Kick-off meeting “People around Ports” project

The project, which is supported by ESPO, will focus on the gathering of best practices that will lead to an ESPO Code of Practice. “The theme of the project is still very much in a pioneering stage but the current economic slowdown increases the societal pressure on ports”, commented ESPO Secretary General Patrick Verhoeven. “An ESPO Code of Practice would therefore be a timely initiative. A parallel can be drawn with our very first Code of Environmental Practice which we published back in 1994 when environmental management was at the same early stage of awareness. Such a code would also be complementary to the ESPO Award which we will give out for the first time this year.” The meeting further concluded that port authorities should play a leadership role in this field, given their hybrid public-commercial character and the fact that they are the main focal points of the wider port community. Communication stands out as a crucial factor on which best practices and recommendations can be developed and this covers communication to own management, decision-makers, and the general public and potential employees. Another key point is accessibility of port areas. Experience shows that, whilst the general public may be largely ignorant about the activities and value of ports, once people get inside the port area they tend to become much more enthusiast. Bringing people in the port area has however become difficult given stringent security restrictions. Maintaining an accessible port area in the post- ISPS era is therefore one of the major challenges to tackle. Further project meetings are planned in September and early next year. The final results of the project and the ESPO Code of Practice will be presented at the ESPO 2010 Conference which will be held in Helsinki on 27-28 May next year.

www.espo.be