L 12322 Official Journal of the European Union 17.5.2003 DIRECTIVE 2003/25/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 14 April 2003 on specific stability requirements for ro-ro passenger ships (Text with EEA relevance) THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (!), Having regard to the Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (3), Having consulted the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (), Whereas: (1)  Within the framework of the common transport policy further measures should be taken to improve safety in maritime transport of passengers. (20  The Community wishes to avoid by all appropriate means shipping accidents involving ro-ro passenger ships and resulting in loss of life. (3)  The survivability of ro-ro passenger ships following colli- sion damage, as determined by their damage stability standard, is an essential factor for the safety of passen- gers and crew and is particularly relevant for search and rescue operations; the most dangerous problem for the stability of a ro-ro passenger ship with an enclosed ro-ro deck, following collision damage, is the one posed by the effect of a build up of significant amounts of water on that deck. (4)  Persons using ro-ro passenger ships and crew employed on board such vessels throughout the Community should have the right to demand the same high level of safety regardless of the area in which ships operate. (5 In view of the internal market dimension of maritime transport of passengers, action at Community level is the most effective way of establishing a common minimum level of safety for ships throughout the Community. (6)  Action at Community level is the best way to ensure the harmonised enforcement of principles agreed on within the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), thus ) O] C 20 E, 28.1.2003, p. 21. (*) Opinion delivered on 11 December 2002 (not yet published in the Official Journal). (*) Opinion of the European Parliament of 7 November 2002 (not yet published in the Official Journal), and Council Decision of 17 March 2003. avoiding distortions of competition between the opera- tors of ro-ro passenger ships operating in the Commu- nity. (7)  General stability requirements for ro-ro passenger ships in damaged condition were established at international level by the 1990 Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS 90) Conference and were included in Regulation II-1/B/8 of the SOLAS Convention (SOLAS 90 standard). These requirements are applicable in the entire Community owing to the direct application to international voyages of the SOLAS Convention and the application to domestic voyages of Council Directive 98/18/EC of 17 March 1998 on safety rules and standards for passenger ships (%). (8)  The SOLAS 90 damage stability standard implicitly includes the effect of water entering the ro-ro deck in a sea state of the order of 1,5 m significant wave height. (9)  IMO Resolution 14 of the 1995 SOLAS Conference, allowed IMO members to conclude regional agreements if they consider that prevailing sea conditions and other local conditions require specific stability requirements in a designated area. (10)  Eight northern European countries, including seven Member States, agreed in Stockholm on 28 February 1996 to introduce a higher stability standard for ro-ro passenger ships in damaged condition in order to take into account the effect of water accumulation on the ro- ro deck and to enable the ship to survive in more severe states than the SOLAS 90 standard, up to 4 m signifi- cant wave heights. (11)  Under this agreement, known as the Stockholm Agree- ment, the specific stability standard is directly related to the sea area in which the vessel operates and more parti- cularly to the significant wave height recorded in the area of operation; the significant wave height of the area where the ship operates determines the height of water on the car deck that would arise following the occur- rence of accidental damage. (*) OJ L 144, 15.5.1998, p. 1; Directive as last amended by Directive 2002/84[EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (O] L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 53).