Our seas are getting increasingly busier, and the sizes of boats and ships keep increasing as well. This brings with it a need to deepen and widen ports. The change must also be taken into consideration in planning for shipping lanes and ports. Dredging shipping lanes has an impact on the environment, which Finnish legislation aims to regulate to ensure that work is conducted in an environmentally sustainable manner.

SOLAS and MARPOL are the most important conventions

The basis for international legislation on marine traffic and civil engineering are the conventions under the governance of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

The most important conventions are the SOLAS, regulating maritime safety, and the MARPOL, covering environmental protection.

The EU aims to secure free movement of people and goods

EU regulation guarantees free movement for people and goods. Regulation has also been influenced by disasters at sea, such as oil spills. The Port State Control Directive obligates EU Member States to monitor the condition of ships entering their ports.

Finnish legislation related to safety, civil engineering and pleasure crafts

In addition to conventions and EU regulation, national legislation and regulation are required for marine safety and traffic and civil engineering. In Finland, national regulation is mainly related to the technical integrity of ships operating within Finland, regulating pleasure crafts and assessing environmental risk in civil engineering projects near bodies of water.

Legislation, conventions and programmes