Port of Waterford Among 11 Ports to Receive PERS Certificate at ESPO Conference in Paris

29th April 2024

ESPO congratulates Gerardo Landaluce (Port of Algeciras), Algis Latakas (Port of Klaipeda), Santiago Garcia-Milà (Port of Barcelona) and the ports of Sevilla, Tenerife, Vigo, Waterford, Pori, Dover, Igoumenitsa and Niedersachsen on receiving the PERS certificate – which demonstrates a commitment to environmental sustainability in the maritime industry. Credit: ESPO-Linkedin

The European Sea Ports Organisation congratulates 11 ports with their Port Environmental Review System (PERS) certificates during the annual ESPO Conference in Paris.

The Port of Algeciras (Spain), the Port of Barcelona (Spain), the Port of Klaipeda (Lithuania), the Ports of Niedersachsen (Germany), the Ports of Tenerife (Spain), the Port of Sevilla (Spain), the Port of Igoumenitsa (Greece), the Port of Waterford (Ireland), the Port of Dover (United Kingdom), the Port of Pori (Finland), and the Port of Vigo (Spain) for being certified through the EcoPorts’ environmental management standard (PERS).

Isabelle Ryckbost, ESPO Secretary General, Zeno D'Agostino, ESPO Chair, and Anaëlle Boudry, EcoPorts Coordinator handed over the PERS certificates to the ports’ representatives during the conference.

Isabelle Ryckbost, ESPO Secretary General, commented: “Once again, we see that assessing your environmental performance is not something for only one kind of ports, but that small, big, northern, southern, eastern, western ports in Europe increasingly go for environmental certification”.

Anaëlle Boudry, ESPO Senior Policy Advisor and EcoPorts Coordinator, said: “I would like to congratulate all the PERS-certified ports on their achievement. Re-certification requires the port to show improved environmental management. Some are receiving the certificate for the sixth time already. It should be noted that the ports of Waterford, Klaipeda and Tenerife are getting PERS-certified for the first time. Many of the PERS-certified ports today are long-time members of the EcoPorts network and have made sustainability a core part of their mission. We look forward to working with all these ports in their continued efforts to engage in excellent environmental management”.

PERS (Port Environmental Review System) is the only port-specific environmental standard. The last five years have seen important increases in its recognition and membership, with 90 ports from 27 countries currently counting themselves as part of the EcoPorts Network, and 33 ports holding PERS certification. Compliance with the EcoPorts’ PERS standard is independently assessed by LRQA Nederland B.V. and the certificate has a validity of two years. EcoPorts’ PERS is revised after the 2-year period to make sure that the port continues to meet the requirements.

For more information on EcoPorts’ PERS, visit the EcoPorts website.

Published in Ports & Shipping

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Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals.

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