EMSA

Founded in the aftermath of the Erika and Prestige disasters...

Founded in the aftermath of the Erika and Prestige disasters...

EMSA has also been given tasks in the field of pollution response, vessel traffic monitoring and in the long-range identification and tracking of ships. Employing over 200 staff at its offices in Lisbon, the Agency is a centre of excellence for maritime safety in Europe.

Pollution, Preparedness & Response

Roughy half of EMSA's budget is focused on pollution preparedness and response activities. In particular, the Agency offers a network of contracted oil pollution response vessels. Spread across the European coastline, these vessels can be called upon by Member States in case of a major oil spill at sea.

EMSA Maritime Information Systems

EMSA's SafeSeaNet system offers Member States information to track the 20 000 or so commercial ships that are in and around European waters at any given time. The LRIT system offers the possibility to track European ships worldwide.

Accident investigation

Shipping accidents happen. And when they do, accident investigation can help identify problems, and to learn lessons that may prevent accidents in future. EMSA manages the EU's EMCIP database for sharing marine accident investigation information, and is helping to improve standards in accident investigation across coastal states. Since 2007, EMSA has also published an annual Maritime Accident Review.

Protecting the marine environment

EMSA provides ships to help Europe better respond to major oil spills, satellite images to identify polluting vessels, and ensures ships comply with environmental rules. The Agency's marine environmental expertise covers areas such as ballast water management, port waste reception facilities and anti-fouling coatings for vessels.

Ensuring quality shipping

EMSA 'inspects the inspectors' of classification societies, assesses Port State Control systems, tracks problem ships, and safeguards the standards of on-board equipment.

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Newsletter January 2015

06.01.2015

Newsletter January 2015

In this issue: THETIS inspection database now covers sulphur directive; SafeSeaNet: reporting of accurate HAZMAT information; Latest overview of marine casualties and incidents now available; New contracts for stand-by oil spill response vessels.

Annual Overview of Marine Casualties and Incidents 2014

18.12.2014

Annual Overview of Marine Casualties and Incidents 2014

The Annual Overview of Marine Casualties and Incidents consists in a high-level analysis of accidents reported by the EU Member States in European Marine Casualty Information Platform (EMCIP). This first edition relates to accidents that happened [...]

Newsletter December 2014

05.12.2014

Newsletter December 2014

In this issue: Administrative Board sets priorities for 2015 & 2016; Manuela Tomassini new Head of Safety and Standards; Stronger cooperation with DG ECHO over maritime emergencies; Ebola virus monitoring continues.

MAR-ICE Network: Marine Chemical Emergency Information Service

03.12.2014

MAR-ICE Network: Marine Chemical Emergency Information Service

In close cooperation with the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) and the Centre of Documentation, Research and Experimentation on Accidental Water Pollution (Cedre), EMSA created the MAR-ICE Network in 2008. The idea behind the Network [...]

Boost for cooperation on maritime emergencies

14.11.2014

Boost for cooperation on maritime emergencies

From left to right: Fotis Karamitsos (Director DG MOVE), Florika Fink-Hooijer (Director DG ECHO), and Markku Mylly (Director EMSA)Maritime incidents such as oil spills can have huge environmental and economic impact. To reinforce co-operation on [...]

Annual Report 2013

07.11.2014

Annual Report 2013

This annual report is an account of the work undertaken by EMSA in 2013 to enhance the quality of shipping, strengthen maritime safety and achieve cleaner oceans. It measures the added value of EMSA's activities [...]

Newsletter November 2014

05.11.2014

Newsletter November 2014

In this issue: Violeta Bulc takes up role as new transport commissioner; Responding effectively to chemical pollution at sea; EU bodies and countries discuss Integrated Maritime Service; SafeSeaNet: focusing on the incident report framework.

Inventory of national policies regarding the use of oil spill dispersants in the EU

13.10.2014

Inventory of national policies regarding the use of oil spill dispersants in the EU

EMSA is tasked by Regulation (EC) No 2038/2006 to "draw up on a regular basis a list of the private and state pollution response mechanisms and response capabilities in the various regions of the European Union". In order [...]

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