Proposals of WWF in order to reduce the risks for the caused atmosphere and safety from navigation in the Mediterranean



In occasion of the closing of Campagna Sea 2012 "For the Mediterranean of quality" and of the today's departure from Trieste of the regatta "Italy in Sailing boat: the Sea that It joins", WWF has introduced to the government and the competent authorities a series of proposals in order to reduce the risks for the caused atmosphere and safety from navigation in the Mediterranean Sea. The eleven proposals are included in the new dossier from the title "Hold the route! Protection of the marine atmosphere and marine navigation" and among other things previews zones off-limits to navigation and severeer rules for the transit of the ships in the sensitive areas.

"WWF Italy - the president of WWF Italy has declared, Stefano Leoni - hopes that the so-called one I last March decree "emanated Antinchini" as a result of the incident to Isola del Giglio, in the heart of the Sanctuary of the Cetaceans, is alone the "turn of buoy" of the action of compatible the government in order to guarantee broken sure of navigation with the protection of the marine atmosphere, the species who inhabits it and the passengers who cross it. An actionable objective also by means of the full application of the rich national and international norm already available and the strengthening of the agreements between the coastal States".

"Besides rules and norms more tightening for sure routes - it has continued the responsible Mare of WWF Italy, Marco Costantini - the protection of the marine atmosphere goes persecuted guaranteeing the sustainability of all the marine transports, to begin from the ports and connected infrastructures, where the ships carry out activity for example which the bestowal of the refusals or the fuel refueling, until the construction of ecocompatibili ships and technologically to the vanguard, graces also to participations of mass in energy efficiency, so to reduce the polluting emissions".

WWF Italy has remembered that in 2,5 million the square kilometers of the Mediterranean Sea the data annually journeys a traffic of goods of 3,6 billion tons (is of 2010, year in which a +5.6% were recorded on the year precedence), than every day nine million barrels of oil arrive in Mediterranean crude oil, pairs to 20% of the transported crude oil all over the world, of which the halves unloaded in the single Italian ports (the 14 oil ports of call, of which Genoa, Trieste and Venice those main ones; the nine refineries on the coast: Marghera, Falconara, Taranto, Livorno, Augusta, Priolo, Milazzo, Sarroch and Gela) and that from 1985 to the 2010 27 incidents for a total sversamento of 270.000 tons of hydrocarbons have happened in the Mediterranean very. And it is Italy - it has specified the association enviromentalist - to having the supremacy of the crude oil poured in the main incidents that are succeduti in 25 years: they are the 162,200 tons that are sversate in Italian territorial waters (memories that in 1991 in the Ligurian Sea the Haven oil tanker sank, that it constitutes the most serious indicente never happened in the Mediterranean, that has caused a sversamento in sea of about 140.000 tons of oil), continuations from almost the 50,000 of Turkey and from the 29,000 of the Lebanese.

Together with the net of goods and transported hydrocarbons - it has found WWF Italy - they go considered the connected infrastructures: 750 tourist ports and 286 commercial ones, 13 systems of gas production and 180 heat power plants for a total handling of 2.000 ferries, 1,500 cargo, 300 tankers and hundred of commercial boats for a total of 200.000 transits every year.

Between the marine areas to elevated risk for the atmosphere WWF Italy it has evidenced the case of the Lagoon of Venice, defined a "crystal route" that annually it is crossed by 1.217 oil tankers, of which the advanced half to 40.000 tons, and - it has emphasized the organization enviromentalist - "a sversamento from incident in the Channel Oils would reach in 90 hours Venice and Chioggia, with infallible damages to monuments and the atmosphere". To this they join to 30,000 passages every day in the Venetian city of boats, of which 97% to engine with production of billowy motion. WWF Italy has evidenced also the important increase of the crocieristico traffic in Lagoon, where in the 2010 they are journeyed 629 cruise ships for 1.617.011 total passengers, 385 ferries (357,813 passengers), 412 hydrofoils (100,351 passengers) for a total total of 1.426 landings place and 2.075.175 passengers. WWF Italy has not inserted the Lagoon of Venice in the proposals turned to the institutions, but it has remembered that the issue of the great ships in Lagoon could be inserted in the Special bill in parliament for Venice introduced 9th July to the Ambient Commission to the Senate, that exclusively transfers to the Municipality of Venice the competence on the basin of San Marco and the Channel of the Giudecca.

The eleven proposals of WWF:

To institute zones off-limits for the ships. To negotiate the permanent institution of zones prohibited to navigation, instituted according to the national and international norm, in places, to outside from the protected marine Areas, in which the biodiversity and the natural capital they are more precious. The institution of areas off-limits. to characterize and to realize in territorial waters of our Country not only on paper but in concrete and operating way could considerably reduce the risks for the atmosphere legacies to the marine traffic.

