IMO, EC approve environmental initiatives

IMO, EC approve environmental initiatives    There was forward movement on two major environmental initiatives in the shipping industry last Friday.
   At the International Maritime Organization in London, the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) voted in favor of a proposal requiring new ships to meet mandatory energy efficiency benchmarks.
   Meanwhile, in Brussels, the European Commission said it was proposing to cut sulfur dioxide emissions from shipping by 90 percent and final particle emissions by 80 percent by lowering the sulfur content of shipping fuels.
   The EC said proposed legislation incorporates new IMO standards into EU law. The maximum permissible sulfur content of maritime fuels used in sensitive areas such as the Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the English Channel will fall from the previous level of 1.5 percent to 0.1 percent, as of Jan. 1, 2015. Other areas are to achieve an even bigger cut, from 4.5 percent to 0.5 percent by Jan. 1, 2020.
   Ships will be allowed to use equivalent technologies such as exhaust gas cleaning systems as an alternative to using low sulfur bunker fuel. Other important changes proposed include more unified reporting and verification, and sampling provisions aligned with international standards.
   Heavy fuel oils used in shipping can have a sulfur content of up to 5 percent; in comparison, the EC said sulfur content of fuels used in trucks or passenger cars must not exceed 0.001 percent.
   Sulfur dioxide emissions cause acid rain and generate fine dust, that the EC says is dangerous for human health, causing respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and reducing life expectancy in the EU by up to two years. It claimed the benefits for public health will be 15 billion to 34 billion euros, far exceeding the expected costs, which are in the range of 2.6 billion to 11 billion euros.

Mitropoulos

   At the IMO, Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos said the MEPC meeting last week was “exceptionally busy as well as momentous session,” and highlighted adoption of amendments to MARPOL Annex VI Regulations for the prevention of air pollution from ships. The amendments add a new chapter 4 to Annex VI on Regulations on energy efficiency for ships to make mandatory that new ships meet an Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI).
   Also adopted was a requirement for a Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) for all ships. Other amendments to Annex VI add new definitions and the requirements for survey and certification.
   The regulations apply to all ships of 400 gross tons and above and are expected to enter into force on Jan. 1, 2013, but countries could delay adoption until as late as 2019 for several years in some cases.
   The EEDI does not prescribe specific technologies, but leaves it up to the industry to determine the best way to meet fuel standards. The SEEMP establishes a mechanism for operators to improve the energy efficiency of ships.
   The EEDI’s would be tailored to specific ship types.
   The environmental group Carbon War Room called the adoption of EEDIs an “historic move” that will save the industry $5 billion in fuel and reduce carbon emissions by 20 million tons per year.
   But Peter Boyd, chief operating officer of the group, said, “the real prize for the planet and profitability is in the existing fleet.”
   If the standards were applied to all ships, not just newbuilds, he said the industry could improve those figures 10-fold, saving $50 billion per year and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 220 million tons.
   He said his group was delivering a letter, signed by 50 organizations, to IMO delegates calling for the mandatory use of energy efficiency ratings across the entire fleet including owner-operators of 60 million tons-worth of vessels. Signatories include shipping lines Maersk, TORM, Teekay, Heidmar and Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics; the Port of Los Angeles; the French electronics company Schneider Electric; and the non-governmental organization Forum for the Future.
   In other action the MEPC, adopted a United States Caribbean Emission Control Area covering waters around Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, adopted additional systems for ballast water management, and control and management of biofouling of ships to minimize the transfer of invasive aquatic species.
   Additional information is available here about the MEPC meeting is available here. ' Chris Dupin