Hawaii: smoking to be banned on Waikiki Beach

Legislation that would ban smoking on Waikiki Beach advanced in Hawaii Legislature Supporters say the bill could help boost tourism, while opponents say it will hinder an already struggling industry. "The beach is littered with cigarette butts, and this will make a statement that we want to keep one of our great resources litter-free. When you're on the beach and you're around children, this is not a good place to smoke to begin with," said state Rep. Tom Brower, who introduced the bill.

Source: Honolulu Advertiser; find Article here>>.

Caribbean: beaches shrink as thieves steal sand

Caribbean round grains, favored in creating smooth surfaces for plastering and finishing, are being hauled away by the truckload late at night. On some islands, towns and ecologically sensitive areas get exposed to tidal surges and rough seas.

Among the hardest hit is Grenada, where officials are building a $1.2 million seawall to protect the 131-square-mile island. Large-scale sand thefts have exposed north-coast towns to rough seas.

About 706,000 cubic feet of sand were taken from private property beaches in the northwest of Jamaica in late July.

Source: The Boston Globe; find article here>>.

European Court of Justice: Costs of disposing of waste from a sinking oil tanker from coastline and beaches to be imposed on producer

The Italian company ENEL concluded a contract with Total International Ltd for the supply of heavy fuel oil from Dunkirk (France) to Milazzo (Italy). To carry out the contract, Total raffinage distribution, now Total France SA, sold the heavy fuel oil to Total International Ltd, which chartered the oil tanker Erika, flying the Maltese flag. On 12 December 1999 the Erika sank off the coast of Brittany (Finistère, France), spilling part of her cargo and oil from her bunkers into the sea and causing pollution of the Atlantic coastline of France.
The municipality of Mesquer brought proceedings against the companies in the Total group for reimbursement of the cost of cleaning and anti-pollution operations on its coastal territory, relying on the Waste Directive. The municipality claimed that the hydrocarbons accidentally spilled at sea constituted waste within the meaning of the directive, so that the companies Total International Ltd and Total France should be liable for the cost of disposal, in their capacity as ‘previous holders’ or ‘producer of the product from which the waste came’ respectively.
The Court considers that the heavy fuel oil carried by the ship is not ‘waste’, as it is exploited or marketed on economically advantageous terms and is capable of actually being used as a fuel without requiring prior processing. However, such hydrocarbons spilled in connection with a shipwreck, mixed with water and sediment and drifting along the coastline of a Member State until being washed up on shore, must be regarded as substances which their holder did not intend to produce and which he discards, albeit involuntarily, while they are being transported, so that they must be classified as waste within the meaning of the directive.
The Court recalls that the Waste Directive provides, in accordance with the ‘polluter pays’ principle, that that cost must be borne by the ‘previous holders’ or the ‘producer of the product from which the waste came’. The shipowner may be regarded as having produced the waste and on that basis be classified as a ‘holder’ within the meaning of the directive. However, the national court may consider that the seller of hydrocarbons and charterer of the ship carrying them has ‘produced’ waste if it finds that the seller-charterer contributed to the risk that the pollution caused by the shipwreck would occur. If, however,the national law of a Member State, including the law derived from international agreements, prevents that cost from being borne by the shipowner and the charterer, even though they are to be regarded as ‘holders’, such a national law will then have to make provision for that cost to be borne by the ‘producer of the product from which the waste came’, if he has contributed by his conduct to the risk that the pollution caused by the shipwreck will occur.

Source: ECJ press realease>>.

