Opening address by the Secretary-General of IMO
The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) considered the first draft of a proposed new international instrument on ship recycling when it met for its 54th session from 20-24 March. Other issues on the agenda included ballast water management and air pollution from ships. The Committee also adopted a number of amendments to the MARPOL Convention.
Recycling
of ships
The MEPC made progress in developing the draft text of a
mandatory instrument providing globally-applicable ship recycling
regulations for international shipping and for recycling activities. A
Working Group on Ship Recycling met during the session to work on the
draft text and discuss related issues. The proposed instrument would
include articles and an annex with regulations for safe and
environmentally-sound recycling of ships, covering requirements for ships,
requirements for ship recycling facilities and reporting requirements.
A
work plan for the further development of the draft legally-binding
instrument was developed by the working group and agreed by the Committee.
It would see the draft further developed during 2006-2007 with a view to
completion in time for its consideration and adoption in the 2008-2009
biennium.
A correspondence group was established to carry out that task and
to develop a provisional list of necessary guidelines. It will report to
the next session of MEPC in October 2006.
The MEPC also
considered the report of the second session of the Joint International
Labour Organization (ILO)/IMO/Basel Convention Working Group on Ship
Scrapping which met in December 2005 in Geneva. The views of the group
were taken into account by the MEPC Working Group on Ship Recycling and it
was noted that the Committee would continue co operating with ILO and the
Basel Convention on this subject.
Adoption
of amendments to MARPOL
The MEPC adopted a number of amendments to
the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships,
1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto (MARPOL 73/78).
MARPOL
regulation on oil fuel tank protection
The amendment to the
revised MARPOL Annex I (which was adopted in October 2004 with entry into
force set for 1 January 2007) includes a new regulation 12A on oil fuel
tank protection. The regulation is intended to apply to all ships
delivered on or after 1 August 2010 with an aggregate oil fuel capacity of
600m3 and above. It includes requirements for the
protected location of the fuel tanks and performance standards for
accidental oil fuel outflow. A maximum capacity limit of
2,500m3 per oil fuel tank is included in the regulation,
which also requires Administrations to consider general safety aspects,
including the need for maintenance and inspection of wing and
double-bottom tanks or spaces, when approving the design and construction
of ships in accordance with the regulation. Consequential amendments to
the IOPP Certificate were also adopted.
The MEPC also agreed to
include appropriate text referring to the new regulation in the amendments
to the Guidelines for the application of the revised MARPOL Annex I
requirements to FPSOs and FSUs and approved a Unified Interpretation
on the application of the regulation to column-stabilized MODUs.
Definition of heavy grade oil
A further amendment
to the revised MARPOL Annex I relates to the definition of "heavy grade
oil" in regulation 21 on Prevention of oil pollution from oil tankers
carrying heavy grade oil as cargo, replacing the words "fuel oils"
with "oils, other than crude oils", thereby broadening the scope of the
regulation.
MARPOL
Annex IV amendments
The amendment to MARPOL Annex IV
Prevention of pollution by sewage from ships adds a new regulation 13
on Port State control on operational requirements. The regulation
states that a ship, when in a port or an offshore terminal of another
Party, is subject to inspection by officers duly authorized by such Party
concerning operational requirements under the Annex, where there are clear
grounds for believing that the master or crew are not familiar with
essential shipboard procedures relating to the prevention of pollution by
sewage.
Amendments to BCH Code
Amendments to the Code for
the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals in
Bulk (BCH Code) were adopted as a consequence of the revised Annex II of
MARPOL 73/78 and the amended International Code for the Construction and
Equipment of Ships carrying Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk (IBC Code), which
are expected to enter into force on 1 January 2007. The MEPC also adopted
a resolution on Early and Effective Application of the 2006 amendments
to the BCH Code to invite MARPOL Parties to consider the application
of the amendments to the BCH Code, as soon as practically possible, to
ships entitled to fly their flag. Also adopted were the revised
Guidelines for the provisional assessment of liquids transported in
bulk. In this context the Committee urged industry, in particular the
chemical industry, to provide information on the revision of List 2 of the
MEPC circular which contains pollutant-only mixtures based on section 5 of
the revised Guidelines.
