinated at Community level. This would provide State authorities with highly qualified inspection staff with shared basic know-how, and would keep inspectors up-to-date with technological developments in the sector. This is considered essential if inspections are to be qualitatively adequate.

1.16. Emphasises the need to speed up the introduction of legislative measures in order to encourage the circulation of information on vessel and cargo characteristics (in the event of hazardous cargoes), which the Commission plans to undertake in the future. This is crucial if local administrations are to have the data they need on the transport of hazardous substances to draw up emergency plans, including the necessary protective measures to minimise the impact of any accidents.

1.17. The Committee would therefore draw particular attention to its views as set out in points 1.4, 1.11 and 1.13, which it considers essential.

1.18. Lastly, the Committee believes it is especially important that the issues covered by the draft directive should be evaluated decisively and individually as part of the accession procedures, particularly regarding Mediterranean countries such as Cyprus and Malta.

2. Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 94/57/EC on common rules and standards for ship inspection and survey organisations and for the relevant activities of maritime administrations

The Committee of the Regions

2.1. Agrees that the directive must be amended in order to fine-tune the Community system for recognising classification societies, particularly as regards controls and sanctions, especially for damage to the environment, and in order to make the requirements to be met by the recognised organisations more stringent. This will allow the recognition regime to be strengthened and the obligations upon the Member States concerning monitoring of the classification societies to be simplified.

2.1.1. The amendment is also important in that it seeks to bring the directive into line with the relevant amendments to international conventions and the corresponding mandatory codes for the Member States, as well as with the relevant International Maritime Organisation (IMO) resolutions.

2.2. Welcomes the inclusion in the directive of an obligation upon Member States to operate in accordance with the provisions of IMO Resolution A.847 on guidelines to assist flag States in the implementation of IMO instruments, since this will facilitate effective fulfilment of the obligations of flag States in this area deriving from international conventions.

2.3. Approves the amendment to the procedure for granting initial recognition to the technical organisations wishing to be authorised to assess ship safety on behalf of the Member States, transferring responsibility for recognition from the Member States to the Commission. This will allow more harmonised assessments to be carried out within the Community.

2.4. The comments made in point 2.3 above apply equally to the monitoring of continued compliance with the conditions laid down by the directive with regard to the technical organisations, which is entrusted to both the Community and the Member States.

2.5. Welcomes the introduction, as a precondition for granting initial recognition to technical organisations carrying out ship safety assessments, and maintaining such recognition, of a good record of safety and pollution prevention performance by ships classed by these organisations, irrespective of the flag flown.

2.6. Endorses extending the authority to suspend recognition of technical organisations to the Commission, under a procedure involving the committee set up under Article 7 and composed of Member State representatives.

2.7. Agrees that withdrawal of recognition of an organisation that fails to fulfil the provisions set out in the directive, or whose safety and pollution prevention performance becomes unsatisfactory, should be decided at Community level, in order to ensure that procedures are uniform throughout the Community.

2.8. Welcomes negotiations with those third countries where some of the recognised organisations are located, in order to ensure equality of treatment with such organisations located within the Community.

2.9. proposes an alternative provision governing the liability of recognised organisations vis-à-vis the official bodies with which they have established a working relationship. In addition to the obligation upon Member States to inform the European Commission and the other Member States of such a relationship, the alternative provision would establish liability on the part of the recognised organisation, in the event of minor error, at a level not below a sum fixed by the directive.

2.10. Agrees with the need to encourage the widest possible circulation of the information concerning ships provided by the recognised organisations.

2.11. Agrees that time restrictions for ships to change class should be inserted, since this will enable use of this method to avoid safety standards to be combated.

2.12. Approves the amendment to the directive in order to establish the qualitative criteria to be met by the technical organisations for the purposes of recognition, as this will enhance the quality of the service they provide.

2.13. Here again, the Committee considers that the contents of the directive must be evaluated with a view to the procedures covering the accession of countries concerned by these matters.

3. Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the accelerated phasing-in of double hull or equivalent design standards for single hull oil tankers

The Committee of the Regions

3.1. Welcomes the adoption of the regulation, noting that this legislative instrument is the best way of achieving the accelerated implementation of the new safety standards laid down for oil tankers (Articles 1 and 2).

3.2. Agrees with the Commission's reasons for drawing up the regulation, which will boost the process of gradually eliminating single hull tankers in accordance with elimination criteria that must not be less severe than those contained in United States legislation, and agrees that efforts must be made to apply these deadlines internationally. This will prevent vessels banned from US waters from beginning to operate in European Community waters (Article 4): the Committee views this point as a priority, and all the EU institutions must make every effort to ensure that the timing of Community legislation corresponds precisely with that of the United States.

3.3. Approves the introduction by the directive of financial incentives for double hull tankers and disincentives for single hull vessels, in order to speed up the process of replacing the latter with the former.

3.3.1. Similarly welcomes the fact that the mixed incentives/disincentives system is based on a combination of reducing port and pilotage dues for tankers of the first type or of equivalent design standard and increased dues for tankers of the second type (Article 5).

