Legal
(11/01/2024)
Environmental Crime Directive (ECD)
The new directive on environmental protection through criminal law (ECD) was adopted on 11 April 2024 replacing the 2008 ECD and entered into force on 20 Mai 2024.
This directive now includes offenses related to ship-source pollution, ship recycling, and shipments of waste. The new ECD extends criminal penalties for additional MARPOL Annexes due to the enlarged scope of the ship source pollution directive (SSPD).
Guidelines on Fair Treatment of Seafarers
detained in connection with alleged crimes
During a joint ILO-IMO working group held in November 2024, new Guidelines on the Fair Treatment of Seafarers Detained in Connection with Alleged Crimes were issued.
The objective of these Guidelines is to ensure that:
• the human rights and legal interests of seafarers involved in alleged crimes are recognized;
• seafarers detained in connection with alleged crimes are treated fairly by public authorities;
• investigations or detentions do not last longer than necessary and are carried out in accordance with the laws of the port or coastal State.
Although these Guidelines are non-binding, they provide guidance to port States, flag States, coastal States, the seafarers’ States of nationality, shipowners, and seafarers themselves.
Ship Source Pollution Directive
The Ship Source Pollution Directive (SSPD) proposal forms part of the maritime safety package submitted by the Commission on 1 June 2023 and entered into force on 5 January 2025.
The agreed text:
– Includes in addition to illegal discharges of oil and noxious liquid substances (Annex I & II of MARPOL which are covered by the existing directive), discharges of harmful substances carried in packaged form (MARPOL Annex III), sewage (MARPOL Annex IV), garbage (MARPOL Annex V), as well as discharge waters and residues from Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems (wet scrubbers) (MARPOL Annex VI). The directive leaves air emissions (MARPOL Annex VI) out of the scope, for the time being but envisages a future possible inclusion;
– Aligns MARPOL and the ship-source pollution directive in terms of “serious negligence” by merging Article 5 of SSPD (exceptions) into Article 4 of SSPD, which makes direct reference to MARPOL provisions.
– Amends the directive to cover only administrative sanctions and no longer criminal penalties, which now are included in the Environmental Crime Directive (ECD).
– Incorporates international standards into EU law but does not create new EU standards, namely regarding infringement and Exhaust Gas Cleaning System definition.
Uncitral Judicial Sales of Ships
Belgium was the first EU country to sign the UNCITRAL Convention on the International Effects of Judicial Sales of Ships, dated September 5, 2023, also known as the Beijing Convention. To mark this event, the Belgian Maritime Law Association, the Directorate-General for Shipping and RBSA organised a lecture on the Convention, followed by a panel discussion with representatives from the Belgian Ship Register, bailiffs, the bar, and RBSA on Thursday, November 7, 2024.
Draft Guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers
detained on suspicion of committing crimes
In 2020, the IMO Legal Committee agreed to develop guidelines on the fair treatment of seafarers detained on suspicion of committing maritime crimes. The committee decided in 2023 to use the Guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers in the event of a maritime accident, adopted in 2006, as a model. At the third meeting of the Joint ILO/IMO Tripartite Working Group to Identify and Address Seafarers’ Issues and the Human Element (ILO-IMO JTWG-SIHE 3) was decided to progress the ongoing work of the IMO Legal Committee, to develop ‘Guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers detained on suspicion of committing crimes’.
This meeting took place in Geneva from 26 – 28 November 2024. The Guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers in the event of a maritime accident were used as a model. These guidelines are intended to be a reference tool for principles that can be reflected in the design and implementation of policies, strategies, programmes, legislation, administrative measures and social dialogue mechanisms on the fair treatment of seafarers detained on suspicion of committing crimes, and that can be adapted to different national systems and circumstances