European Court of Justice: Advocate General Kokott supports liability of heavy fuel oil producer for disposing of oil waste

In 1999 the tanker Erika shipwrecked off the Brittany coast . The heavy fuel oil spilled in the accident polluted amongst other things beaches in the Commune of Mesquer, which is now claiming damages from undertakings in the Total Group.
In preliminray proceedings regarding interpretation of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste (‘Waste Framework Directive’) lodged by French Cour de Cassation (Case C-188/07, Mesquer v Total), Advocate General Kokott yesterday published her opinion arrving at the following conclusion:
"The producer of heavy fuel oil and/or the seller and carrier may be ordered under Article 15 of Directive 75/442 to bear the cost of disposing of oil waste following a shipping accident if they can be accused of contributing personally to causing the leak of the heavy fuel oil. However, it is also compatible with that provision to limit the liability of the producer of heavy fuel oil and/or the seller and carrier in accordance with the International Convention of 29 November 1969 on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage, as amended by the Protocol of 1992, and the 1971 International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage, as amended by the Protocol of 1992."

Full text of the opinion available here>>.

"Better protection from sun after Commission action"

As stated by the EU Press Room, "Consumers will benefit from a new clearer labelling regime on sunscreen bottles being phased in this summer. The new labels –including a new UV-A logo or seal on bottles and a ban on misleading terms such as 'sunblocker' or 'total protection' - are a response to a European Commission recommendation on sunscreen products agreed in September 2006. As well as explaining the new sunscreen labelling system, the Commission, through an information campaign in partnership with Member States is seeking to raise awareness that there are several reasons why sunscreen products should be only one out of a number of measures which are necessary to protect from the UV radiation of the sun. The improved labelling regime is being phased in and will appear on 20% of sunscreen bottles this summer."

Female lifeguards at Goa's beaches

The popular tourist destination in India is set to hire women to patrol its white-sand beaches as lifeguards for the first time. Goa will train women and men from the local fishing community to serve as lifeguards. This is remarkable as women in India going out to beaches in swimsuit is surely not a common sight. Details here.

Forum Non Conveniens-Doctrine inconsistant with Brussels Convention

Mr Owusu, a British national domiciled in the United Kingdom, suffered a very serious accident during a holiday in Jamaica. He walked into the sea, and when the water was up to his waist he dived in, struck his head against a submerged sand bank and sustained a fracture of his fifth cervical vertebra which rendered him tetraplegic. Following that accident, he brought an action in the United Kingdom for breach of contract against Mr Jackson, who is also domiciled in that State. Mr Jackson had let to Mr Owusu a holiday villa in Mammee Bay (Jamaica). Mr Owusu claims that the contract, which provided that he would have access to a private beach, contained an implied term that the beach would be reasonably safe or free from hidden dangers. Mr Owusu also brought an action in tort in the United Kingdom against several Jamaican companies, which were involved in access to or control and upkeep of the beach. The Court of Appeal (England and Wales) stated that, in this case, the competing jurisdictions were a Contracting State and a non-Contracting State. The question of the application of forum non conveniens in favour of the courts of a non-Contracting State, when one of the defendants is domiciled in a Contracting State, was not a matter on which the Court of Justice had ever given a ruling. ECJ held: Nothing in the wording of Article 2 of the Brussels Convention suggested that the application of the general rule of jurisdiction laid down by that article solely on the basis of the defendant’s domicile in a Contracting State was subject to the condition that there should be a legal relationship involving a number of Contracting States. for the jurisdiction rules of the Brussels Convention to apply at all the existence of an international element is required It must be observed, first, that Article 2 of the Brussels Convention is mandatory in nature and that, according to its terms, there can be no derogation from the principle it lays down except in the cases expressly provided for by the Convention. It is common ground that no exception on the basis of the forum non conveniens doctrine was provided for by the authors of the Convention, although the question was discussed. Respect for the principle of legal certainty, which is one of the objectives of the Brussels Convention would not be fully guaranteed if the court having jurisdiction under the Convention had to be allowed to apply the forum non conveniens doctrine. (ECJ 01.03.2005, C-281/02).

(Originally posted by Michael Wukoschitz)

Bathing Water Directive

The Bathing Water Directive 1976 is to be reviewed. A key aim is to improve information available to the public. It will also bring in more robust standards. the new proposal is expected to be published in June or July 2001. See http://europa.eu.int/water/water-bathing/index_en.html

(Originally posted by John Downes)