I am pleased that this important Bill has been introduced in the Seanad. I welcome the opportunity to address the House on it and I look forward to hearing Senators' contributions.
The Sea Pollution (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2003 is, as its title indicates, a wide-ranging Bill relating to aspects of the marine environment. It updates our legislation on the protection of the marine environment through giving effect in our law to several internationally agreed instruments. These include: the protocol to the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation – OPRC; the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage – the Bunkers Convention; the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Antifouling Systems for Ships, 2001 – AFS Convention; and Annex VI to the MARPOL Convention – the international convention for the prevention of pollution from ships done at London on the 2 November 1973 as amended by the protocol done at London on 17 February 1978, known as MARPOL 73/78. The Bill also amends Part III of the Merchant Shipping Act 1992.
The Sea Pollution (Amendment) Act 1999 gives effect to the OPRC. The convention was designed to ensure that proper arrangements are in place in each member state of the International Maritime Organisation to deal with emergencies arising from spillages of oil into the sea. Resolution 10 of the 1990 conference that adopted the OPRC invited the IMO to initiate work to develop an appropriate instrument to expand the scope of the OPRC to apply, in whole or in part, to pollution incidents by hazardous substances other than oil and prepare a proposal to this end. The IMO adopted a protocol to that effect in March 2000.
The 1999 Act provides for the preparation of oil pollution emergency plans by harbour authorities and operators of offshore installations and oil handling facilities and their submission to the Minister for approval. It also provides that the Minister may direct a local authority to prepare and submit such a plan for approval. The Irish Coastguard, formerly known as the Irish Marine Emergency Service, which was set up in 1991 as part of the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, has been designated as the national response agency and has made the necessary arrangements to give effect to the convention. The Irish Coastguard is also to be similarly designated for the purposes of the protocol. The Bill amends the 1999 Act to give effect to the terms of the protocol.
Ships travel faster through the water and consume less fuel when their hulls are clean and smooth and free from fouling organisms, such as barnacles, algae and molluscs. Therefore, they are coated with anti-fouling systems. During the 1960s, the chemical industry developed efficacious and cost-effective anti-fouling paints using metallic compounds, particularly the organotin compound tributyltin, TBT. By the 1970s most seagoing vessels had TBT paints on their hulls. During the 1960s the chemical industry developed efficacious and cost effective anti-fouling paints using metallic compounds, in particular, the organotin compound tributyltin – TBT. By the 1970s most seagoing vessels had TBT paints on their hulls.
The awareness of the harmful environmental effects of organotin compounds gradually grew in the late 1980s. Scientific studies have shown that organotin compounds, particularly TBT, used as anti-fouling systems on ships pose a substantial risk of adverse impacts on ecologically and economically important marine organisms. The IMO held a diplomatic conference on the control of harmful anti-fouling systems for ships from 1 to 5 October 2001, which adopted the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-fouling Systems for Ships 2001. This convention provides rules to ban the use of organotin based anti-fouling systems – TBT – which are harmful to the marine environment and provides a mechanism through which other harmful anti-fouling systems may be banned or regulated in the future on a global basis.
The use of organotin anti-fouling compounds has been restricted in the State under by-law 657 of 1987. This by-law did not, however, apply to any boat used or intended for use solely on the sea, whose hull is made of aluminium alloy or whose overall length is more than 25 metres. The convention applies to all vessels and will enter into force 12 months after its ratification by at least 25 states representing at least 25% of the world's tonnage, a target which has yet to be reached. The convention includes fixed application dates, namely, 1 January 2003 for the prohibition of the application of TBT coatings on ships and 1 January 2008 for the elimination of active TBT coatings on ships.
European Union member states were prominent in promoting this measure and were anxious that the terms of the convention be applied as far as possible at the earliest possible date. Accordingly, the application of TBT has been prohibited on European Union ships and ships entering EU ports as of 1 July 2003 in advance of entry into force of the convention. European Union member states have been urged to introduce the legislation necessary to ratify the convention as soon as possible. Ireland has consistently advocated a ban on anti-fouling systems to apply internationally as set out in the convention and should, accordingly, introduce the necessary legislation to enable the State to ratify it as soon as possible. The Bill fulfils this requirement.
The Sea Pollution Act 1991 makes provision for the prevention of pollution of the sea by oil and other substances and to give effect to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships done at London on 2 November 1973, as amended by the protocol done at London on 17 February 1978, MARPOL 73/78, also known as the MARPOL Convention. Regulations covering the various sources of ship generated pollution were originally contained in the five annexes of the convention.
MARPOL is continually under review at the marine environment protection committee of the International Maritime Organisation and amendments are adopted as considered necessary. The convention has been modified by the protocol of 1997, whereby a sixth annex was added relating to prevention of air pollution from ships. The Bill amends the 1991 Act to enable regulations relating to annex VI, the prevention of air pollution from ships, to be made.
The Bunkers Convention builds on arrangements which are in place at international level in relation to civil liability and compensation, arising out of oil spills from tankers, which have been adopted in connection with the carriage of hazardous and noxious substances by sea – HNS. Senators will recall the Oil Pollution of the Sea (Civil Liability and Compensation) (Amendment) Bill 2003, which was passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas recently and updates our legislation with regard to spills from tankers. The Bunkers Convention introduces a civil liability regime for ships other than oil tankers.
The Sea Pollution (Hazardous and Noxious Substances) (Civil Liability and Compensation) Bill 2000 currently before the Dáil gives effect in Irish law to the International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in connection with the carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea 1996, HNS convention. The Bunkers Convention complements the conventions relating to liability and compensation in respect of oil spills from tankers and hazardous and noxious substances. This Bill similarly complements the Oil Pollution of the Sea (Civil Liability and Compensation) Acts and the HNS Bill through introducing arrangements in respect of spills of bunker oil.
