Marine Pollution, Shipping Waste and International Law

Drawing upon both International and EU law, the book provides a detailed analysis of the regimes set up to deal with the transboundary movement of wastes and ship-source pollution, so as to elucidate the obligations and legal principles governing such regimes.

Waste management poses increasing challenges to both the protection of the environment and to human health. To face these challenges, this book claims that environmental law needs to shift attention from media-specific pollution regimes to integrative life-cycle approaches of waste management i. e. , from the prevention of waste generation to the actual handling of wastes. Furthermore, the cooperation of States and the establishment of coordinated activities is essential because states can no longer have separate standards for wastes posing transboundary risks and for 'purely domestic' wastes.

Drawing upon both International and EU law, the book provides a detailed analysis of the regimes set up to deal with the transboundary movement of wastes and ship-source pollution, so as to elucidate the obligations and legal principles governing such regimes. It concludes that treaty obligations concerning transboundary movements of wastes are inapplicable to ship wastes while on board ships and on land. However, despite the limitations of the transboundary movement of wastes regime, the principle of Environmentally Sound Management (ESM) embodied in this regime has gradually transformed into a legal principle. ESM works to address the legal gaps in the regulation of wastes, and consequently, it provides the desired coherence to the legal system since it acts as a bridge between several regulatory and sectoral levels. Furthermore, ESM offers a new light with which to understand and interpret existing obligations, and it provides a renewed impetus to regimes that directly and indirectly govern wastes. This impetus translates into greater coordination and the establishment of cross-sectional policies.

By offering alternative ways to solve problems linked to the management of ship wastes in the sea-land interface, this book will appeal to anyone with an interest in International Environmental Law.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The management of ship wastes on land: the current controversy

The EU and the management of ship wastes in their sea/land interface

Chapter 7: ESM and the transboundary movement of waste regime

The growing importance of ESM within the Basel regime

Legal nature of the ESM obligation

ESM: meaning and substantive content

ESM at the OECD level

ESM at the EU level

Concluding Remarks

Chapter 8: The ESM of ship wastes: the sea/land interface

The ESM of ship wastes at the international level

The ESM of ship wastes at the EU level

Forthcoming regulation on port reception facilities

PART IV: Conclusions

Chapter 9: The management of ship wastes: the sea-land interface

Conflicts of law

Chapter 10: International Law and (ship) waste management

The integrative function of ESM: possibilities and limitations

Final reflection

Appendix I: Management of cargo residues (MARPOL, Annex II)

in the Baltic Sea area

Appendix II: Survey results concerning the collection of cargo

residues (MARPOL, Annex II) in the Baltic Sea area

References

International treaties

European Union Law

Table of cases

Bibliography

International documentation

European Union documentation

National Documentation

Miscellaneous