Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION establishing the position to be taken in HELCOM and IMO concerning the designation on the Baltic Sea as Nitrogen Oxyde Emissions Control Area (NECA)
Date: 2013-05-17
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Baltic Sea, International Maritime Organisation, air quality, reduction of gas emissions

EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 

Brussels, 17.5.2013  
COM(2013) 300 final 

2013/0153 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

establishing the position to be taken in HELCOM and IMO concerning the designation 
on the Baltic Sea as Nitrogen Oxyde Emissions Control Area (NECA) 

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EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

The  International  Maritime  Organisation  (IMO)  and  its  International  Convention  for  the 
Prevention  of  Pollution  from  Ships  (MARPOL,  Annex  VI)  provide  for  the  possibility  to 
designate emission control areas, in order to reduce air pollution from shipping, at the request 
of the riparian States of the area concerned. 

A  North  American  NECA  has  already  been  agreed  and  in  the  EU,  a  Baltic  Sea  NECA 
application is ready for submission to the IMO, while work on preparing the North Sea NECA 
is  progressing.  NECA  provisions  will  enter  into  force  in  2016,  and  will  apply  only  to  ships 
built after that date entering a NECA. 

As part of the NECA submission preparation, HELCOM performed a comprehensive analysis 
to estimate NOx emissions from ships operating in the Baltic and their impact. 

The designation of the Baltic Sea as a NECA is expected to result in a reduction of 16% of 
NOx emissions from shipping in 2020 and 46% in 2030. It is expected that all ships will meet 
NECA requirements in the Baltic only around 2040-50, with a third equipped by 2030. The 
costs  and  benefits  of  the  Baltic  Sea  NECA  will  therefore  accrue  gradually,  due  to  the 
relatively slow replacement rate of ships, which varies by vessel type.  

The  Baltic  NECA  will  be  an  important  contribution  to  the  reduction  of  air  pollution, 
especially  as  several  Member  States  in  the  Baltic  Sea  region  do  not  meet  the  emission 
standards set by the Ambient Air Quality Directive. It will in addition result in health benefits 
and  reduced  eutrophication,  one  of  the  major  environmental  challenges  faced  by  the  Baltic 
Sea, as well as a diminished acidification and ozone formation. 

Investment costs are mitigated due to some ship-owners having already opted to equip their 
new  ships  with  NECA  compliant  engines  to  enable  their  ships  to  enter  the  North  American 
NECA.  In  these  cases,  only  additional  operating  costs  arise,  and  will  result  a  in  a  gradual 
increase, until 2040-50, of costs of maritime transport in the Baltic Sea.  

Further information on the costs and benefits of the Baltic Sea NECA for the EU stems from 
the  Impact  Assessment  accompanying  the  Commission's  2010  proposal  for  the  revision  of 
Directive  1999/32  as  regards  sulphur  content  in  marine  fuels1.  According  to  this  document, 
benefits  associated  with  full  IMO  compliance  are  at  least  between  €3  and  €13  for  every  €1 
spent2.  The  benefit/cost  ratio  associated  with  the  designation  of  the  Baltic  Sea  as  Emission 
Control Area is considered highly favourable.  

Available  technologies  to  reduce  NOx  emissions  from  shipping  are  exhaust  gas  recycling 
(EGR), LNG and specific catalytic reduction (SCR).  

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2 

SEC (2011) 919 
An ongoing study by DG ENV currently estimates cost benefit ratios for the Baltic NECA in a range of 
€2.3 to €8.6 for every €1 spent. 

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2. DEVELOPMENTS TO DATE 

In 2010, the Ministerial meeting of the Helsinki Convention on the Protection of the Marine 
Environment  of  the  Baltic  Sea  Area  (HELCOM)  decided  to  "work  towards  submitting, 
preferably  by  2011,  a  joint  proposal  by  the  Baltic  Sea  countries  to  the  IMO  applying  for  a 
NOx Emission Control Area (NECA) for the Baltic Sea".  

In  its  meeting  of  9-10  March  2011,  the  Baltic  Marine  Environment  Protection  Commission 
agreed  that  the  Baltic  Sea  should  be  designated  as  a  NECA.  It  noted  however  that  some 
parties were not yet ready to take an immediate decision. 

