Regulation (EC) No 2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 November 2002 establishing a Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) and amending the Regulations on maritime safety and the prevention of pollution from ships
Date: 2002-11-05
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: International Maritime Organisation, maritime safety, maritime surveillance, pollution from ships, prevention of pollution, transport of dangerous goods, vessel

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I

(Acts whose publication is obligatory)

REGULATION (EC) No 2099/2002 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 5 November 2002

establishing a Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) and
amending the Regulations on maritime safety and the prevention of pollution from ships

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE
EUROPEAN UNION,

(3)

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu-
nity, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (2),

Having regard to the opinion of
Regions (3),

the Committee of

the

(4)

Acting in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article
251 of the Treaty (4),

The role of COSS is to centralise the tasks of
the
committees set up under the Community legislation on
maritime safety, the prevention of pollution from ships
and the protection of shipboard living and working
conditions and to assist and advise the Commission on
all matters of maritime safety and prevention or reduc-
tion of pollution of the environment by shipping activ-
ities.

In keeping with the Resolution of 8 June 1993, a
Committee on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution
from Ships should be set up and assigned the tasks
previously devolved to the committees established under
the aforesaid legislation. All new Community legislation
adopted in the field of maritime safety should stipulate
recourse to the Committee thereby set up.

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

The measures implementing the existing Regulations and
Directives in the field of maritime safety were adopted
by a regulatory procedure involving the Committee set
up by 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 (5) and, in certain cases, an
ad hoc committee. These committees were governed by
the rules set out in Council Decision 87/373/EEC of 13
July 1987 laying down the procedures for the exercise
implementing powers conferred on the Commis-
of
sion (6).

By its Resolution of 8 June 1993 on a common policy
on safe seas (7), the Council approved in principle the
establishment of a Committee on Safe Seas and the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) and called on
the Commission to present a proposal to set up such a
committee.

(1) OJ C 365 E, 19.12.2000, p. 276.
(2) OJ C 139, 11.5.2001, p. 21.
(3) OJ C 253, 12.9.2001, p. 1.
(4) Opinion of the European Parliament of 13 February 2001 (OJ C
276, 1.10.2001, p. 42), Council Common Position of 27 May 2002
(OJ C 170 E, 16.7.2002, p. 37) and Decision of the European Parlia-
ment of 24 September 2002 (not yet published in the Official
Journal).

(5) OJ L 247, 5.10.1993, p. 19. Directive as last amended by Directive

98/74/EC (OJ L 276, 13.10.1998, p. 7).

(6) OJ L 197, 18.7.1987, p. 33.
(7) OJ C 271, 7.10.1993, p. 1.

(5)

(6)

(7)

Decision 87/373/EEC has been replaced by Council
Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down
the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers
conferred on the Commission (8),
the provisions of
which should therefore be applied to COSS. The purpose
of the latter decision is to define the Committee proce-
dures applicable and ensure more comprehensive infor-
mation to the European Parliament and the public on
the work of the committees.

The measures required to implement the aforesaid legis-
lation should be adopted in accordance with Decision
1999/468/EC.

The aforesaid legislation should also be amended to
substitute COSS for the Committee set up by Directive
the ad hoc
93/75/EEC or, where appropriate,
committee established under any particular act. This
Regulation should in particular amend the relevant
provisions of Council Regulations (EEC) No 613/91 of 4

for

(8) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.

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March 1991 on the transfer of ships from one register
to another within the Community (1), (EC) No 2978/94
of 21 November 1994 on the implementation of IMO
Resolution A.747(18) on the application of
tonnage
measurement of ballast spaces in segregated ballast oil
tankers (2), (EC) No 3051/95 of 8 December 1995 on
the safety management of
roll-on/roll-off passenger
ferries (ro-ro ferries) (3) and Regulation (EC) No 417/
2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of
18 February 2002 on the accelerated phasing-in of
double hull or equivalent design requirements for single
hull oil tankers and repealing Council Regulation (EC)
No 2978/94 (4), in order to insert a reference to COSS
and to stipulate the regulatory procedure laid down in
Article 5 of Decision 1999/468/EC.

