15.4.2010 Official Journal of the European Union L 94/33 DECISIONS COMMISSION DECISION of 14 April 2010 amending Directive 2009/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on statistical returns in respect of carriage of goods and passengers by sea (Text with EEA relevance) (2010/216/EU) THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, Having regard to Directive 2009/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 May 2009 on statistical returns in respect of carriage of goods and passengers by sea (1), and in particular Article 3 thereof, Whereas: (1)  In the production of European Statistics there should be a balance between the needs of the users and the burden on respondents. (2) A technical analysis of the existing data collected under the European legislation on statistical returns in respect of carriage of goods and passengers by sea and of the dissemination policy has been carried out at European level in order to propose possible technical solutions to simplify, as much as possible, the various activities necessary for the statistical production, while keeping the final output in line with present and foreseeable users’ needs. (3)  As aresult of this analysis, the existing quarterly statistics on passenger transport in the main European ports and the existing quarterly statistics on vessel traffic in the main European ports should be transmitted to the Commission (Eurostat) and disseminated on an annual basis, while the variable related to the classification dimension ‘nationality of registration of vessels’ in the existing quarterly statistics on passenger transport in the main European ports should be collected by Member States on a voluntary basis. () O] L 141, 6.6.2009, p. 29. (4 The nomenclature on the maritime coastal areas and the nomenclature on the nationality of registration of vessels need to be adapted to technical developments. (5)  Directive 2009/42/EC should therefore be amended accordingly. (6)  The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the European Statistical System Committee, set up by Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2009 on European statistics (), HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: Article 1 Annexes 1V, V and VIII to Directive 2009/42/EC are replaced by the text set out in the Annex to this Decision. Article 2 This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union. The first reference year for the application of this Decision shall be 2009, covering the 2009 data. Done at Brussels, 14 April 2010. For the Commission The President José Manuel BARROSO () O] L 87, 31.3.2009, p. 164.