South
Africa Special Area
The MEPC agreed to the designation of the
southern South African sea area as a Special Area under MARPOL Annex I and
approved the draft amendment in respect of the Special Area to regulation
1(11) of the revised MARPOL Annex I. The draft amendment will be
circulated for consideration with a view to adoption at MEPC 55 in October
2006.
Harmful
aquatic organisms in ballast water
The MEPC adopted the
Guidelines for approval and oversight of prototype ballast water
treatment technology programmes (G10), which are part of a series of
guidelines developed to assist in the implementation of the International
Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and
Sediments (BWM Convention), which was adopted in February 2004.
Eleven
sets of guidelines are referred to in the Convention. Six have already
been adopted and the remainder are being developed by the Sub-Committee on
Bulk Liquids and Gases (BLG) with input from the Sub-Committee on Flag
State Implementation (FSI).
The MEPC agreed to
give basic approval to two ballast water management systems that make use
of active substances, after consideration of the report of the first
session of the GESAMP1 Ballast Water Working Group on
Active Substances, which met in January 2006.
One system involves
the use of a biocide for treatment of ballast water and the other involves
the disinfection of ballast water by electrolysis with the generation of
free chlorine, sodium hypochlorite and hydroxyl radicals and by
electrochemical oxidation through the creation of ozone and hydrogen
peroxide.
The Committee noted that, to date, six countries (Maldives, Saint
Kitts and Nevis, the Syrian Arab Republic, Spain, Nigeria and Tuvalu) had
ratified or acceded to the Ballast Water Management Convention, becoming
Contracting States. The Committee urged Member States to give
consideration to the ratification, acceptance, approval of, or accession
to, the BWM Convention at the earliest possible
opportunity.
Meanwhile, during the
MEPC meeting, IMO launched the IMO/BBC Worldwide documentary film,
"Invaders from the Sea", which illustrates the harm caused
by aquatic species transported in ballast water and highlights the
progress made by IMO and the maritime industry in addressing this issue
and the measures which can be taken to prevent the spread of harmful
organisms. (See Briefing 10/2006)
Prevention
of air pollution from ships
A working group was established to
consider issues relating to the prevention of air pollution from ships,
including follow-up action to the IMO Policies and practices related to
the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from ships (resolution
A.963(23)).
Following the work by the group, the MEPC approved two
circulars aimed at assisting implementation of MARPOL Annex VI:
1.
The MEPC Circular on Bunker Delivery Note and
Fuel Oil Sampling, to clarify how to comply with regulation 18, which
places requirements on ship owners and fuel oil suppliers in respect of
bunker delivery notes and representative samples of the fuel oil received
and on Parties to the 1997 Protocol to regulate the bunker suppliers in
their ports. The circular urges all Member States, both Parties and
non-Parties to the 1997 Protocol, to require fuel oil suppliers in their
ports to comply with the requirements and to raise awareness of the
necessity to enhance implementation and enforcement of regulation 18 of
Annex VI.
2. The MEPC circular on
Notification to the Organization on ports or terminals where volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) emissions are to be regulated, which notes
that regulation 15 of Annex VI requires Parties to inform the Organization
of their intention to introduce requirements for the use of vapour
emission control systems and to notify the Organization of ports and
terminals under their jurisdiction where such requirements are already in
force. However, many terminals are implementing or operating such
practices without notification to the Organization. The Committee shared
the concern that, since there is no circulation of such information, it is
difficult for owners and operators to prepare for these changes at ports
and terminals. The circular reiterates that Parties to the 1997 Protocol
are required to notify the Organization without delay with information on
ports and terminals under their jurisdiction at which VOCs emissions are
or will be regulated, and on requirements imposed on ships calling at
these ports and terminals. Any information received by the Organization on
the availability of vapour emission control systems will be circulated
through MEPC circulars so that owners and operators will have up to-date
information on current and future requirements for the utilization of such
systems.
