3rdELD Stakeholder Workshop

'Experience gained in the application of the Directive based on concrete ELD cases'

26th November 2014, Management Centre

Europe, Rue de l'Aquéduc 118

Overview of the ongoing Commission ELD evaluation and

reporting exercise

Background, Objective, Process

Informational basis

1. Member States reports

2. Review points pursuant to Art. 18(3) ELD

3. Commission report 2010

4. Commission Studies 2012 and 2013

5. Supplementary information from experts and stakeholder meetings

27 Member State Reports 2013

1. MS reported on the basis of Article 18(1) ELD in conjunction with Annex VI

2. Several MS provided voluntarily more relevant information, but a few MS not much at all

3. The last reports were received in December 2013, translated by January this year

4. A first summary was provided at the last ELD Stakeholder event in June 2013

Review points according to Article 18(3) ELD

1. Application of the International Conventions listed in Annexes IV and V ELD (IMO, nuclear)

2. Application of the Directive to environmental damage caused by GMOs

3. Application of the Directive in relation to protected species and natural habitats

4. Instruments that may be eligible for inclusion in Annexes III (list of dangerous activities), IV or V

Commission Report 2010

• Scope of Directive: Gap as regards damage to marine water

beyond territorial waters (cf. Deepwater Horizon incident)

• Lack of experience and of data impede in particular the

development of financial security products and does not

allow to draw reliable conclusions on mandatory financial

security – postponed to 2014

• Diverging national transposing rules potentially create

difficulties for example to financial security providers

• Uneven implementation of the permit and state of the art

defences

• Uneven extension of the biodiversity scope to cover species

and natural habitats protected under domestic law

ELD Implementation Study 2012

Recommendations to strengthen practical implementation of the ELD:

• Organisation of workshops and conferences to increase awareness of stakeholders; establishing networks of stakeholders

• Development of supporting tools: elaboration of guidance documents, national or EU registers of ELD cases, tools to promote purchase of insurance policies (GIS, leaflets etc.)

• Developing actions to improve expertise and knowledge of all stakeholders

• Promoting the development of databases for the collection of data on the quality of environmental sectors

Commission studies 2013

Following the ELD Implementation Study 2012, and to inform the ELD report and review through supplementary information:

• Legal analysis: Completion of the legal part in the 2012 study covering 16 MS. How has the ELD been transposed into the existing national legal frameworks?

• Biodiversity damage: Based on Article 18(3) ELD, ELD Report 2010. Does remediation of biodiversity damage work, and how effectively?

• ELD effectiveness: Based on Article 18(3) ELD, ELD Report 2010 and ELD Implementation Study 2012. Strengths and weaknesses. What needs to be done?

ELD Effectiveness Study 2013 • Application of International Conventions, Annex IV and V:

Substantial differences regarding environmental damage remediation between International Conventions and the ELD?

• Scope of strict liability, Annex III: Scope of strict liability about right? Is Annex III encompassing all dangerous activities?

• Scope of environmental damage: Are the environmental sectors included (nature, water, land) the most important and clearly defined? Need for further harmonisation/streamlining?

• Appropriateness of significance thresholds: Land damage remediation standard to be aligned? Significance criteria for water damage to be developed?

• Application of permit and state of the art defence: Is there a need for harmonisation? How often were these defences invoked?

Supplementary information

• ELD government experts meetings

• ELD stakeholder workshops/conferences

• Information exchange with experts, practitioners, stakeholders

• Literature review

• Stakeholder consultation during the drafting of the report

Objective

• Evaluate the effectiveness of prevention and remediation of damage to the environment on the basis of gathered experience.

• Evidence-based conclusions must take account of the following REFIT criteria:

• Relevance

• Effectiveness

• Efficiency

• Coherence

• EU-added value

Process

• December 2013/January 2014: Receipt of last studies and of last translations into English

• 3rd February 2014: 14th ELD government experts meeting

• End of February 2014: Approval of 3 ELD studies

• March 2014 - ongoing: Draft report

• 13th May 2015: 15th ELD government experts meeting

• 1st half of 2015: Adoption of the Report

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/liability/index.htm

E:mail: Hans.Lopatta@ec.europa.eu

• Member States’ reports by April 2013: • Annex VI ELD • Questionnaire useful? • Records of ELD cases

• Commission report by April 2014: • International instruments in Annexes IV and V (IMO,

Euratom), considering eventual studies by the IOPCF • GMOs: Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on

Liability and Redress under the Cartagena Protocol • Application of ELD to protected species/natural habitats • Instruments for incorporation into Annexes III, IV and V • Mandatory vs. voluntary security; financial security in

particular for large scale accidents (2010 ELD Report)

Thank you for your attention !