WRITTEN QUESTION E-1070/02 by Chris Davies (ELDR) to the Commission. Ship safety.
Date: 2002-04-17
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: International Maritime Organisation, carriage of goods, international standard, load, maritime safety, maritime transport, technical regulations, transport safety

C 277 E/142

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

14.11.2002

According to the draft decision establishing the ERG, the group shall provide the interface between
national regulatory authorities and the Commission in such a way as to contribute to the development of
the internal market and should allow co-operation between Member States and the Commission in
a transparent manner as to ensure the consistent application in all Member States of the regulatory
framework.

According to the draft decision, the group will comprise the heads of each relevant national regulatory
authorities in charge of overseeing the day-to-day interpretation and application of the provisions of the
Directives relating to electronic communications networks and services, as defined in the Framework
Directive, or their representatives. The Commission shall be represented at all meetings and shall provide
the Secretariat to the Group.

An initial draft of the proposed Commission Decision of establishing the ERG was made available to the
Members of the Parliament.

(1) Directive 2002/21/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on a common regulatory framework

for electronic communications networks and services (Framework Directive), OJ L 108, 24.4.2002.

(2002/C 277 E/161)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1070/02

by Chris Davies (ELDR) to the Commission

(17 April 2002)

Subject: Ship safety

Further to the report by the British Judge Mr Justice Colman into the loss of the MV Derbyshire, the more
recent loss of the Cypriot-registered bulk carrier Christopher last year, and concern expressed elsewhere
about the seaworthiness of pre-1998 bulk carriers, what steps has the Commission taken to curtail the
registration of such vessels or introduce controls on their use in EU waters?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(28 May 2002)

The high number of bulk carrier casualties in the past decades and the associated tragic loss of human lives
remain an issue of major concern for the Commission. In the past, the Commission participated in the cost
of the investigation into the loss of the M.V. Derbyshire and currently is providing financial support to the
Royal Institute of Naval Architects in the United Kingdom, which is co-ordinating internationally a Formal
Safety Assessment (FSA) study into the safety of bulk carriers. This has been undertaken at the instigation
the International Maritime Organisation, with the purpose of
of
developing recommendations for safer ship design.

the Maríne Safety Committee of

The registration of ships is a matter for individual Member States, which shall ensure, in accordance with
Council Directive 94/57/EC (1), that their competent authorities can assure an appropriate enforcement of
the provisions of the international conventions, in particular with regard to the inspection and survey of
ships flying their flag.

The problem particular to bulk carriers casualties is the heavy loss of life associated with foundering when
structural failure is, or appears to be, the cause. This has prompted the international maritime community
to take, in the first instance, measures to enhance the structural integrity of dry bulk carriers, focusing
mainly on the maintenance and enhancement of the strength of the ship’s hull. In support of these
developments the Union has adopted a number of port State control measures (2) aimed at imposing
higher standards of maintenance of dry bulk carriers.

14.11.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 277 E/143

Other factors that can contribute to hull structural failure have been identified by international research as
over-stressing due to incorrect
loading and physical damage to cargo hold structures during cargo
discharging. To address this issue, Directive 2001/96/EC (3) has recently been adopted.

(1) Council Directive 94/57/EC of 22 November 1994 on common rules and standards for ship inspection and survey

organisations and for the relevant activities of maritime administrations, OJ L 319, 12.12.1994.

(2) Directive 2001/106/EC of the Parliament and of the Council of 19 December 2001, 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), OJ L 19, 22.1.2002.

(3) Directive 2001/96/EC of

the Parliament and of

the Council of 4 December 2001, establishing harmonised

requirements and procedures for the safe loading and unloading of bulk carriers, OJ L 13, 16.1.2002.

(2002/C 277 E/162)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1072/02

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(17 April 2002)

Subject: Imports of the tree fern Dicksonia antarctica and the danger that this poses to the species

Is the Commission aware of

for 18 February 2002
1.
concerning the threat posed to the tree fern Dicksonia antarctica by a craze for using the species as a
decorative garden plant?

in the edition of

‘The Times’

the report

The plant is legally imported into the European Union, with 91 % of imports going to Great Britain,
2.
where it has been popularised by television gardening programmes. 140 000 plants have been legally
imported over the last five years, of which almost half have been taken directly from the wild. Specimens
do not replace themselves, as their rate of reproduction is extremely slow. According to the World Wildlife
Fund, which has published a report on the matter which was the subject of the article in ‘The Times’,
‘… most tree ferns are ripped from old-growth, wet, temperate rainforests, subsidising logging operations
that are wrecking wildlife habitats in south-eastern Australian states such as Victoria and Tasmania.’

3.
Does the Commission agree that, given the impossibility of distinguishing specimens taken from the
wild from those cultivated specifically for the market, a complete ban on imports would be the most
appropriate action? Does it plan to propose such a ban, or does it believe that some other form of action
would be effective in conserving this prehistoric species?

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(6 June 2002)

1.
The Commission is aware of the report ‘Alert over tree ferns loved by TV garden makeovers’ in the
edition of ‘The Times’ from 18 February 2002 as well as of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
report ‘Traded towards extinction?’ from February 2002.

2.
The international trade in endangered plants is regulated by the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The provisions of CITES are implemented in the
Union by Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 (1) and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1808/2001 (2).

Dicksoniaceae spp. were listed on CITES Appendix II and Annex B of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97
until March 2000, when the CITES Conference of the Parties agreed on a change of the listing of
Dicksoniaceae spp. to Dicksonia spp. (originating in the Americas only). The proposal for this partial