This document discusses maritime environmental security and the international and EU institutional context. It summarizes that shipping is critical to international trade and the EU economy. It also discusses some of the major oil spills caused by maritime accidents over the past few decades. In response to accidents like the Erika and Prestige, the IMO and EU have implemented numerous conventions and regulations to improve maritime safety and protect the environment, including SOLAS, MARPOL, and the establishment of the European Maritime Safety Agency.

1. Maritime Environmental Security:
Aspects of the International and EU’s Institutional Context
Lt Commander (Dr) Georgios Chrysochou
(PhD International Law of the Sea, MSc Global Security Studies)
Hellenic Navy General Staff Training Directorate
Hellenic Naval Academy Military Lecturer
Piraeus, 19 April 2016
HELLENIC NAVAL ACADEMY
Maritime Security Module
European Security and Defence College

2. THE IMPORTANCE OF SHIPPING
 Shipping is by far the most international of the world's industries
 Nearly four fifths of the international trade is being conducted by sea

3. MARITIME TRANSPORT AND EUROPE
o Maritime Transport enables trade
and contacts between all the
European nations.
o It ensures the security of supply of
energy, food and commodities.
o It provides the main vehicle for
European imports and exports to the
rest of the world.

4. MARITIME TRANSPORT AND EUROPE
o Each year, more than 400
million passengers embark and
disembark in European ports
o Almost 90% of the EU external
freight trade is seaborne.
o Short sea shipping represents
40% of the intra-EU exchanges in
terms of ton-kilometers

5. MARITIME ACCIDENTS AND POLLUTION

6. MARITIME ACCIDENTS AND POLLUTION
o Maritime accident:
“incident that occurs at sea and
brings about damage or loss to the
vessel or cargo or the environment or
human beings and the shipmaster
has an important share of this
responsibility”
o Environmental threats as result
of maritime accidents:
potential for loss of life, pollution,
contamination and degradation are
the most important threats facing the
environment as a result of a maritime
accident

7. MARITIME ACCIDENTS AND POLLUTION
 Creation of large spills: Main cause of maritime pollution in the
aftermath of maritime accidents
From 1970 to 2015:
o 50% of large spills while the vessels were underway in open water
(collisions and groundings accounted for 59% of the causes for these spills)
oThese same causes accounted for an even higher percentage of incidents
when the vessel was underway in inland or restricted waters, being linked to
some 99% of spills.

8. SUMMARY OF THE MAJOR OIL SPILLS
DUE TO MARITIME ACCIDENTS

9. Shipname Year Location
Spill Size
(tonnes)
ATLANTIC EMPRESS 1979 Off Tobago, West Indies 287,000
ABT SUMMER 1991 700 nautical miles off Angola 260,000
CASTILLO DE BELLVER 1983 Off Saldanha Bay, South Africa 252,000
AMOCO CADIZ 1978 Off Brittany, France 223,000
HAVEN 1991 Genoa, Italy 144,000
ODYSSEY 1988 700 nautical miles off Nova Scotia, Canada 132,000
TORREY CANYON 1967 Scilly Isles, UK 119,000
SEA STAR 1972 Gulf of Oman 115,000
IRENES SERENADE 1980 Navarino Bay, Greece 100,000
URQUIOLA 1976 La Coruna, Spain 100,000
HAWAIIAN PATRIOT 1977 300 nautical miles off Honolulu 95,000
INDEPENDENTA 1979 Bosphorus, Turkey 94,000
JAKOB MAERSK 1975 Oporto, Portugal 88,000
BRAER 1993 Shetland Islands, UK 85,000
AEGEAN SEA 1992 La Coruna, Spain 74,000
SEA EMPRESS 1996 Milford Haven, UK 72000
KHARK 5 1989 120 nautical miles off Atlantic coast of
Morocco
70,000
NOVA 1985 Off Kharg Island, Gulf of Iran 70,000
KATINA P 1992 Off Maputo, Mozambique 67,000
PRESTIGE 2002 Off Galicia, Spain 63,000
EXXON VALDEZ 1989 Prince William Sound, Alaska, USA 37,000
SUMMARY OF THE MAJOR OIL SPILLS
DUE TO MARITIME ACCIDENTS

10. SUMMARY OF THE MAJOR OIL SPILLS
DUE TO MARITIME ACCIDENTS
For the last three and a half
decades the average number
of incidents involving large oil
spills from tankers has reduced
progressively and since 2010
stands at an average of 1.8
large oil spills per year.
For the last three and a half
decades the average number
of incidents involving large oil
spills from tankers has reduced
progressively and since 2010
stands at an average of 1.8
large oil spills per year.

