Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic at the OSPAR Commission meeting of June 2026
Date: 2026-04-23
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment, European Commission
Subjects: Atlantic Ocean, environmental protection, fishing net, international convention, marine ecosystem, marine environment, marine pollution, maritime area, plastic waste, sea fishing

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 23.4.2026  COM(2026) 172 final 2026/0094 (NLE)  Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic at the OSPAR Commission meeting of June 2026  
 
EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

1. 

SUBJECT MATTER OF THE PROPOSAL 

This proposal concerns the decision establishing the position to be taken on the Union's behalf 
in  the  Commission  of  the  Convention  for  the  protection  of  the  marine  environment  of  the 
North-East Atlantic (the ‘OSPAR Commission’) in connection with the envisaged adoption of 
the recommendation on the phasing out of dolly rope serving as chafing gear. 

2. 

CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL 

2.1. 

The OSPAR Convention 

The  Convention  for  the  protection  of  the  marine  environment  of  the  North-East  Atlantic 
(‘OSPAR  Convention’)  aims  to  protect  the  North-East  Atlantic  maritime  area  against  the 
adverse  effects  of  human  activities  to  safeguard  human  health,  conserve  marine  ecosystems 
and,  when  practicable,  restore  marine  areas  which  have  been  adversely  affected.  It  has  16 
Contracting Parties: Belgium, Denmark, the EU, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, 
Luxembourg,  the  Netherlands,  Norway,  Portugal,  Spain,  Sweden  the  United  Kingdom,  and 
Switzerland. The OSPAR Convention entered into force on 25 March 1998. 

2.2. 

The OSPAR Commission 

The OSPAR Commission (established by Article 10 of the OSPAR Convention) is made up 
of representatives of each of the Contracting Parties; it meets at regular intervals and at any 
time  deemed  necessary  due  to  special  circumstances.  Its  duties  include  supervising  the 
implementation of the Convention and reviewing the OSPAR priorities, the condition of the 
maritime  area,  the  effectiveness  of  the  measures  being  adopted,  and  the  need  for  any 
additional  or  different  measures.  Pursuant  to  Article  10(3)  of  the  OSPAR  Convention,  the 
OSPAR  Commission  has  the  power  to  adopt  decisions  and  recommendations  in  accordance 
with Article 13 of the OSPAR Convention.  

According  to  Article  20  of  the  Convention,  each  Contracting  Party  has  one  vote  in  the 
OSPAR  Commission.  The  EU  is  entitled  to  a  number  of  votes  equal  to  the  number  of  its 
Member States that are Contracting Parties to the Convention. The EU  shall not exercise its 
right to vote when its Member States exercise theirs, and vice-versa (Article 20(2)). Pursuant 
to Article 13(1) of the OSPAR Convention, decisions and recommendations shall be adopted 
by  unanimous  vote  of  the  Contracting  Parties,  or  –  if  unanimity  cannot  be  attained  –  by  a 
three-quarters majority vote of the Contracting Parties. 

2.3. 

The envisaged act of the OSPAR Commission 

During its meeting of June 2026, the OSPAR Commission is set to adopt a recommendation 
on the phasing out of the use of dolly ropes serving as chafing gear in fisheries to substantially 
reduce marine litter from fishing gear (‘the envisaged act’). Dolly ropes are made of plastic 
and  as  such  contribute  to  plastic  pollution  and,  in  addition,  pose  lasting  hazards  to  marine 
species due to entanglement. 

The recommendation, which is not legally binding, encourages OSPAR Contracting Parties to 
adopt national measures to replace dolly ropes with environmentally appropriate alternatives 
and  to  support  the  testing  and  development  of  such  alternatives.  Furthermore,  it  advocates 
collective  efforts  to  exchange  information,  overcome  potential  barriers,  and  promote  legal 
measures once suitable alternatives are available.  

EN 

1 

  EN 

 
 
The  recommendation  also  promotes  monitoring  efforts  to  understand  the  impact  of  dolly 
ropes on the marine environment. 