Moreover, the aforesaid legislation is based on the appli-
cation of rules resulting from international instruments
in force at the date of adoption of the Community act in
question, or at the date specified by the latter. As a
consequence, Member States cannot apply the subse-
quent amendments to these international
instruments
the Community Directives or Regulations have
until
been amended. This has major disadvantages owing to
the difficulty of ensuring that the date of entry into force
of the amendment at international level coincides with
that of the Regulation integrating this amendment into
Community law, not least the delayed application within
the Community of the most recent and most stringent
international safety standards.

However, it is necessary to draw a distinction between
the provisions of a Community act making reference, for
the purposes of their application, to an international
instrument and Community provisions reproducing an
international instrument in full or in part. In the latter
case, the most recent amendments to the international
instruments cannot in any case be rendered applicable
until the Community provisions concerned have been
amended.

(8)

(9)

(10) Member States should therefore be permitted to apply
the most recent provisions of international instruments,
with the exception of those explicitly incorporated in a
Community act. This can be done by stating that the
international convention applicable for the purposes of
the Directive or Regulation concerned is that ‘in its up-
to-date version’, without mentioning the date.

(12) A specific

conformity checking procedure

should,
however, be set up to enable the Commission, after
consulting COSS, to take whatever measures may be
necessary to exclude the risk of amendments to the
international
instruments being incompatible with the
aforesaid legislation or Community policy on maritime
safety, the prevention of pollution from ships and the
protection of shipboard living and working conditions in
force or with the objectives pursued by that legislation.
Such a procedure should also prevent
international
amendments from lowering the standard of maritime
safety achieved in the Community.

(13)

The conformity checking procedure will only be fully
effective if the planned measures are adopted as speedily
as possible, but at all events before the expiry of the
deadline for the entry into force of the international
amendment. Consequently,
the time available to the
Council to act on the proposed measures in accordance
with Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC should be
one month,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Purpose

The purpose of this Regulation is to improve the implementa-
tion of the Community legislation referred to in Article 2(2) on
maritime safety, the prevention of pollution from ships and
shipboard living and working conditions:

(a) by centralising the tasks of the committees set up under
Community maritime legislation and replaced by this Regu-
lation by establishing a single Committee on Safe Seas and
the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, to be known as
COSS;

(b) by accelerating the update of, and facilitating subsequent
amendments to, Community maritime legislation in the
light of developments in the international
instruments
referred to in Article 2(1).

Article 2

Definitions

(11)

For reasons of transparency, the relevant amendments to
international instruments that are integrated in Commu-
nity maritime legislation should be made public in the
Community through their publication in the Official
Journal of the European Communities.

(1) OJ L 68, 15.3.1991, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 319, 12.12.1994, p. 1.
(3) OJ L 320, 30.12.1995, p. 14. Regulation as amended by Commis-

sion Regulation (EC) No 179/98 (OJ L 19, 24.1.1998, p. 35).

(4) OJ L 64, 7.3.2002, p. 1.

For the purposes of this Regulation:

1.

instruments’

shall mean the conventions,
‘international
protocols, resolutions, codes, compendia of rules, circulars,
standards and provisions adopted by an international
conference, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO),
the International Labour Organisation (ILO) or the parties to
a memorandum of understanding referred to in the provi-
sions of the Community maritime legislation in force;

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2.

‘Community maritime legislation’ shall mean the Commu-
nity acts in force listed below:
(a) Council Regulation (EEC) No 613/91;
(b) Council Directive 93/75/EEC;
(c) Council Regulation (EC) No 2978/94;
(d) 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 (1);

(e) Council Directive 95/21/EC of 19 June 1995 on port

State control (2);

(f) Council Regulation (EC) No 3051/95;
(g) Council Directive 96/98/EC of 20 December 1996 on

marine equipment (3);

(h) Council Directive 97/70/EC of 11 December 1997
fishing

setting up a harmonised safety regime for
vessels of 24 metres in length and over (4);

(i) Council Directive 98/18/EC of 17 March 1998 on

safety rules and standards for passenger ships (5);