11. IMO’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
The most important legislation and regulations were adopted following
important maritime accidents after concerted action
by the International Maritime Organization IMO

12. TORREY CANYON, United Kingdom
TORREY CANYON ran aground on
Pollard Rock on the Seven Stones Reef,
near Lands End, Cornwall on 18th
March
1967. Thousands of tonnes of oil were
soon spilling from the stricken vessel's
ruptured tanks and during the next 12
days the entire cargo of approximately
119,000 tonnes of Kuwait crude oil was
lost.
RESULT: SOLAS 1974, MARPOL 73/78
IMO’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
EXXON VALDEZ, Alaska, United States,
EXXON VALDEZ grounded on Bligh Reef
in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on
24th
March 1989. About 37,000 tonnes of
Alaska North Slope crude escaped into the
Sound and spread widely.
RESULT: OPRC 90

13. IMO’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection

14. Safety Of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Convention
Covers various aspects of ship safety:
- construction,
- fire protection,
- life - saving appliances,
- radiocomms,
- safety of navigation,
- the carriage of cargoes,
- safety measures for high speed craft…

15. Convention on the International Regulations
for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS)
38 rules divided into five sections:
- Part A – General Rules
- Part B - Steering and Sailing Rules
- Part C - Lights and Shapes
- Part D - Sound and Light signals
- Part E - Exemptions
4 Annexes with technical requirements for:
- lights and shapes and their positioning
- sound signaling appliances
-additional signals for fishing vessels when
operating in close proximity
- international distress signals

16. OILPOL (International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil) -
MARPOL (International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships)

17. MARPOL 73/78

18. Other Important IMO Conventions for the
protection of Marine Environment

19. THE e-NAVIGATION CONCEPT OF IMO
E-Navigation:
“the harmonized collection, integration, exchange, presentation and
analysis of marine information on board and ashore by electronic means to
enhance berth to berth navigation and related services for safety and
security at sea and protection of the marine environment.”

20. THE IMO’s e-NAVIGATION
STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
5 prioritized e-navigation solutions:
• improved, harmonized and user-friendly bridge design
• means for standardized and automated reporting
• improved reliability, resilience and integrity of bridge equipment
and navigation information
• integration and presentation of available information in graphical
displays received via communication equipment
• improved Communication of Vessel Traffic Systems (VTS) Service
Portfolio (not limited to VTS stations)

21. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
• Shipping is of strategic importance
to the EU economy:
- 2 bntons of cargo are loaded and
unloaded in EU ports every year
- 1 bnton of oil transits through EU
ports and EU waters every year
• EU is constantly developing and
intensifying its maritime safety policy
which aims to eradicate substandard
shipping, essentially through a
convergent application of
internationally agreed rules.

