IFSMA attended a joint meeting of interested parties held by the Nautical Institute to develop a guide to mooring, anchoring and the use of tugs for Shipmasters, officers and crew in London on the 13th April 2005.
IFSMA attended two meetings at IMO during April; the 9th session of the sub-committee on Bulk liquids and Gases (BLG) held from 4th to 8th April, and the 90th session of the Legal Committee held from the 18th to 22nd April 2005.
Sub-Committee on Bulk Liquids and Gases (9th session): 4 to 8 April 2005
OSVs (Offshore Supply Vessels), FPSOs (Floating Production Storage and Offloading Facilities), and FSUs (Floating Storage Units) were the centre of a number of debates during this sub-committee meeting. It finalized its review on the OSV Guidelines for the transport and handling of limited amounts of hazardous and noxious liquid substances in bulk and the Guidelines for the design and construction of offshore supply vessels.
The Sub-Committee also agreed the draft Guidelines for the application of the revised MARPOL Annex I requirements to (FPSOs) and (FSUs) and these guidelines will be submitted to the 53rd session of the Marine Environment protection Committee (MEPC) in July 2005 for adoption. The revised MARPOL Annex I Regulations for the prevention of pollution by oil was adopted in October 2004 and is expected to enter into force for ships on 1 January 2007.
In reviewing the Sewage Regulations,the sub-committee formed a correspondence group to revising the recommendations on international effluent standards and guidelines for performance tests for sewage treatment plants is expected to focus on a number of areas, including the need to reflect current trends for the protection of the marine environment and developments in the design and effectiveness of commercially available sewage treatment plants with a view to avoiding the proliferation of differing standards worldwide. The review will aim to identify and offer solutions for any problems related to the implementation of the resolution and will take into account, as necessary, any relevant standards or guidelines developed by the World Health Organization (WHO). The correspondence group will also develop draft standards for the establishment of the rate of discharge for sewage that has been stored in holding tanks on board ships.
The correspondence group is also tasked with developing a recommendation regarding the discharge in a practical, efficient and environmentally-friendly manner, at a distance of more than 12 nautical miles from the nearest land, of untreated animal effluent, not stored in holding tanks, from livestock carriers.
Guidelines for implementation of the 2004 Ballast Water Management Convention
Draft guidelines aiming at ensuring uniform implementation of the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004 (BWM convention) were finalized by the Sub-Committee.
The following guidelines were finalized with a view to their adoption by MEPC 53: draft Guidelines for ballast water management equivalent compliance; draft Guidelines for ballast water management and the development of ballast water management plans and draft Guidelines for ballast water exchange. The following guidelines were also finalized for review by the Flag State Implementation (FSI) and Ship Design and Equipment (DE) Sub-Committees before final adoption: draft Guidelines for sediment reception facilities; draft Guidelines for ballast water reception facilities and draft Guidelines on design and construction to facilitate sediment control on ships.
Clarification of the definition of fuel oil in MARPOL Annex I
The Sub-Committee agreed to a Unified Interpretation to regulation 13H(2) of the current MARPOL Annex I and the text of proposed amendments to regulation 21.2.2 of the revised MARPOL Annex I, which clarify the definition of fuel oil. The intention is to fill the perceived gap in the definition of Heavy Grade Oil (HGO) that presently would allow for HGOs other than crude oil, fuel oil, or bitumen, tar and their emulsions, to be carried on board single hulled ships.
The proposed Unified Interpretation and draft amendments will be submitted to MEPC 53 in July 2005 for consideration.
Shipboard occupational health
Guidelines on the basic elements for a shipboard occupational health and safety programme were finalized for submission to the Joint MSC/MEPC Working Group on the Human Element, which meets during MEPC in July 2005, for consideration.
The voluntary guidelines describe the basic elements of a shipboard occupational health and safety programme, are applicable to all vessel types, and may be used by company managers, health and safety personnel or consultants who are implementing, improving or auditing the effectiveness of such a programme.
90th session of the Legal Committee held from the 18th to 22nd April 2005.
Draft SUA protocols ready for October Conference
The main purpose of the 1988 SUA Convention is to provide the legal basis for action to be taken against persons committing unlawful acts against ships. These acts include the seizure of ships by force, acts of violence against persons on board ships and the placing of devices on board which are likely to destroy or damage the ship. Under the Convention, Contracting Governments are obliged either to extradite or prosecute alleged offenders. Similar provisions are contained in the SUA Protocol, relating to unlawful acts against fixed platforms located on the continental shelf. The consideration of draft protocols to amend the 1988 Suppression of Unlawful Acts (SUA) Convention and Protocol was completed by this Legal Committee and will be forwarded for consideration and subsequent adoption by the Diplomatic Conference on the Revision of the SUA Treaties, scheduled to be held at IMO Headquarters in London from 10 to 14 October 2005.
The aim of the two draft Protocols is to strengthen the SUA treaties in order to provide an appropriate response to the increasing risks posed to maritime navigation by international terrorism. Proposed amendments to the treaties in the draft Protocols include a substantial broadening of the range of offences included in Article 3 of the SUA Convention and the introduction of provisions in Article 8 to allow for the boarding of vessels suspected of being involved in terrorist activities.
The Conference will consider these amendments as well as a number of other, related, issues including the political offences clause, the transfer of prisoners clause and the entry into force criteria.