3. 

POSITION TO BE TAKEN ON THE UNION'S BEHALF 

The position to be taken at the OSPAR Commission meeting in June 2026 is to support the 
adoption of the envisaged act. The recommendation is aligned with EU legislation pertaining 
to marine environmental protection, including Directive (EU) 2019/904, which addresses the 
reduction  of  the  impact  of  certain  plastic  products  on  the  environment,  and  Directive 
2008/56/EC,  which  establishes  a  framework  for  community  action  in  the  field  of  marine 
environmental policy. A key element of the latter Directive notably involves taking measures 
to prevent marine litter from causing harm to the coastal and marine environment, which is an 
essential component in achieving good environmental status of marine waters.  

Additionally,  EU  Regulation  2019/1241  sets  provisions  for  the  conservation  of  fisheries 
resources  and  protection  of  marine  ecosystems.  These  pieces  of  EU  legislation  provide  a 
coherent framework for the possible phasing out of dolly ropes to mitigate plastic pollution, 
aligning with the objectives of the envisaged OSPAR recommendation. A Union position on 
the envisaged recommendation is necessary since it will facilitate the implementation of EU 
policies  and  legislation  and  prevent  damage  to  and  improve  protection  of  the  marine 
environment.  It  is  therefore  proposed that the Union  supports  the  adoption of the envisaged 
act. 

4. 

LEGAL BASIS 

4.1. 

Procedural legal basis 

4.1.1. Principles 

Article 218(9) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides for 
decisions establishing ‘the positions to be adopted on the Union’s behalf in a body set up by 
an  agreement,  when  that  body  is  called  upon  to  adopt  acts  having  legal  effects,  with  the 
exception of acts supplementing or amending the institutional framework of the agreement.’ 

The concept of ‘acts having legal effects’ includes acts that have legal effects by virtue of the 
rules of international law governing the body in question. It also includes instruments that do 
not  have  a  binding  effect  under  international  law,  but  that  are  ‘capable  of  decisively 
influencing the content of the legislation adopted by the EU legislature’1. 

4.1.2. Application to the present case 

The OSPAR Commission is a body set up by an agreement, namely the OSPAR Convention. 

The envisaged act constitutes an act having legal effects within the meaning of Article 218(9) 
TFEU, because the recommendation on the phasing out of dolly ropes serving as chafing gear 
in  fisheries,  even if it is not  legally binding, generates legal  effects  under international law, 
given that the OSPAR Convention imposes an obligation of conduct on the contracting parties 
as regards the implementation of recommendations of the OSPAR Commission. . 

In  this  context,  reference  should  be  made  to  Article  22  of  the  OSPAR  Convention,  which 
imposes  a  legal  obligation  on  the  contracting  parties  to  report  at  regular  intervals  to  the 
OSPAR Commission on “(a) the legal, regulatory, or other measures taken by them for the 
implementation  of  the  provisions  of  the  Convention  and  of  decisions  and  recommendations 

1 

Judgment  of 
ECLI:EU:C:2014:2258, paragraphs 61 to 64.  

the  Court  of  Justice  of  7  October  2014,  Germany  v  Council,  C-399/12, 

EN 

2 

  EN 

 
adopted thereunder, including in particular measures taken to prevent and punish conduct in 
contravention  of  those  provisions  […]”.  In  addition,  Article  23  of  the  OSPAR  Convention 
provides  that  the  OSPAR  Commission  shall  “assess  their  compliance  with  the  Convention 
and the decisions and recommendations adopted thereunder” 

These  provisions  make  clear  that  the  OSPAR  Convention  establishes,  in  a  legally  binding 
manner, that the parties are expected to take measures to implement the recommendations of 
the  OSPAR  Commission  and  to  report  on  those  measures,  and  that  their  compliance  with 
those  recommendations  shall  be  monitored  by  the  OSPAR  Commission,  thus  imposing  an 
obligation  of  conduct  on  the  parties  as  regards  these  recommendations.  For  this  reason, 
OSPAR  recommendations  are  considered  to  generate  legal  effects  vis-à-vis  the  contracting 
parties, including the Union, within the meaning of Article 218(9) TFEU. 