In  its  meeting  of  6-7  March  2012,  the  Baltic  Marine  Environment  Protection  Commission 
agreed that the NECA application prepared in HELCOM fulfilled the IMO criteria.  

In their meeting of 14-15 June 2012 the Heads of Delegation of HELCOM stressed that the 
only decision remaining was the timing of the submission to IMO. 

In  their  meeting  on  3-4  December  2012,  the  Heads  of  Delegation  of  HELCOM  decided  to 
organise  a  stakeholders  meeting  on  the  Baltic  NECA  application  on  4  March  2013.  They 
agreed  that  the  final  date  of  submission  to  IMO  was  to  be  taken  prior  to  the  October  2013 
Ministerial  Meeting.  They  agreed  to  report  to  the  Ministers  accordingly.  A  stakeholder 
meeting specifically targeted at the Baltic Sea shipping industry took place on March 4, 2013. 

Once  the  date  of  submission  has  been  agreed  in  HELCOM,  the  NECA  submission  will  be 
transmitted for adoption to the IMO Marine Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC) by 
Baltic  riparian  States.  IMO  will  then  examine  whether  the  requirements  of  a  NOx  Control 
Area  under  Annex  VI  of  MARPOL  are  fulfilled.  If  so,  the  Baltic  NECA  will  be  agreed. 
However, no substantive discussion will take place at MEPC. 

3. EU POSITION 

The EU has supported in principle the designation of the Baltic Sea as a NECA, as agreed in 
the  Council  Shipping  Working  Party  of  7  November  2011.  The  Working  Party  also 
considered  that  the  designation  of  the  Baltic  Sea  as  a  NECA  was  the  most  cost  efficient 
measure  to  reduce  NOx  emissions,  to  meet  ambient  air  quality  standards  and  good 
environmental  status  regarding  eutrophication  as  required  under  the  Marine  Strategy 
Framework  Directive.  It  noted  the  request  by  the  Shipping  Working  Party  of  8th  November 
2010  for  a  detailed  impact  assessment,  recognised  that  the  further  developed  draft  IMO 
submission  for  designing  the  Baltic  Sea  as  a  NECA  included  some  elements  on  the  risk  of 
modal  backshift  but  that  in  principle,  a  cost  benefit  analysis  is  not  required  by  IMO  when 
applying for an emission Control Area and that the economic analysis made in the application 
was sufficient to meet IMO requirements. On 17 October 2012, the shipping Working Party 
also took note of the progress on the Baltic Sea NECA and further noted that in case that IMO 
designates the Baltic Sea as a NECA, the Commission will assess the need to transpose this 
provision  into  EU  legislation,  and  that  this  decision  process  might  require  further  impact 
analysis. 

It is now necessary for the Council to adopt the position to be expressed by the EU on the date 
at which the Baltic NECA submission will be transmitted to the MEPC,  in line with article 
218  (9)  TFEU,  before  the  next  meeting  of  the  HELCOM  Heads  of  Delegation  on  17  June 
2013. 

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The applicable IMO rules3 foresee that NECA rules will apply as of 2016, independent of the 
date  of  submission  of  a  proposal  to  designate  an  area  as  NECA.  A  rapid  submission  is 
therefore  in  the  interest  of  the  shipping  industry  and  engine  manufacturers,  which  need 
sufficient lead time to adapt and avoid possible higher retrofitting costs. . 

In  view  of  the  above,  the  Union  should  support  the  submission  to  IMO  of  the  HELCOM 
proposal  to  designate  the  Baltic  Sea  as  an  Emission  Control  Area  for  Nitrogen  Oxide,  by 
Baltic Sea riparian states at the latest by the 66th meeting of the IMO Marine Environment 
Protection Committee in March 2014. It is therefore necessary for the Council to also adopt 
the Union's position to be expressed by the EU Member States in IMO, in line with Article 
218(9) TFEU. 

3 

IMO Revised MARPOL Annex VI, regulation 13. 

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2013/0153 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

establishing the position to be taken in HELCOM and IMO concerning the designation 
on the Baltic Sea as Nitrogen Oxyde Emissions Control Area (NECA) 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 191, in conjunction with Article 218 (9), thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

The  International  Maritime  Organisation  (IMO)  and  its  International  Convention  for 
the  Prevention  of  Pollution  from  Ships  (MARPOL,  Annex  VI)  provide  for  the 
possibility  to  designate,  at  the  request  of  the  riparian  states  concerned,  emission 
control areas (NECAs) in order to prevent, reduce and control emissions of Nitrogen 
Oxide (NOx) from ships. 

