This Bill gives effect in the State to the Oil Pollution Preparedness Response and Co-operation Convention, or OPRC, 1990. This convention was designed to ensure that proper arrangements are in place in each member state of the International Maritime Organisation, or the IMO, to deal with emergencies arising from spillages of oil into the sea. It calls for member states to have a major national emergency plan to deal with major spillages, to have a designated response agency and to co-operate with the IMO and adjoining states in planning for and dealing with oil pollution incidents. There is a requirement for all ships carrying oil as cargo and for all installations producing or handling oil products to have emergency pollution plans in place and for anyone becoming aware of a spillage to notify the national agency. The Irish Marine Emergency Service, or IMES, which was set up in 1991 as part of the Department of the Marine and Natural Resources, has been designated as the Irish national response agency and has made the necessary arrangements to give effect to the convention.
It is necessary, however, to provide a statutory basis for action by the designated response agency in implementing the convention, to enable that agency to direct the preparation of emergency plans by others as a statutory requirement and to make reporting of oil pollution incidents or potential ones mandatory. The Bill fulfils this legislative requirement.
This Bill should not be viewed in isolation but rather as one of many components in the body of measures which has been constructed to protect and enhance the marine environment. It will make the reporting of oil pollution incidents or potential incidents mandatory. Harbour authorities, ships carrying oil as cargo, operators of offshore installations, oil handling and producing facilities and, in certain circumstances, local authorities will have to put in place oil pollution emergency plans. It also extends Ireland's jurisdiction for dealing with pollution incidents from the current 12 mile limit to 200 miles. This is a vital step in the further protection of our marine environment and the valuable maritime and coastal resources which depend on it. This Bill also proposes tough new penalties of up to £10 million for non-compliance.
The Irish Marine Emergency Service, or IMES, will be designated as the national agency which will have the power to direct the preparation of individual emergency plans by the groups involved. The individual plans will be co-ordinated with an overall national plan which will be prepared by IMES.
Increased co-operation with other coastal states in the event of oil pollution is also provided for. International co-operation and support is a vital part of responding to major marine emergencies all over the world and services from neighbouring countries willingly assist each other where geography and separate administrations are of secondary importance.
The Bill will create a framework for co-operation between the IMES, harbour authorities, local authorities and the operators of oil tankers, offshore installations and oil handling facilities. Our extensive coastline makes us vulnerable to accidents involving oil pollution. The devastating effects that spillages can have on the marine and coastal environment have been made all too clear by incidents such as the Braer and the Sea Empress. The measures in the Bill will provide strong safeguards for our seas and shoreline amenities, and the communities who depend on them, in the event of any such incident.
We all have an interest in protecting and enhancing the marine environment. The high quality of our marine environment is an important element of Ireland's natural endowment, both for its intrinsic value and as a major resource for marine tourism and leisure and the marine food sector. Since becoming Minister for the Marine and Natural Resources in summer 1997, I have accorded a high priority to the protection of the marine environment.
Ireland has consistently argued at EU and international fora for the highest possible international standards in this area. We have a corresponding responsibility to ensure we introduce the appropriate legislation and other measures needed for implementation. Small countries, as well as large ones, have serious obligations in this regard. This Bill complements a number of other measures which have been introduced in recent years or are currently being prepared.
The Oil Pollution of the Sea (Civil Liability and Compensation) (Amendment) Act, 1998, enacted in May 1998, strengthens the law in relation to oil pollution by bringing it into line with current international conventions and increases the level of compensation in the event of an oil spill to a maximum of £195 million.
In 1997, four sets of regulations were made under the Sea Pollution Act, 1991, to give effect to provisions of the IMO Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, known as the MARPOL Convention. Work is under way to adopt further provisions of MARPOL concerning the prevention of pollution by sewage from ships and the prevention of air pollution from ships.