22. ERIKA, West of France, 1999
The Maltese tanker ERIKA, carrying some
31,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil as cargo, broke
in two in a severe storm in the Bay of Biscay
on 12th
December 1999, 60 miles from the
coast of Brittany. About 20,000 tonnes of oil
were spilled. The main environmental impact
of the spill was on sea birds. Almost 74,000
oiled birds were recorded ashore along the
coast of the Bay of Biscay, of which almost
42,000 were dead.
ERIKA, West of France, 1999
The Maltese tanker ERIKA, carrying some
31,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil as cargo, broke
in two in a severe storm in the Bay of Biscay
on 12th
December 1999, 60 miles from the
coast of Brittany. About 20,000 tonnes of oil
were spilled. The main environmental impact
of the spill was on sea birds. Almost 74,000
oiled birds were recorded ashore along the
coast of the Bay of Biscay, of which almost
42,000 were dead.
EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
PRESTIGE, Spain/France, 2002
Wednesday 13th
November 2002, the
tanker PRESTIGE, carrying a cargo of
77,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, suffered
hull damage in heavy seas off northern
Spain. The vessel, broke in two early on
19th
November. In all, it is estimated that
some 63,000 tonnes were lost from the
PRESTIGE. The released oil gradually
moved into the Bay of Biscay affecting the
north coast of Spain and the Atlantic coast
of France, as far north as Brittany.
PRESTIGE, Spain/France, 2002
Wednesday 13th
November 2002, the
tanker PRESTIGE, carrying a cargo of
77,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, suffered
hull damage in heavy seas off northern
Spain. The vessel, broke in two early on
19th
November. In all, it is estimated that
some 63,000 tonnes were lost from the
PRESTIGE. The released oil gradually
moved into the Bay of Biscay affecting the
north coast of Spain and the Atlantic coast
of France, as far north as Brittany.

23. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
• Result of Erika and Prestige Accidents:
- Erika I and II legislative packages for maritime safety and marine
environment protection from maritime accidents
- Set up of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA)
- Regulation 1406/2002, establishing this Agency, entered into force in
August 2002

24. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
EMSA TASKS/CONTRIBUTION
 Provision of technical and scientific
assistance in the fields of maritime safety,
maritime security, prevention of pollution and
response to pollution caused by ships
 Continuous process of updating and
developing new legislation - monitoring its
implementation
 Inspections in Member States
 Foundation of Classification Societies,Pport
State Control and Ship Reporting Systems in
Member States
 Operation of the SafeSeaNet project, a pan-
European electronic information system dealing
with ship movements and cargoes
 Operation of an EU Long-Range Identification
and Tracking (LRIT) data centre

25. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
EU’s Third Maritime Safety Package (2009)
Reinforced EU’s legislative arsenal to:
 combat flags of convenience
 give Europe better protection against the risks of accidental oil spills
 restore the competitiveness of the sector
 benefit particular by increasing the pressure on owners of sub-standard ships
Thus:
An important step has been achieved both on the improvement of the
effectiveness of existing measures to prevent accidents and on the management
of their consequences if the worse were to happen

26. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
Basic EU Legislation in
maritime safety / counter-pollution domain
1)Directive 21/EC of 1995 for port state control [ameliorated by the Directive
16/EC of 2009 concerning the "New Inspection Regime” (NIR)].
2) Directive 59/EC of 2002 for setting up a notification system for all ships bound for
or leaving EU ports. The Directive establishes an EU-wide vessel traffic
monitoring and information system (VTMIS) and the related equipment of
vessels with Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Voyage Data
Recorders (VDRs) (further amended by the Directive 17/EC of 2009).

27. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
Basic EU Legislation in
maritime safety / counter-pollution domain
3) Directive 59/EC of 2000, for ensuring consistent reduction in marine pollution by
requiring provision of adequate waste reception facilities in all EU ports
4) Regulation 530 of 2012, as a repeal of the Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 on
the accelerated phasing-in of double-hull or equivalent design requirements for
single-hull oil tankers.

28. EU’s Work for Maritime Safety
and Environmental Protection
Basic EU Legislation in
maritime safety / counter-pollution domain
5) Directive 35/EC of 2005, for the introduction of both a regime on ship-source
pollution and sanctions for pollution offences
6) Directive 21/EC of 2009 on flag State requirements
7) Regulation 391/EC of 2009, for the improvement of the system of EU-wide
mutual recognition of Classification Societies
8) Transposition into national law under Directive 35/EU of 2012 of the latest
significant changes made to the International Convention on Standards of
Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) in 2010
9) Regulation 100 of 2013, which has amended the EMSA regulation,
clarifying its core but also its ancillary tasks.

