The European Maritime Safety Administration (EMSA) has published guidance to provide a harmonised approach to the enforcement of Directive 2000/59/EC on Port Reception Facilities for Ship-Generated Waste and Cargo Residues (‘the PRF Directive’).
This guidance has been developed to facilitate Ship Inspections that are presently being undertaken by the European Union Member States (hereafter referred to as MS) to enforce the PRF Directive. It should be noted that DG Move and EMSA are currently developing systems to gather and provide additional pertinent information to help the PRF Inspector efficiently undertake PRF inspections based on the revised advanced notification form format in Directive (EU) 2015/20871. As such new functionalities and information will become available in THETIS-EU. When these functionalities become available EMSA will inform the MS and revise this document accordingly.
A port is defined in the PRF Directive as:
“a place or a geographical area, made up of such improvement works and equipment as to permit, principally, the reception of ships, including fishing vessels and recreational craft”
This includes all ports normally visited by ships” that are covered by the Directive, which includes all ships, including fishing vessels and recreational craft, with the exception of any warship, naval auxiliary or other ships owned or operated by a State, used on government non-commercial service. “Recreational craft” are defined in the PRF Directive as “a ship of any type, regardless of the means of propulsion, intended for sports or leisure purposes.
Waste reception and handling plans
1. An appropriate waste reception and handling plan shall be developed and implemented for each port following consultations with the relevant parties, in particular with port users or their representatives
2. The waste reception and handling plans referred to in paragraph 1 may, where required for reasons of efficiency, be developed in a regional context with the appropriate involvement of each port, provided that the need for, and availability of, reception facilities are specified for each individual port.
3. Member States shall evaluate and approve the waste reception and handling plan, monitor its implementation and ensure its re-approval at least every three years and after significant changes in the operation of the port.
The recommendations
- will contribute towards a more uniform and harmonised application of the PRF Directive;
- will ensure more efficient use of resources during the application and enforcement of the PRF Directive;
will help MS follow the requirements of the PRF Directive; - can be used by the MS to develop new, or enhance any existing, guidance that the MS have developed to implement their national legislation; and,
- will be subject to revision in the light of their use and possible amendments to the PRF Directive.
Further details may be found in the Technical Recommendations on the Implementation report below
Source & Image credit: EMSA