In March 1998, the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North East Atlantic, the OSPAR Convention, came into force internationally following ratification by all the contracting parties. In July 1998 I led the Irish delegation to the first ministerial meeting of the OSPAR Commission in Portugal. The ministerial meeting adopted a new annex to the convention dealing with biodiversity, a series of strategies and an action plan for the OSPAR Commission. It also adopted a decision governing the disposal of disused offshore installations.
An assessment is currently in the process of being undertaken of the marine environmental conditions within the area covered by the OSPAR Convention in the year 2000 – the QSR, or Quality Status Report, 2000. For this purpose the OSPAR area has been divided into five regions. Ireland and the UK are responsible in respect of preparing the assessment for an area known as the Celtic seas region.
In the first instance Ireland prepared its own QSR which was published recently by the Marine Institute. That report concludes that Ireland's marine environment is in a healthy state, but that there is no room for complacency and that certain areas require continued attention. The second stage involves a joint UK-Ireland QSR for the Celtic seas region. This is at an advanced stage. The final stage of the process will involve the fusion of all five regional reports into a single QSR for the entire area.
My Department, in conjunction with the Marine Institute and in consultation with industry representatives, has continued to develop a strategy for the environmental regulation of offshore oil and gas activities. This will take account of the strategy with regard to the offshore industry, which is currently being prepared under the auspices of the OSPAR Convention.
In 1997, in the wake of revelations by the UK Government that radioactive waste had been dumped at a number of locations around the coast of the UK during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, I established a task force on the dumping of radioactive materials in our general maritime area. I expect the task force report to be made available to me in the very near future and I will arrange for it to be published as soon as possible.
Between 3 and 8 June 1998 28 phosphorus devices were washed up along the east coast. A further device was washed ashore on 19 July 1998. These devices apparently originated in the Beaufort Dyke dump site, which lies between the coasts of Scotland and Northern Ireland. My Department immediately contacted the UK authorities to express the Government's serious concern at these developments, and subsequently met senior officials from a range of UK Government Departments and agencies to discuss the problem.
In addition, I raised the issue at the ministerial meeting of the OSPAR Commission, and OSPAR subsequently agreed to examine the issue of dumped munitions in the waters around Europe and asked Ireland, as lead country, to prepare a paper on the problems posed by dumped munitions. The matter is being discussed at a meeting of the OSPAR Commission this week.
Senators will be aware that 1998 was designated International Year of the Ocean by the United Nations. To mark the occasion I signed the Ocean Charter, which was sponsored by the International Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO. In December I also opened the Oceans Conference at Dublin Castle, which was hosted by the Marine Institute. In addition, my Department was represented at the second London oceans workshop. The purpose of the workshop was to mark the International Year of the Ocean and also to prepare for the 7th Session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, CSD 7, which was held in New York in April of this year. Oceans and seas was the major sectoral theme at CSD 7, at which I was pleased to represent Ireland.
The shoreline protection strategy was recently completed by IMES. It is intended to commence testing this plan during the coming months. Local authorities and harbours have been requested to compile contingency plans and are finding the strategy extremely useful in assisting them in this regard.
The IMO assembly in November 1997, which I had the opportunity to address, agreed that the INF code which governs the transport of irradiated nuclear fuels by sea should be made mandatory for the future. Work on implementing that decision is proceeding apace. In the meantime the European Union has adopted a directive requiring all vessels carrying such materials bound for or leaving a Community port to comply with strict notification procedures and controls. I signed the regulations transposing the directive in question into Irish law on 21 April 1999 as required under the terms of the directive, even though such vessels do not use Irish ports or transit Irish waters. The EU controls in question now apply to all vessels en route to Sellafield. The Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, continues to serve on the ministerial committee on Sellafield and on radiological protection generally, under the chairmanship of the Minister of State, Deputy Jacob.
These are the circumstances in which this Bill is being introduced. As has been indicated in the QSR, we have a valuable resource in good condition, due to a combination of nature's bounty and measures introduced by Government. We need, however, to continue to care for this resource. With continued good care it can be enjoyed by all our people. I look forward to hearing Senators' contributions on the matter and I commend the Bill to the House.