The  European  Union  is  a  party  to  the  Convention  on  the  Protection  of  the  Marine 
Environment  of  the  Baltic  Sea  Area  (HELCOM)  which  is  the  forum  discussing  the 
submission of a proposal for the Baltic Sea as NOx Emissions Control Area to IMO.  

Preparatory work has been undertaken under the auspices of HELCOM with regard to 
a draft submission to the IMO proposing the designation of a NECA in the Baltic Sea. 
Once  the  date  of  a  NECA  submission  has  been  agreed  in  HELCOM,  it  will  be 
transmitted  for  adoption  to  the  IMO  Marine  Environmental  Protection  Committee 
(MEPC)  by  the  Baltic  riparian  states.  IMO  will  then  examine  whether  the 
requirements of a NOx Control Area under Annex VI of MARPOL are fulfilled. If so, 
the Baltic NECA will be agreed. However, no substantive discussion will take place at 
MEPC. 

The EU ambient air quality directive 2008/50/EC and the NEC directive (2001/81/EC) 
set emission standards for air pollutants. In particular, directive 2001/81/EC provides 
that  the  Commission  and  Member  States,  as  appropriate,  shall,  without  prejudice  to 
Article  218  of  the  TFEU,  pursue  bilateral  and  multilateral  cooperation  with  third 
countries  and  relevant  international  organisations  such  as  the  International  Maritime 
Organization  (IMO)  with  the  aim  of  improving  the  basis  for  the  facilitation  of 
emission reductions. 

(5) 

The  HELCOM  Baltic  Sea  Ministerial  Declaration  of  2010  agreed  to  designate  the 
Baltic Sea NECA, preferably by 2011.  

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(6) 

(7) 

(8) 

(9) 

(10) 

The  Shipping  Working  Party  of  8th  November  2010  requested  a  detailed  impact 
assessment as it recognised that the draft IMO submission for designing the Baltic Sea 
as  a  NECA  included  some  elements  on  the  risk  of  modal  backshift.  However,  it 
acknowledged  that  a  cost  benefit  analysis  similar  to  preparatory  work  for  future  EU 
legislation is not required by IMO when applying for an Emission Control Area and 
that  the  economic  analysis  made  in  the  application  was  sufficient  to  meet  IMO 
requirements.In  its  meeting  of  9-10  March  2011,  the  Baltic  Marine  Environment 
Protection Commission agreed that the Baltic Sea should be designated as a NECA. It 
noted however that some parties were not yet ready to take an immediate decision. 

In  its  meeting  of  6-7  March  2012,  the  Baltic  Marine  Environment  Protection 
Commission  agreed  that  the  NECA  application  prepared  in  HELCOM  fulfilled  the 
IMO criteria.  

In  their  meeting  of  14-15  June  2012  the  Heads  of  Delegation  of  HELCOM  stressed 
that the only decision remaining was the timing of the submission to IMO. 

In their meeting of 3-4 December 2012, the Heads of Delegation of HELCOM agreed 
that  the  final  date  of  submission  to  IMO  was  to  be  taken  prior  to  the  October  2013 
Ministerial Meeting.  

If  the  decision  is  taken  in  HELCOM  to  submit  a  proposal  to  IMO  to  designate  the 
Baltic  Sea  as  an  Emission  Control  Area  for  Nitrogen  Oxide,  the  EU  Member  States 
should support the proposed designation of the Baltic Sea as an Emission control Area 
for Nitrogen Oxide. 

(11) 

IMO Tier III obligations for NECA will enter into force as of 2016, it is important to 
give economic operators sufficient time to adapt. 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  

Article 1 

The  position  to  be  taken  by  the  European  Union  in  HELCOM  shall  be  to  support  the 
submission  by  the  Baltic  riparian  States  to IMO  of  the  HELCOM  proposal  to  designate  the 
Baltic Sea as an Emission Control Area for Nitrogen Oxide, at the latest by the 66th meeting 
of the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee.  

Article 2 

Following adoption of the decision in HELCOM referred to in Article 1, it shall be presented 
and supported in the IMO by the Member States acting jointly in the interest of the European 
Union 

Done at Brussels,  

For the Council 
The President 

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