Since 2019, the French government office, Préfecture Maritime de la Méditerranée has issued various local anchoring restrictions (Decrees) for the French Riviera and Corsica to protect the Mediterranean’s Posidonia meadows and many countries including Croatia, Greece, Italy, Malta, Monaco and Spain have introduced similar legislation.

Anchoring in Posidonia meadows within French territorial waters was completely prohibited for any vessel larger than 24m (although this has been stipulated as 20m in certain local areas) and the Framework Decree (Decree No 123/2019) was implemented through 17 different prefectural decrees issued between 2020 and 2023 across the Mediterranean coastline.

The main challenge that ICOMIA can identify is over the question of ‘length’ of the vessel (craft or yacht) intending to anchor or stop in French waters in the Mediterranean. It’s unclear whether the vessel thresholds (length), which are set by order of the maritime prefect for the coastline of each department, refer to either length of hull (L_H), length overall (LOA) or load-line (LLL) length.

For small recreational craft, the legal term or definition used in the 2013/53/EU Directive (RCD) is ‘…hull length from 2,5 m to 24 m, regardless of the means of propulsion’.

The following harmonised standard, which is referenced in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) as OJ L 172 – 29/06/2022, contains the mandatory requirement to determine the length of the vessel. This is formally recorded in the Declaration of Conformity (DoC) for each craft and applies to all small craft having a length of the hull (L_H) of up to 24 m.

EN ISO 8666:2020 Small craft — Principal data

It appears that determining the vessels length is not applied equally throughout the Mediterranean Sea area and a copy of the DoC or other form of certifying the hull length (or length overall) should be carried onboard at all times.

Since the details relating to the restrictions on anchoring (or ‘stopping’) of vessels vary by region, it is not possible to list them all in this factsheet and the following link should be used, understanding that it is for guidance only and will very likely be continuously revised.

The following is an example of a recent signed ‘Decree’:

Decree No 157/2024 of May 23, 2024 (this repealed and replaced Decree No 155/2016) – Link to translated version by Superyacht Operating Systems (SOS). Please note the highlighted sections in the extract of the scope below

Article 1 – Scope of Application

The provisions of this decree apply to all ships with a gross tonnage of 300 UMS or more, or an overall length of 45 meters or more, flying a French or foreign flag, intending to anchor or stop in the internal waters and territorial sea of the French Mediterranean.

*UMS stands for Universal Measurement System

It should be further highlighted that the sanctions for non-compliance can range from up to 150 000 euros fine per person onboard, one year imprisonment, a temporary or permanent ban to navigate in French territorial waters, as well as possible withdrawal of the skippers licence.

Various eco-mooring projects are currently under development in France to offer a short-term solution to yachts operating in areas covered by the Posidonia habitat. These projects face various challenges in terms of being implemented and maintained whilst remaining consistent with the restrictions and the French authorities are trying to accelerate the development of these in a sustainable manner.