Commission seeks views on rules for illegal discharge from ships

The European Commission is preparing a new legislative proposal revising the Ship-Source Pollution Directive, a common framework outlining how to deal with illegal discharges from ships. Interested parties can share their views via an open public consultation.

As announced in the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, this initiative aims at preventing marine pollution by ensuring that any natural or legal persons responsible for the discharge of polluting substances into EU waters are subject to adequate penalties. Digital solutions for surveillance can help identify polluting ships. Ultimately, the aim is to better apply the polluter-pays and precautionary principles to avoid the pollution of our seas and oceans. The initiative helps the EU to deliver on the European Green Deal and in particular Zero Pollution Action Plan.

The public consultation is divided into two sections: the first gathers views from citizens and the second targets experts and relevant stakeholders. The consultation is open until 3 March 2022.