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EU environmental legislation
Criminal penalties in prospect for ship operators and
crew
Ship owners and charterers have to reckon with
increasingly demanding EU environmental legislation impacting on their
operations. This encompasses criminal consequences for particular activities by
owners, operators, masters and crew.
A recent directive set out the circumstances in which
ship-source discharges of polluting substances constitute a criminal offence.
In November and December, three more directives are due to be implemented. Two
are concerned with the provision of penalties by individual countries for
specific shortcomings in respect of pollution and environmental protection; and
a third with waste, including marine transportation and discharge at sea.
Consequently, the UK P&I Club has published a
summary of the main existing legislation and new developments in its Legal
Briefing "An update on EU environmental legislation" (February 2010). It
provides a useful comparison of liabilities and sanctions arising from four
recent EU directives, encompassing their scope and implementation, with key
features set out in tabular format.
*Directive 2005/35 had to be implemented by member
states by March 2007. This states that ship-source discharges of polluting
substances constitute a criminal offence if committed with intent, recklessly
or by serious negligence.
*Directive 2009/123 obliges member states to provide
for criminal penalties for discharging of polluting substances (as per the
earlier directive)
*Directive 2008/99 also requires states to institute
criminal penalties for serious infringements of EU laws on protecting the
environment.
*Directive 2008/98 consolidates and updates EU law on
all aspects of waste. It says ships may be considered "waste producers" and
"waste holders" and indicates owners' and charterers' responsibilities in
shipwrecks and spillages.
'An update on EU environmental legislation' can be
downloaded from the UK Club's website -
www.ukpandi.com - Legal Briefing. This latest edition of
Legal Briefing can be found in the Publications section of the UK Club website.
Simply click on "Publications" in our home page and then click on the front
cover image displayed under "Latest Publications".
Hard copies can be obtained from Nick Whitear or
Jenny Whitehead (contact details below). Available on the same website are UK
Club Circular 072009 which provides a detailed explanation of the European
Directive on Environmental Liability; and Circular 082009 on the Third EU
Maritime Safety Package which deals with some aspects of liability.
Journalists are welcome to use material from the UK
Club's Legal Briefings and circulars and to seek information from the Club's
managers Thomas Miller.
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