29. MARITIME ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
in United Nations Convention on the Law Of the Sea
(UNCLOS)
The most comprehensive
unified regime governing the
rights of nations with respect
to the world's oceans.
 Entire section dedicated to the protection and preservation of the
marine environment (Part XII)
 Numerous references to environmental duties and obligations
 Dealing with six main sources of ocean pollution: land-based and
coastal activities; continental-shelf drilling; potential seabed mining;
ocean dumping; vessel-source pollution; and pollution from or through
the atmosphere

30. MARITIME ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
in United Nations Convention on the Law Of the Sea
(UNCLOS)
 Fundamental obligation of all states to protect and preserve the marine
environment - Cooperation on a global and regional basis
 Empowerment of coastal states to enforce their national standards and anti-
pollution measures within their territorial sea.
 Every coastal state is granted jurisdiction for the protection and preservation of
the marine environment of its EEZ
 Coastal states can exercise jurisdiction only for the enforcement of laws and
regulations adopted in accordance with the Convention or for "generally accepted
international rules and standards”
 Duty of the flag state to enforce the rules adopted for the control of marine
pollution from vessels, irrespective of where a violation occurs
 Enforcement powers also to the port state

31. MARITIME ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
in United Nations Convention on the Law Of the Sea
(UNCLOS)
 Vessels owned and operated by a foreign nation on governmental
non-commercial missions, such as in the case of warships, are
protected by sovereign immunity
 Outside the territorial sea of the coastal nation only monetary
penalties may be imposed on violations committed by foreign vessels
 Within the territorial sea, monetary penalties are the only type that
may be imposed unless the vessel has committed an act of willful and
serious pollution
SHORTCOMING
Treaty's reliance upon national legislation to implement its provisions.
While the benefit of such a scheme is that it allows the national
autonomy, the weakness is that nations may not view such legislation
as a priority
SHORTCOMING
Treaty's reliance upon national legislation to implement its provisions.
While the benefit of such a scheme is that it allows the national
autonomy, the weakness is that nations may not view such legislation
as a priority

32. CONCLUSIONS
 Maritime transport is the backbone of globalization and extremely vital for
all "just-in-time economies", such as those of Europe
 Maritime accidents and consequent sea and coastal pollution among the
several problems that can be encountered in maritime transport and
navigation
 International Maritime Organization (IMO) has developed uniform
international standards for maritime safety and protection of the marine
environment
 Among major objectives of both EU’s maritime transport and EUMSS
policy is to incorporate international law-based agreements for maritime
safety and environmental protection
 Relevant EU regulatory framework has been strengthened.
 Maritime transport is the backbone of globalization and extremely vital for
all "just-in-time economies", such as those of Europe
 Maritime accidents and consequent sea and coastal pollution among the
several problems that can be encountered in maritime transport and
navigation
 International Maritime Organization (IMO) has developed uniform
international standards for maritime safety and protection of the marine
environment
 Among major objectives of both EU’s maritime transport and EUMSS
policy is to incorporate international law-based agreements for maritime
safety and environmental protection
 Relevant EU regulatory framework has been strengthened.

33. CONCLUSIONS
 Future EU objective: Putting in place an integrated information management
system to enable the identification, monitoring, tracking and reporting of all vessels
 UNCLOS gives full priority to maritime environmental safety: Despite
shortcomings related to UNCLOS reliance upon national legislation to implement its
provisions, it promotes international cooperation through which all individual actions
of the state-parties are coordinated
Future Imperative for International and European maritime industry
Work towards the long-term maritime transport objective of “zero-waste,
zero-emission and zero accidents at sea”.
Cooperation of states at global and regional level is aCooperation of states at global and regional level is a conditio sine qua nonconditio sine qua non
 Future EU objective: Putting in place an integrated information management
system to enable the identification, monitoring, tracking and reporting of all vessels
 UNCLOS gives full priority to maritime environmental safety: Despite
shortcomings related to UNCLOS reliance upon national legislation to implement its
provisions, it promotes international cooperation through which all individual actions
of the state-parties are coordinated
Future Imperative for International and European maritime industry
Work towards the long-term maritime transport objective of “zero-waste,
zero-emission and zero accidents at sea”.
Cooperation of states at global and regional level is aCooperation of states at global and regional level is a conditio sine qua nonconditio sine qua non

34. Questions?Questions?
HELLENIC NAVAL ACADEMYHELLENIC NAVAL ACADEMY
Maritime Environmental Security:
Aspects of the International and EU’s Institutional Context