(j) Council Directive 98/41/EC of 18 June 1998 on the
registration of persons sailing on board passenger ships
operating to or from ports of the Member States of the
Community (6);

(k) Council Directive 1999/35/EC of 29 April 1999 on a
system of mandatory surveys for the safe operation of
ro-ro ferry and high speed passenger craft
regular
services (7);

(l) Directive 2000/59/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 27 November 2000 on port reception
facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues (8);
(m) Directive 2001/25/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 4 April 2001 on the minimum level
of training of seafarers (9);

(n) Directive 2001/96/EC of the European Parliament and
of
the Council of 4 December 2001 establishing
harmonised requirements and procedures for the safe
loading and unloading of bulk carriers (10);

(o) Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 of the European Parlia-

ment and of the Council.

Article 3

Establishment of a Committee

1.
The Commission shall be assisted by a Committee on Safe
Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (hereinafter
called COSS).

(1) OJ L 319, 12.12.1994, p. 20. Directive as last amended by
European Parliament and Council Directive 2001/105/EC (OJ L 19,
22.1.2002, p. 9).

(2) OJ L 157, 7.7.1995, p. 1. Directive as last amended by European
and Council Directive 2001/106/EC (OJ L 19,

Parliament
22.1.2002, p. 17).

(3) OJ L 46, 17.2.1997, p. 25. Directive as last amended by Commis-

sion Directive 2002/75/EC (OJ L 254, 23.9.2002, p. 1).

(4) OJ L 34, 9.2.1998, p. 1. Directive as amended by Commission

Directive 2002/35/EC (OJ L 112, 27.4.2002, p. 21).

(5) OJ L 144, 15.5.1998, p. 1. Directive as amended by Commission

Directive 2002/25/EC (OJ L 98, 15.4.2002, p. 1).

(6) OJ L 188, 2.7.1998, p. 35.
(7) OJ L 138, 1.6.1999, p. 1.
(8) OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 81.
(9) OJ L 136, 18.5.2001, p. 17.
(10) OJ L 13, 16.1.2002, p. 9.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5 and
7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to the
provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC
shall be set at one month.

3.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

Article 4

Integration of amendments to international instruments in
Community law

For
the
the purposes of Community maritime legislation,
applicable international instruments shall be those which have
entered into force,
including the most recent amendments
thereto, with the exception of the amendments excluded from
the scope of
the Community maritime legislation resulting
from the conformity checking procedure established by Article
5.

Article 5

Conformity checking procedure

1.
For the purposes of this Regulation and with a view to
reducing the risks of conflict between the Community maritime
legislation and international
instruments, Member States and
the Commission shall cooperate, through coordination meet-
ings and/or any other appropriate means, in order to define, as
appropriate, a common position or approach in the competent
international fora.

2.
A conformity checking procedure is hereby established in
order to exclude from the scope of the Community maritime
legislation any amendment to an international instrument only
if, on the basis of an evaluation by the Commission, there is a
manifest risk that
the international amendment, within the
scope of the Regulations or the Directives referred to in Article
2(2), will lower the standard of maritime safety, of prevention
of pollution from ships or of protection of shipboard living
and working conditions established by Community maritime
legislation, or be incompatible with the latter.

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The conformity checking procedure may be used solely to
make amendments to the Community maritime legislation in
the fields expressly covered by the regulatory procedure and
strictly within the framework of exercise of
implementing
powers conferred on the Commission.

3.
the
In the circumstances referred to in paragraph 2,
conformity checking procedure shall be initiated by the
Commission, which, where appropriate, may act at the request
of a Member State.

The Commission shall submit to the COSS, without delay, after
the adoption of an amendment to an international instrument
a proposal for measures with the aim of excluding the amend-
ment in question from the Community text concerned.

including,

The conformity checking procedure,
if applicable,
the procedures set up in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC,
shall be completed at least one month before the expiration of
the period established internationally for the tacit acceptance of
the amendment concerned or the envisaged date for the entry
into force of said amendment.

