CONVENTION ON THE COLLECTION, DEPOSIT AND RECEPTION OF WASTE GENERATED DURING NAVIGATION ON THE RHINE AND OTHER INLAND WATERWAYS
Source: Secretariat of the CDNI
Strasbourg, 25.08.2022 – The Kingdom of Belgium has ratified the amendment to the Convention on the collection, deposit and reception of waste produced during navigation on the Rhine and inland waterways (CDNI). The deposition of the instrument of ratification is a new important step towards the entry into force of the amendment. This major amendment to the Convention aims to protect the environment and maintain air quality by means of strict regulation of the degassing of inland navigation vessels.
The instrument of ratification was deposited by Ambassador Jean-Cédric Janssens de Bisthoven, Belgium’s Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe, on Thursday, 25 August 2022, at the Palais du Rhin in Strasbourg. The deposition was made to the Secretary General of the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR), Mrs Lucia Luijten, who is also the depository of the CDNI. During the same ceremony, the Kingdom of Belgium also deposited its instrument of ratification of the Strasbourg Convention of 2012 on the limitation of liability in inland navigation (CLNI 2012).
The amendment aims to introduce a gradual prohibition of degassing in the scope of application of the CDNI to prevent harmful gaseous cargo residues being released into the atmosphere. After certain volatile organic compounds have been removed, these vapours remain behind in tankers’ holds and need to be disposed of before loading the next cargo, when they cannot be evacuated into a tank ashore by means of a vapour recovery system. The six Contracting States of the CDNI adopted these new regulations which provide for the necessary procedures for receiving and handling these gaseous residues.
The Kingdom of Belgium is the fourth Contracting State to deposit its instrument of ratification after the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and the Federal Republic of Germany. The ratification procedure is in progress in France and in Switzerland. The amendment will come into force six months after the last instrument of ratification has been deposited.
Additional information on the new degassing provisions and their implementation is available at: https://www.cdni-iwt.org/part-b-degassing/?lang=en.
CONVENTION ON THE COLLECTION, DEPOSIT AND RECEPTION OF WASTE GENERATED DURING NAVIGATION ON THE RHINE AND OTHER INLAND WATERWAYS
CDNI Secretariat
Palais du Rhin - 2, place de la République - F-67082 Strasbourg cedex
Tel +33 3 69 52 10 29
Fax +33 3 88 32 10 72
secretariat@cdni-iwt.org
