Havenfaciliteiten voor verwerking van scheepsafval: juridische acties gestart tegen Polen, Griekenland en Slovenië (en)
The Commission sent reasoned opinions to Greece and Slovenia and decided to lodge a case to the Court of Justice against Poland for failure to respect EU legislation on the improvement of the availability and use of port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues.
"It is important that all Member States implement properly this legislation that enhances the protection of the maritime environment. Obligations both on masters of ships to deliver their waste and on Member States to make facilities available to treat this waste must be respected", said Vice-President Jacques Barrot i in charge of transport.
The Directive [1](1) adopted in 2000 aims at reducing the discharges of ship-generated waste and cargo residues into the sea from ships using ports in the European Union by improving the availability and use of the facilities designed to receive and treat such waste and residues, thereby enhancing the protection of the maritime environment.
Whilst in the Slovenian and the Polish cases, several issues relating to the non conformity with the directive are at stake, the Greek case relates to the non implementation of the obligation to develop, approve and implement waste reception and handling plans in all Greek ports, including fishing ports and marinas. These plans are a key element in ensuring that port reception facilities made available meet the needs of the ships normally using the ports, that their operation does not cause undue delay to ships and that fair, transparent and non-discriminatory fees are applied.
Member States should have adequately transposed the Directive into their national law and established waste reception and handling plans for all their ports by 27 December 2002.
[1] 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 (OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 81)