In the event of a risk as referred to in the first subpara-
4.
graph of paragraph 2, Member States shall refrain, during the
period of the conformity checking procedure, from any initia-
tive intended to integrate the amendment in national legislation
or to apply the amendment to the international
instrument
concerned.

Article 6

Information

from Ships (Marpol 73/78), in their up-to-date versions,
and related resolutions of mandatory status adopted by
the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).’

2. Articles 6 and 7 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 6

1.
The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee
on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
(COSS) created by Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2099/
2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5
November 2002 establishing a Committee on Safe Seas and
the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) (*).

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5
and 7 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999
laying down the procedures for the exercise of
imple-
menting powers conferred on the Commission (**) shall
apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/
EC shall be set at two months.

3.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

Article 7

The amendments to the international instruments referred
to in Article 1 may be excluded from the scope of this
Regulation, pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No
2099/2002.

(*) OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1.
(**) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.’

All relevant amendments to international instruments that are
in accordance
integrated in Community maritime legislation,
with Articles 4 and 5, shall be published,
for information
purposes, in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

Article 9

Amendment to Regulation (EC) No 2978/94

Article 7

Powers of COSS

COSS shall exercise the powers conferred on it by virtue of the
Community legislation in force. Article 2(2) may be amended
by the procedure set out in Article 3(2) in order to include a
reference to the Community acts conferring implementing
powers on COSS that have entered into force following the
adoption of this Regulation.

Article 8

Regulation (EC) No 2978/94 is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 3(g) shall be replaced by the following:

‘(g) “Marpol 73/78” means the International Convention for
the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as
amended by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto, in
their up-to-date versions.’

2. The following paragraph shall be added to Article 6:

‘The amendments to the international instruments referred
to in Article 3 may be excluded from the scope of this
Regulation, pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No
2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 5 November 2002 establishing a Committee on Safe Seas
and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) (*).

Amendment to Regulation (EEC) No 613/91

(*) OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1.’

Regulation (EEC) No 613/91 is hereby amended as follows:

3. Article 7 shall be replaced by the following:

1. Article 1(a) shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 7

‘(a) “Conventions” means the 1974 International Conven-
tion for the Safety of Life at Sea (1974 Solas), the 1966
International Convention on Load Lines (LL66) and the
International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution

1.
The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee
on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
(COSS) created by Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2099/
2002.

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2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5
and 7 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999
laying down the procedures for the exercise of
imple-
menting powers conferred on the Commission (*) shall
apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/
EC shall be set at three months.

3.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

(*) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.’

Article 10

Amendment to Regulation (EC) No 3051/95

Regulation (EC) No 3051/95 is hereby amended as follows:

1. The following subparagraph shall be added to Article 9:

‘The amendments to the international instruments referred
to in Article 2 may be excluded from the scope of this
Regulation, pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No
2099/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 5 November 2002 establishing a Committee on Safe Seas
and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) (*).

(*) OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1.’

2. Article 10 shall be replaced by the following:

‘Article 10

1.
The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee
on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
(COSS) created by Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2099/
2002.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5
and 7 of Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999
laying down the procedures for the exercise of
imple-
menting powers conferred on the Commission (*) shall
apply, having regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/
EC shall be set at two months.

3.

The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.

(*) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.’

Article 11

Amendment to Regulation (EC) No 417/2002

Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 is hereby amended as follows:

1. Article 3(1) shall be replaced by the following:

‘1. “Marpol 73/78” means the International Convention for
the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as
amended by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto, in
their up-to-date versions.’

2. In Article 10(1) shall be replaced by the following:

‘1.
The Commission shall be assisted by the Committee
on Safe Seas and the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
(COSS) created by Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 2099/
2002 of 5 November 2002 of the European Parliament and
of the Council establishing a Committee on Safe Seas and
the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (COSS) (*).

(*) OJ L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1.’

3. The following subparagraph shall be added to Article 11:

‘The amendments to the international instrument referred to
in Article 3(1) may be excluded from the scope of this
Regulation, pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No
2099/2002.’

Article 12

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter
into force on the 20th day
following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the
European Communities.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 5 November 2002.

For the European Parliament

The President

P. COX

For the Council

The President

T. PEDERSEN