As instructed by MEPC 53, the Sub-Committee on Bulk
Liquids and Gases (BLG) will undertake a review of MARPOL Annex VI and the
NOx Technical Code with a view to revising the regulations to take account
of current technology and the need to further reduce air pollution from
ships. The progress of this work will be reported to the next session of
the MEPC.
The Committee and its Working Group on Air Pollution had
long and extensive debates on how to follow up resolution A.963(23) on
IMO Policies and Practices related to the Reduction of Greenhouse Gas
Emissions from Ships. By the resolution, the Assembly urged MEPC to
identify and develop the necessary mechanisms needed to achieve the
limitation or reduction of GHG emissions from international shipping.
Among the items considered was whether only emission of
CO2 or of all six greenhouse gases identified by the
Kyoto Protocol should be included. The MEPC agreed to consider the
follow-up actions to resolution A.963(23) in a technical and
methodological perspective and to concentrate the work on
CO2 emissions. The Committee also agreed to continue the
work at the next session and, in particular, to consider further a draft
work plan to identify and develop the mechanisms needed to achieve the
goal set by the Assembly.
Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas (PSSAs)
The MEPC
approved a uniform format for future MEPC resolutions designating PSSAs
and the revised Guidance Document for Submission of PSSA Proposals to IMO.
OPRC-HNS
implementation
The MEPC considered the report of the fourth
meeting of the OPRC HNS2 Technical Group, held in the
week prior to the Committee's session.
The Committee reviewed
the draft Guidance document on planning and response to chemical
releases in the marine environment and agreed to consider the
finalized text at MEPC 55 for approval. The MEPC also noted the work done
in developing the draft manual on oil spill risk evaluation and assessment
of response preparedness; the revised draft IMO/UNEP Manual on the
assessment and restoration of environmental damage following marine oil
spills; and the development of two introductory courses on preparedness
for and response to HNS incidents.
The Committee was made
aware of the introduction of an IMO web page providing information on
preparedness and response to marine oil spills, now activated on the IMO
website, and approved the content and structure of a website providing
information and assistance for HNS incidents developed by the
Group.
Port
reception facilities database
The Committee noted that the
Internet-based Port Reception Facility Database (PRFD) went live to the
public on 1 March 2006, as a module of the IMO Global Integrated Shipping
Information System (GISIS) http://gisis.imo.org/Public/. The database provides data
on the available port reception facilities for the reception of
ship-generated waste and is designed to allow Member States to update it
via a log-in password, and to allow the public access to all the
information on a view-only basis.
Meanwhile, the MEPC
emphasized the importance of adequate reception facilities in the chain of
implementation of the MARPOL Convention, and stated that the policy of
"zero tolerance of illegal discharges from ships" could only be
effectively enforced when there were adequate reception facilities in
ports. Therefore the Committee urged all Parties to the MARPOL Convention,
particularly port States, to fulfil their treaty obligations to provide
reception facilities for wastes generated during the normal operation of
ships.
Revised
guidelines for handling oily wastes
The MEPC approved
the Revised Guidelines for systems for handling oily wastes in
machinery spaces of ships incorporating guidance notes for an integrated
bilge water treatment system (IBTS). A draft MEPC circular on the
Harmonized Implementation of the Revised Guidelines and Specifications
for Pollution Prevention Equipment for Machinery Space Bilges of Ships
adopted by resolution MEPC.107(49), which provides guidance concerning
specifically the type-approval process with the aim of ensuring that
realistic on-board operating conditions are taken into account during the
tests, was referred to the DE Sub-Committee for further
consideration.
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1GESAMP:
IMO/FAO/UNESCO/IOC/WHO/IAEA/UN/UNEP Joint Group of Experts on the
Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental
Protection
2 International Convention on Oil
Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation (OPRC Convention) and
the OPRC-HNS (Hazardous and Noxious Substances) Protocol