European Shipowners Showcase Short Sea Shipping
The European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) presented its new brochure on the merits of short sea shipping during a high level meeting organised by the Dutch Presidency of the Council. The intention behind this new initiative is to revitalise the EU’s short sea policy, which has unfortunately been neglected in the past years. “Short Sea Shipping has been on the EU’s agenda for a long time” said Niels Smedegaard, ECSA President. “Despite many good initiatives, a number of long-standing problems have not been resolved, the market share of short sea shipping has stagnated, and worse still, declined in recent years. "Moving goods and people by sea around Europe instead of using other modes will decongest land-based transport networks…
IMO, EC Reinforce Working Relationship
Mr. Jacques Barrot, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Transport, visited the IMO Secretary-General, Mr. Efthimios E. Mitropoulos, at IMO Headquarters in London on Friday 14 March 2007, within the framework of co-operation between the two sides aimed at promoting maritime safety and security and environmental protection. The meeting was the fourth between the two following previous regular meetings successively held in London and Brussels since February 2005. On the first item, Mr. Mitropoulos briefed Mr. (b) towards implementing the Action Plan on Greenhouse Gas Emissions, possibly bringing forward some deadlines to expedite the Organization's contribution to worldwide efforts in preparation for the Copenhagen Conference in December 2009. Mr.
Intertanko's Swift Addresses Russian Group
in St. including INTERTANKO MD Peter Swift. Karamitsos. Bulgarian Register. continued his theme from the previous seminar. added responsibilities for quality management and operation", he said. and products over 5m bbls/day and generating some 10% of the country's GDP. fast). from the Baltic have increased approximately ten times. Mediterranean. makes for one more sensitivity. in unilateral regulation ahead of IMO. This is where the new responsibilities come in, says Swift. least total management of the Safety Chain.
Invest in Seafaring, don’t Criminalize it, warns ISMA President
EUROPE should look to institute laws that reward those choosing the sea as a career instead of singling out seafarers as scapegoats in pollution initiatives, the President of the International Ship Managers’ Association (ISMA) has warned. Invited to Brussels earlier this week [Tuesday April 5th] to address a high level delegation from the Directorate General for Energy and Transport which included Fotis Karamitsos, Director for Maritime Transport and Jacques Michaux, Deputy Head, Rajaish Bajpaee said that in the face of shortages of quality seafarers, the responsibilities of a seafaring profession can best be met by induction of the best youth into seafaring from grass root levels.