Section 15(6) (b) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1992 empowers the Minister to refuse to grant a licence to the owner of a passenger boat who has been convicted of an offence. Section 16(2) gives the Minister powers to suspend or revoke a licence where an owner fails or refuses to comply with a condition of a licence, but the provision only applied to the vessel to which the licence applies. The Minister has no powers in relation to any other vessel that the owner may have, that is, the Minister can only act with regard to the boat in respect of which the convictions were made but cannot do anything about any additional boat the owner may have. The proposed amendment will enable the Minister to revoke any or all passenger boat licences held by an individual who has been guilty of an offence, even when the offence has occurred on another vessel. The penalty provisions in the Act in respect of passenger boats will also be amended to bring them into line with the current maximum permissible.
Those are the elements of the Bill. It would assist the House in its consideration of the Bill to refer to the context in which it is being introduced. Owing to the international nature of shipping, action to prevent pollution of the marine environment is most effective when taken by agreement at regional or international level. Our valuable but vulnerable coastline has convinced us of the importance of achieving the highest standards of safety on ships. Ireland has consistently supported measures in this regard at European Union and international levels. It is important, therefore, that our legislation complies with accepted European Union and international standards while addressing specific Irish concerns.
The condition of the marine environment does not remain unchanged but is continually evolving. Similarly, the state of international shipping and other factors which affect the marine environment are continually changing. International and other instruments are accordingly kept under review and updated as required. The Erika incident off the coast of France in December 1999 led to a reassessment at European Union and international levels of many aspects of the regulatory arrangements which apply regarding maritime safety and the protection of the marine environment. This process was given added impetus in November 2002 when the Bahamas registered tanker, Prestige, laden with 77,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, broke in two off the coast of Galicia in Spain, spilling an unknown but substantial quantity of its cargo.
Following the Erika incident measures have been introduced or agreed as regards the compensation available to victims of pollution by oil tankers – as I stated, legislation to give effect to these measures was passed recently by the Oireachtas; the regulation of ship classification societies; the accelerated phasing-out of single hull oil tankers; the strengthening of port State control measures and ship reporting arrangements. In addition, the European Maritime Safety Agency was established by regulation in August 2002 for the purpose of ensuring a high, uniform and effective level of maritime safety and prevention of ships within the European Union. The agency is to enable the Commission to offer the full range of professional services needed to discharge its duties in this connection. All member states are represented on the board of the agency.
Following the Prestige incident, European Union Ministers committed themselves to building on the progress which had been made during the previous few years. To that end, a number of new measures were introduced. The Council of Ministers and Parliament have adopted a proposal by the Commission to further accelerate the phasing-out of single hull tankers and to ban the carriage of heavy grades of fuel oil in single hull tankers. Member states have requested the IMO to introduce similar arrangements to be applied internationally. A proposal by the Commission concerning sanctions for offences involving pollution of the marine environment is under consideration at EU official working group level.
Belgium, France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom decided earlier this year to present the International Maritime Organisation with a joint request to designate certain maritime areas a particularly sensitive sea area – PSSA – to strengthen its protection of particularly vulnerable areas. The limit of the PSSA proposed coincides with the 15th meridian, the Porcupine Bank, and includes parts of the special waters of the north-west Europe zone as defined under the MARPOL convention, the English Channel and coastal waters, and certain parts of pollution response areas and exclusive economic zones along Spanish, French and Portuguese coasts. The aim of the exercise is to protect our marine environment and coastline from oil spills by discouraging vessels from entering into the particularly sensitive sea area. It was proposed to ban certain tankers and others, for example, double hulls and some single hull tankers, would have to state their intention to cross the area 48 hours in advance.
The PSSA request was considered by the MEPC in July 2003. Irish experts from several Departments and agencies together with colleagues from the other five states attended to support the request. The MEPC agreed in principle to the request for designation and referred the matter to an expert navigation committee for examination. This committee is expected to report to the MEPC next year. The MEPC did not accede to the request to ban tankers as proposed; it is open to the states concerned to introduce other protective measures. Possible proposals in this regard are being considered by the officials and experts concerned.
The Minister, when introducing the Oil Pollution (Civil Liability and Compensation) (Amendment) Bill earlier this month, reminded the House that in Ireland we succeeded earlier this year in averting a serious oil spill. An incident occurred on 28 January 2002 off the coast of Donegal involving a 22 year old single hull Panamanian registered tanker, the Princess Eva, which had the potential for pollution similar to the Prestige or the Erika. The vessel was carrying 55,000 tonnes of heavy oil from Copenhagen to the USA. On 28 January 2003, the vessel experienced heavy weather off the north west coast of Ireland. Following an accident on board in which two crew members were killed and another severely injured, the vessel entered Donegal Bay where the two bodies were transferred to shore. An oil spill was averted due to the actions taken by the Irish Coast Guard and the maritime safety directorate of my Department.
Events such as these serve as a reminder of the vulnerability of our coastline and of the importance of adequate protection for the marine environment. These events have also focused the Minister's attention on the provision of safety services. He is satisfied that the establishment of a single agency responsible for all safety matters is the best course of action. He intends to submit proposals to Government for decision in this regard as soon as possible. This matter is at present being discussed with trade unions and staff representatives with a view to resolving industrial relations issues which arise and charting the way forward for the development of marine safety services. The Minister and I look forward to debating the legislation required with Members of the Oireachtas in due course.
This Bill is part of the process of providing adequate protection for our marine environment. I look forward to hearing Senators' contributions and have no hesitation in commending the Bill to the House.