The first red light on the Sanctuary of the Cetaceans. The Sanctuary of the Pelagos, could in so far as represent an area where to begin to characterize such zones. The intentions that have subtended to its institution, in fact, then have not been continuations from a real identification of the necessary measures of protection. Al moment the only effectively operating prohibition in the charter of the Sanctuary of the cetaceans is that relative one to the contests offshore and other interdictions turned to the peach or the marine transport do not exist. It would be therefore necessary, on one side, to return the "cabin of instituted international direction" but still not in a position to guaranteeing the effective management of the Sanctuary and the respect of the established objectives operating, from the other, to preview a modification of the charter or an integration of the same one so to identify and clearly punctual the necessary prohibition and the prescription for the attainment of the protection objective.

To strengthen the agreements with France and Spain. To perfect the agreements with relative France and Spain to the Ecological Security zone (ZPE) of the north-western Mediterranean, the Ligurian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea, instituted from our Country with DPR 17/12/2011 n. 293, returning the previewed, until to a distance of 200 miles from the baselines of the Italian coast, regarding measures of protection effective a) the prevention the all types of pollution from ships and to off-shore platform, also provoked from ships clappers foreign flag or people; b) the protection of the atmosphere and the biodiversity; c) the protection of the recovered cultural patrimony on the backdrops.

Severeer rules for the Strait of Bonifacio. To establish more restrictive rules also for navigation in the strait of Bonifacio, designated particularly Sensitive Marine Area (PSSA) from Marine Organization International (IMO) in the 2011, and protected, even though to navigate there is dangerous, today single one from "a recommended" pilotage for the ships with dangerous cargos.

Network of marine reserves. In order to preserve the marine biodiversity and to maintain to the ecological functions of seas and the oceans vital it is necessary to create a working net of marine reserves, that it allows to protect the more sensitive and rich points than biodiversity of our seas. To this end WWF in collaboration with the Minister of the Atmosphere, has managed in the last year for the national protect marine areas, of the standardized plans of management, characterized from strategies and objectives ad hoc. The Network of marine areas protect so created, would be equipped so of a system of effective and efficient management in order to guarantee the conservation of the biodiversity.

Ecocompatibili ships and size-emissions. To raise awareness the Italian shipbuilding industry to promote and to construct ecocompatibili ships technologically and to the vanguard, also in occasion of the introduction by the IMO of the index of project of energy efficiency (Energy Efficiency Design Index - EEDI) that it regulated the naval emissions for the safeguard of the atmosphere. The sensitization, revolt to the societies owners of a shipping company, the political institutions and financial institutions must have as objective I renew of the fleet.

Shipowners and crews at school of safety. To ask that the shipowners by sea organize training courses permanent periodicals and for the officials and the crews on the international, communitarian and national norm in matter of prevention of the pollution and safety in the transport of hydrocarbons and dangerous substances, management of the refusals and waters of ballast and bilge and for the rigorous respect of the prohibition and the regarding decrees safety of navigation and the protection of the marine ecosystem.

To guarantee responsibility in case of sversamenti. PE Dare full and corrected application to Legge the 979/82 and in particular to art. the 20 regarding extensive responsibilities of the commander let alone of the owner or the shipowner, in case of sversamenti of hydrocarbons or other injurious substances in sea. To preview moreover the emanation of an interdepartmental interpretative Circular (Transports and Atmosphere) that it clarifies the dispositions with respect to the extensive responsibility so as previewed in art. the 20 of Legge 979/82. It is wished, in any case, ready, specific participation of the legislator also in penal field to the aim of disincentivare, the how much most possible one, the shipowners and the commanders of the ships from the lacked respect are of the safety regulations that of those of precaution and respect for the atmosphere To this end would be necessary also a reform of the Penal code for the introduction of Titolo dedicated to the “Crimes against the Atmosphere”. in which to ricomprendere, among other things, also the environmental disaster and the environmental pollution.

To save “the antipollution” fleet. To guarantee to leave to 2013 and in the deep next years (the insufficient ones to leave to the new year) for the maintenance and I renew of the convention that in open sea guarantees the operativity of the fleet for the ready participation on the marine pollution from hydrocarbons and for the activity of environmental vigilance of the Harbours-office the port

A spread on the respect of the rules. To support and to put a new package of European measures (Erika IV) that he contains innovation elements, between which the constitution of an European Bottom in order to elevate the standards of safety and to improve the monitoring of the routes and the birth of a kind of rating guaranteed from the public administrations that give guarantees on the respect of the rules besides of the navigation societies.

More rules in international waters. To give to flood and correct application to Convention UNCLOS: the States must be considered responsible regarding the international community for the way in which own rights and competences operate in international waters in relation to theirs.