In the case of the recommendation on the phasing out of dolly rope serving as chafing gear, 
the existence of such legal effects is confirmed by the content of the recommendation. In this 
context, reference should be made to point 5 of the recommendation entitled ‘implementation 
reports’, which confirms that the parties are expected to implement the recommendation, and 
are  obliged  to  report  (‘shall  be  submitted’)  on  that  implementation,  using  a  specifically 
established reporting format set out in Annex I of the recommendation.  

Therefore, the envisaged act has legal effects under international law for the Union, given that 
an  obligation  of  conduct  is  imposed  on  the  Union,  as  a  contracting  party  to  the  OSPAR 
Convention,  to  implement  the  envisaged  act  and  to  report  on  that  implementation.  The 
envisaged act does not supplement or amend the institutional framework of the Agreement. 

Therefore, the procedural legal basis for the proposed decision is Article 218(9) TFEU. 

4.2. 

Substantive legal basis 

4.2.1. Principles 

The  substantive  legal  basis  for  a  decision  under  Article  218(9)  TFEU  depends  primarily  on 
the objective and content of the envisaged act in respect of which a position is taken on the 
Union's  behalf.  If the  envisaged act  pursues two  aims or has two components  and if one of 
those  aims  or  components  is  identifiable  as  the  main  one,  whereas  the  other  is  merely 
incidental, the decision under Article 218(9) TFEU must be founded on a single substantive 
legal basis, namely that required by the main or predominant aim or component. 

4.2.2. Application to the present case 

The main objective and content of the envisaged act relate to protection of the environment. 
Therefore, the substantive legal basis of the proposed decision is Article 192(1) TFEU. 

4.3. 

Conclusion 

The legal basis of the proposed decision should be Article 192(1), in conjunction with Article 
218(9) TFEU. 

EN 

3 

  EN 

2026/0094 (NLE) 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL DECISION 

on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the Convention for the 
Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic at the OSPAR 
Commission meeting of June 2026 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  on  the  Functioning  of  the  European  Union,  and  in  particular 
Article 192(1) in conjunction with Article 218(9) thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

(3) 

(4) 

(5) 

The OSPAR Convention (‘the Convention’) was concluded by the Union by means of 
Council Decision 98/249/EC of 7 October 1998. 

Pursuant  to  Article  10(3)  of  the  Convention,  the  Commission  established  by  Article 
10(1)  of  the  Convention  (“the  OSPAR  Commission”)  is  able  to  adopt  decisions  and 
recommendations in accordance with Article 13 of the Convention. 
The OSPAR Commission, during its 29th regular meeting starting on 22 June 2026, is 
scheduled  to  adopt  a  recommendation  on  the  phasing  out  of  dolly  rope  serving  as 
chafing gear. 

The recommendation on the phasing out of dolly rope serving as chafing gear of the 
OSPAR Commission will, if adopted, produce legal effects for the Union.  

It  is  therefore  appropriate  to  establish  the  position  to  be  taken  within  the  OSPAR 
Commission  with  regard  to  the  recommendation  on  the  phasing  out  of  dolly  rope 
serving as chafing gear. 

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 

Article 1 

The  Union  shall  agree  to  the  adoption  of  the  recommendation  on  the  phasing  out  of  dolly 
ropes serving as chafing gear within the OSPAR Commission. 

Minor  technical  changes  to  the  position  set  out  in  Article  1  may  be  agreed  upon  without  a 
further decision of the Council. 

Article 2 

This Decision shall enter into force on the date of its adoption. 

Article 3 

EN 

4 

  EN 

  
Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 
The President 

EN 

5 

  EN