Mr van de Laar, who manages the Port Environmental Committee agendas for the International Association of Ports and Harbours, says: “Under the MARPOL convention, IMO Flag states – and not the ports – have the legal responsibility to provide for reception facilities and the way in which this is dealt with in the various states is so diverse that it is virtually impossible for IAPH to have one definite position on this issue.
“In Europe for example, ports are legally required – mind you under the European treaties not MARPOL – to set up reception facilities and there the words ‘adequate compensation’ are used. But that’s where the discussion starts and we are a long ways from a conclusion.
“IAPH’s position is that we adhere to the principle that the polluters pays and that any one that receives waste from ships should collect adequate compensation for those services. Certainly, there may be quite large differences in such fees – a mere reflection of the ‘use of the land’. IAPH members will of course, within the framework of their legal responsibilities, assist ships wherever possible to discharge, following applicable international maritime conventions.”