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The
world shipping industry has
condemned Spain, France and Portugal
for their unilateral action in
banning single hull tankers from
entering their respective 200 miles
Economic Exclusive Zones pointing
out that the actions of the
countries contravened the Law of the
Sea Convention.
The
three countries acted to keep the
single hull tankers off their waters
following the aftermath of the
Prestige tanker that came to grief
off the coast of Spain.
International
shipping industry organisations,
comprising the Baltic and
International Maritime Council, the
International Chamber of Shipping,
Intertanko and Intercargo said in a
joint statement: “Inevitably,
political and public feelings run
high after a major pollution
incident, and everyone naturally and
understandably sympathises fully
with the people of Galicia in their
current difficulties.
“But
that is no justification for the
blatantly illegal action taken by
the governments of Spain and France
in ordering a number of foreign
ships out of their 200-mile
Exclusive Economic Zone.”
The
Asian Shipowners’ Forum, while
expressing its concern over the
failure of the Spanish authorities
to grant “a place of refugee”
for the stricken Prestige, is
opposed to the move by EU to ban
single hull vessels from their
waters.
The
Federation of Asean Shipowners’
Association, which met in Manila
last week, has also expressed its
concern on the unilateral
initiatives taken by the EU
countries.
The
tough new maritime safety measures
agreed by Spain, France and Portugal
will in effect mean a blanket ban on
older single-hull tankers (usually
over 15 years of age) within the
exclusive economic zones controlled
by those three countries.
Following
the announcement of the ban,
recently Spanish and Portuguese
warships escorted the 1985-built
Malta-flag tanker Moskovskiy
Festival, en route from Tallinn to
Gibraltar, further out to sea.
The
action drew protest from Malta which
believed that the Spanish and
Portuguese actions contravened the
right of innocent passage.
The
Moskovskiy Festival, which is
classed by Lloyd’s Register,
successfully passed a port state
control inspection on October 30
this year, ironically in the Spanish
port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Industry
sources said if the three
states continue with plans to deny
entry to single hulls, they may well
face a challenge under the 1982 Law
of the Sea Convention.
The
initiative would be “almost
certainly inconsistent” with the
convention, which offers the right
of freedom of navigation to ships
travelling through a country’s EEZ.
Malaysia,
for instance will not be able to
prevent the right for ships to
navigate through the Straits of
Malacca even if Malaysia’s EEZ is
within its jurisdiction.
However,
the law of the sea allows coastal
states to adopt laws relating to
EEZs “where the international
rules and standards are inadequate
to meet special circumstances and
coastal states have reasons for
believing that a particular clearly
defined area of the EEZ is an area
where the adoption of special
mandatory measures for the
prevention of pollution from vessels
is required”.
Coastal
state jurisdiction is limited within
the EEZ to giving effect to
internationally agreed rules. But
the right of innocent passage is
enshrined in the convention.
Under
Article 211 of the convention,
states acting through the
International Maritime Organisation
can establish rules to prevent or
control pollution.
The
regulation says, however, that
coastal states cannot adopt laws in
respect of their EEZ that impose
design, construction, manning or
equipment standards on foreign ships
other than generally accepted rules
and standards.
Quite
clearly therefore Spain, France and
Portugal would be in breach of
article 211 by seeking to impose a
design standard, in this case double
hulls, without the approval of the
IMO. |
