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May 2009
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ENVIRONMENTAL NEWS
MAY 28th 2009 - New inspection regime for EU vessels
With effect from January 2011, the Port State Control (PSC) will introduce a new European regime for inspections, approved in Reykjavik by the members of the Paris Memorandum of Understanding. The new procedure will take into account what has been stated with the third package of EU maritime safety, and will be based on the identification of the levels of risk for ships.
Therefore the quality shipping, which will be subjected to fewer controls, will be rewarded. The inspections will be more deep and frequent on ships at high risk, identified on the performance of companies and their flags, as well as the type and age of ships and of course the results of previous inspections. The risk categories will be three. Vessels deemed low risk will be inspected every two - three years, those at risk standard once a year, while for those at high risk will be inspected at least every six months.
The inspections will cover also the application of the new Convention International Labour Organization (ILO), which should also come into force in 2011.
Shippingonline
MAY 18th - 2009 Imo convention about demolition of ships signed
A diplomatic conference held in Hong Kong adopted the new IMO convention "Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships". which is expected to enter into force in 2013 after the ratification of at least 15 nations representing 40% of the whole world fleet and a dismantling capacity of at least 3% of the total.
In any case the adopted Convention will immediately enter into force for what regards the adoption of design requirements for the dismantling modalities of ships, minimizing the dangers for the health and the environment. The Convention will also concern the already existing whole merchant fleet: about 50,000 ships all over the world shall have a certificate onboard listing the hazardous materials of structures and equipments.
Shippingonline
MAY 12th 2009 - Illegal dumping, higher sanctions
Legal sanctions within an year for who (in europe) executes illegal dumping in the sea: noxious products like oil, fuel oil, hydrocarbon residuale, discharged in the sea from the ships during the cleaning of the tanks or during the discharge of the ballast.
Moreover, people executing illegal dumping in minor scale (if performed intentionally, for imprudence, or serious negligence), could incur in legal sanctions. This is the strong message launched today by the European Parliament that approves with the great majority a maxi-amendment about the EU directive that enforces the existing normatives about the pollution caused by the ships.
The deal "forces the member States to plan, within one year, legal sanction for the sea-dumping of polluttant substances". The individual governments will also adopt the measures essential to estabilish the sanctions that must be "effective, proportionated and dissuasive" towards who commits these crimes: Natural Persons, Legal Persons, Class Societies, Cargo Owners, etc.
Shippingonline.it
MAY 12th 2009 - The North Sea will be a great CO2 store
The North Sea, far from the Scottish coasts, can store CO2 for hundreds of years in underwater saline formations and in exhaust basins of crude petroleum and methane. The potential of this area has been analysed in a study conducted by the Scottish Centre for Carbon Storage.
The exams revealed that in the North Sea area some natural stores exist which could be able to adsorb from 4,600 to 46,000 million of tons of CO2. ScottishPower, one of the industrial partners of this study together with the Scottish Government, would be able to start with a pilot project for the CO2 capture and storage in five years.
Wallstreetitalia.com
MAY 11th 2009 - The rise of CO2 gets oceans acid
With the rise of CO2 an increasing acidity of the oceans is produced with high impact above the whole marine environment. This is a result of a study developed by the Enea, taking into consideration the fact that the marine water adsorb 50% of the whole CO2 produced.
The CO2 adsorbed by the oceans caused an average lowering of 0,1 units for the pH in the upper layer of the sea. with the actual trend, an average lowering between 0,14 and 0,35 units is foreseen by the end of the 21th century. An increase of the acidity will have an impact on carbonate solubility and on the life of all organism which made their shells from calcium carbonates, e.g. corals.
Ansa.it
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