3.4. Notes that the IMO must be notified of the Community provisions set out in the regulation once it is adopted, in accordance with Article 211 of the United Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) (Article 6).

3.5. Approves the provisions whereby the Member States must:

- verify that the differential charging system for port and pilotage dues is applied;

- send a report to the Commission each year on the result of verification. It will thus be possible to verify proper application by the Member States of the provisions of Article 5 of the regulation (Article 7).

3.6. Approves the establishment of the regulatory committee under Article 8.

3.7. Agrees that the Commission should have the right to amend the regulation and its annex to update the references to the relevant regulations of MARPOL 73/78 in line with any subsequent amendments to these regulations.

3.8. Welcomes the abolition of the existing differential charging system under Council Regulation (EC) No 2978/94 and its replacement with the new one under the proposed regulation.

3.9. Endorses the application of the regulation 12 months after its entry into force, as specified in Article 12.

3.10. Supports the provisions of the proposed regulation as a whole, but wishes to make the following point:

- the rules contained in the regulation refer to oil tankers; since it is assumed that the aim of the regulation is to prevent pollution and its consequences, the Committee proposes that these rules also be rapidly extended, by adopting similar prevention systems reflecting the different transport safety technologies, to gas and chemical tankers.

3.11. The Committee welcomes all the proposals for future measures put forward by the Commission. In this regard, the Committee:

- hopes for further development of the EQUASIS information system, and subsequently for a permanent commitment on the part of the Member States and the Commission to the project;

- proposes that the extension of the mandatory notification under Directive 93/75/EEC to ships in transit off the Community be put forward again in the near future at Community level.

The Committee is also highly favourable to the idea of eventually setting up a European structure of maritime safety, enabling safety rules to be applied effectively and in a uniform manner throughout the European Community.

In view of the tasks which the Commission proposes be entrusted to this structure (supporting the action of Member States and the Commission in applying and monitoring Community legislation and in evaluating the effectiveness of the measures in place), the Committee considers that:

- regional and local authorities should be able to contribute to the process of setting up the structure;

- regional and local authorities must have the appropriate contacts and relations with this structure on a basis of equality with other levels of administration.

This would ensure that regional and local authorities could - in accordance with the principle of transparency of information regarding the ships covered by the legislative proposals discussed in the present opinion - have access to the necessary information to take effective measures to deal with any accidents, such as the Erika incident, and to channel relevant information to citizens. This last aspect is particularly pertinent in view of the great importance public opinion attaches to pollution issues.

3.12. The Committee notes that Community legislation to introduce obligatory use of double hull oil tankers must be brought into line with the deadlines laid down in OPA 90, fully sharing the concerns expressed by the Commission regarding the probable shift of commercial operations on the part of oil tankers banned from the United States towards Europe. It also believes that this measure will have a beneficial impact on the phasing-out of older, and therefore less safe, vessels.

3.13. The Committee also recognises the need for steps to be taken to substantially reduce the currently permitted size of individual tanks in tankers.

3.14. The Committee would alert the Commission to the need to deal with owner and crew related problems, at the appropriate levels. The former are all too often shadowy to the point of complete invisibility, and the latter totally unable to ensure at least full compensation for loss, particularly in the event of environmental disaster. It is common knowledge that the effect of the current rules governing the liability of owners and crews is that the party actually liable most often remains either unknown or in any case "untouchable". This problem is no less important that those addressed by the proposals to amend Directives 95/21/EC and 9457/EC and by the proposal for a regulation.

The Committee of the Regions

4. Supports the development of Europe's fleet and ports by emphasising safety. Although the reinforcement of the above-mentioned safety inspections and standards will undoubtedly constitute progress, this will not be enough to radically modify maritime transport. The Committee of the Regions wishes to make several proposals whose implementation it considers urgent, in particular within the framework of enlargement.

4.1. Stresses the urgent need to continue efforts to harmonise the maritime administrations of the various Member States while giving priority to the most rigorous safety criteria and by introducing coherent monitoring arrangements.

4.2. Considers that there is an urgent need to implement a European risk prevention policy aimed at all participants in the transport chain.

4.3. Recommends that a wide-reaching Community programme be created to provide specific assistance to the development and modernisation of the maritime sector of the Union's poorest countries.

4.4. Considers that candidates for accession to the Union (Cyprus, Malta, and the Baltic states) should have administrations capable of carrying out inspections and ensuring compliance with international standards.

4.5. Believes that it is important to move towards social and fiscal harmonisation in the European Union, in particular by:

- ensuring substantial rights for employees;

- complying with social rules concerning crews;

- expanding employment;

- promoting and preserving the maritime professions while providing appropriate vocational training.

4.6. Urges the European Union to examine the possibility of introducing a maritime safety tax. The tax would be based on the nature of the merchandise transported, and its purpose would be to raise sufficient funds to ensure effective prevention.

Brussels, 21 September 2000.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Jos Chabert