Work on the revision of the SUA treaties follows from the adoption, in 2001, of Assembly resolution A.924(22) which called for a review of the then existing measures and procedures to prevent acts of terrorism which threaten the security of passengers and crews an the safety of ships. The SUA amendments will complement the provisions of SOLAS chapter XI-2 (Special measures to enhance maritime security) and the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code, which entered into force in July 2004, by providing a legal basis for the arrest, detention and extradition of terrorists in the unfortunate event that a terrorist attack against shipping nevertheless occurs.
The Legal Committee also continued work on a number of other agenda items.
Wreck Removal Convention (WRC)
The Committee continued its consideration of the draft (WRC) with a view to finalizing as many outstanding issues as possible in order to present as final as possible a draft for consideration by a diplomatic conference tentatively scheduled to be held in the forthcoming biennium. The WRC is intended to provide international rules on the rights and obligations of States and shipowners with respect to wrecks and drifting or sunken cargo which may pose a hazard to navigation and/or pose a threat to the marine environment.
The aim of the Convention is to clarify the rights and obligations regarding the identification, reporting, locating and removal of hazardous wrecks, in particular those found beyond territorial waters. IFSMA is particularly concerned with the obligations that may be placed upon the shipmaster in these situations. The proposed Convention will also cover the issue of compensation in the event that the coastal State itself needs to take relevant action.
Fair treatment of seafarers
The Committee reviewed the report of the first session of the Joint IMO/ILO Ad Hoc Expert Working Group on the Fair Treatment of Seafarers in the Event of a Maritime Accident, which met in January 2005. The Committee approved a draft resolution for adoption by the twenty-fourth IMO Assembly (which meets in November-December 2005) and by the ILO Governing Body. The resolution calls for the adoption of guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers in the event of a maritime accident as a matter of priority. Discussions continued on the fair treatment of seafarers and the committee was also asked to consider the need to clarify the terms of reference.
IFSMA submitted three further papers to this Legal Committee: One asked it to expand the term of reference to include contingencies within public and private law domains encountered by seafarers, shipmasters in particular, in the course of their employment. This was in line with our earlier submission because we believe that the restriction of the terms of reference to 'maritime accidents' was inadequate in the real world of shipping today. Although there is support from a number of delegations for the inclusion of commercial disputes that may penalise seamen, just as many delegations were against such inclusion. However, there is consensus that that the terms of reference will have to be expanded or at least explained. This will be done in the coming months and drafted into the guidelines.
Our second paper dealt with the open issues, thrown up during discussions in the working group. The most important of which is possible legal and procedural mechanisms of prompt release from detention or other form of restriction on the seafarer's movement within the state conducting the investigation or inquiry into a marine casualty or oil spillage. In the same paper we also asked the Legal Committee to advise the working group to include in the guidelines words and expressions to the effect that seafarers must not be used as human tools to gain or force compliance with private or public obligations on the part of the ship-owner, charterer, their insurers or on the part of the flag state. The third paper from IFSMA informed the Legal Committee of the five key resolutions passed at IFSMA’s two day conference in February on the criminalisation of seafarers.
Henceforth, the real work will be done by the intersessional correspondence group which was approved to by the working group at its fist meeting where every interested delegation may contribute. IFSMA hopes to set up a dedicated web-site and e-mail address for documents, comments, etc. to be collected. There is five day meeting of the working group scheduled for January 2006. The correspondence group will have done its job by then and at that meeting a set of guidelines will be formulated and agreed. In the spring of 2006 the Legal Committee of the IMO will have to approve the guidelines in order for them to be promulgated to states. If that happens as planned, IFSMA will have done well.
Claims for death, personal injury and abandonment of seafarers
The Committee received a progress report on the work of the Joint IMO/ILO Ad Hoc Expert Working Group on Liability and Compensation regarding Claims for Death, Personal Injury and Abandonment of Seafarers. In particular, the Committee noted that ILO has created a database to record information on incidents of abandonment of seafarers. The database is intended to facilitate monitoring of the size and scope of the issues involved.
Implementation of the HNS Convention
The Committee was updated on the status of implementation of the International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) by Sea, 1996.
The HNS Convention is intended to add a vital component to the international regime for compensation for pollution damage at sea. At the end of April 2005, it had been ratified by eight States, representing 5.38 per cent of world merchant shipping tonnage. For entry into force, the HNS Convention requires ratification by 12 States, four of which have not less than two million units of gross tonnage, provided that persons in these States who would be responsible for paying contributions to the general account have received a total quantity of at least 40 million tonnes of contributing cargo in the preceding calendar year. It was noted that the contracting States, as well as the States which in future will accede to the HNS Convention, are legally obliged to submit information on contributing cargo received when depositing their instruments with the Secretary-General of IMO and annually thereafter.
Other activities
On the 13th April 2005.we supported the Nautical Institute initiative and attending a meeting at the Marine Society to consider guidelines for mooring, anchoring and the use of tugs for Shipmasters, officers and crew. It is becoming a great concern to us all that there seems to be an increase in accidents relating to these essential duties requiring seamanship skills and a knowledge of the equipment used.
Finally the secretariat has been hard at work preparing for the Annual General Assembly to be held Aaland in June. We are hoping this will be another very successful assembly and look forward to meeting our members there.
Rodger MacDonald
Secretary General
