BLACK box recorders should be fitted to all existing cargo
ships—including oil tankers—an influential group of shipping
companies and port authorities told the European Parliament in mid-July. From
2002, under an international agreement, new ships will have voyage data
recorders, but under present plans today’s cargo fleet may fall through the
net.
The recommendation is part of the continuing fallout from the wreck of the
Erika, the tanker that broke up off Brittany in December last year. The ship
dumped 10 000 tonnes of oil and polluted 400 kilometres of French coastline. The
European commissioner for Energy and…
