the ESPO summits have met the European commissioner to the Atmosphere, marine Transactions and Peach



This morning to Venice, in occasion of the fourth conference on the Planning of the marine space and on tourism, the president and the general secretary of the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO), Santiago Garcia-Milà and Isabelle Ryckbost, they have met the European commissioner to the Atmosphere, marine Transactions and Peach, the Maltese Karmenu Vella, in order to discuss about the topics of the marine field.

"It has been - Isabelle Ryckbost has commented - a very constructive encounter. The commissioner has shown a great interest about the way with which our organization he works, for that regards integration of the ports and the cities, about the directive on the birds and the habitats and for the topics of the cruises. The commissioner has taken note of the various codes of regulation that are developed in the years from ESPO with regard to this and perfectly have comprised that every port has the own peculiar history".

"We have met a commissioner - he has emphasized the president of ESPO, Garci'a-Thousand - that knows and that comprises our field. Vella has rimarcato the importance of the blue economy and considers priority to safeguard this important part of the European economy. As former minister al Turismo, obviously it has much informality with the crocieristico field. We do not see the hour to work with the commissioner on all these topics".

Opening the conference of Venice, the European commissioner has stopped himself on the burning issue of the access of the cruise ships in the Venetian lagoon. Vella has evidenced that last year in Europe the field of the cruises has produced to an economic value almost 38 billion euros and has created beyond 11.000 new places of work, "and this - it has emphasized - in a single year". I know - it has added – that "the impact of the crocieristico field and the presence of cruise ships in lagoon is a much debated topic. I consider - it has declared - that there is need of a true dialogue, of a opened, constructive dialogue, a debate without preclusioni that faces issues as the congestion of the ports of call in the ports or as the impact on the local communities. A debate that favorably ports to innovative solutions in order to face the environmental challenges and of other nature of the field".

Vella has moreover made reference to the activity carried out from CORILA, the association between University House Foscari of Venice, University IUAV of Venice, University of Padua, National Council of Ricerche and Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia and Experimental Geofisica, than, on assignment of the Municipality of Venice, has elaborated among other things observations on the attached Idro-morphologic study under consideration of Environmental impact of the adaptation of the watery way of access to the Marine Station of Venice that previews the digging of the Twisted channel Sant'Angelo. "The data available - it has observed - are that those which only little months ago CORILA, the consortium of search that it today accommodates to us in this magnificent center, it has published in a digital atlas of the Lagoon of Venice, that it supplies an excellent base in order to assume decisions founded for this only habitat. Saying this - it has added the European commissioner - this conference constitutes a good opportunity for this type of debate. It is important to face the topic examining both sides of the medal. This conference - it has found - constitutes a prelude to the Pan-European debate that we are about to start between the operators of the cruises, the ports and the coastal parts interested and that then we will carry to regional level".

Vella has been stopped also on the perspectives of development of the Venetian community: "although its splendid history - Vella has said - Venice is not a city that weevers and is trapped in the past. On the contrary: in marine field Venice it is absolutely to the vanguard. Here there are some of the best institutes than marine search of Europe. Graces to an innovative project, to the Passenger terminal some ships to the mooring do not have to maintain ignited their engines since they can take advantage of the energy supplied from dock. This more reduces of 30% the emissions of co2 and those of nitrogen oxide of beyond 95%. Soon the Lagoon will be able to boast the first example to the world of a converted traditional refinery in a bioraffineria, than now it uses palm oil but that in a near future it could use oils from the algae. To construct on the past and to be creative for the future are the message that I turn you for the prosieguo of this conference. Our relatori are of very various extraction and this is a common characteristic to the marine planning. Today the economic increase and the protection of the atmosphere are not in contrast. Today we are not in a situation of aut aut. Today the atmosphere is absolutely integral part of the economy. And this is the reason for which both the parts must sit down together and plan together those maps. I recommend - it has concluded Vella - than today your debate leaves from this premise, because it is the only way in order to continue to make to navigate Europe and Venice and in order to contribute to a better life".