Alternative title: The share of Polish Register of ships in European Union programs
for the emergence and development of environmentally friendly recycling of
ships
Abstract:
The paper reviews ideas of EU Framework Programmes and informs about
Polski Rejestr Statków S.A. (PRS) participation in EU projects. The paper
reviews the background to the adoption of the International Maritime
Organization (IMO) Assembly resolution A.981(24) on the development of a
mandatory instrument for minimizing environmental and safety risks from ship
recycling and shows the roles of the International Maritime Organization,
International Labour Organization and the Basel Convention on ship recycling
matters. The paper introduces the development of inventories of hazardous
materials for new and for existing ships, the surveying regime to be
established under the new Convention, how will the Convention deal with the
issue of the decontamination of ships of hazardous materials, the envisaged
inclusion of domestic ships, the provisions for reporting to competent authorities
and the related issue of prior informed consent.
Key words: EU framework programs, green ship
recycling, convention, inventory, hazardous materials.
Document type: Journal article
Magazine:
Year: 2007, No. 3, p. 7 - 15, bibliographical references. 6 pos.
Author(s):
- Andrzej
ADAMKIEWICZ
- Krzysztof KOŁWZAN
Author(s) Affiliation(s):
Maritime Academy, Szczecin
Polish Register of Shipping SA, Technical Commitee, Gdańsk
Introduction:
Since the start of the 1 European Union Framework Program on research
and development (R&D) in 1984, initiatives connected with organization of
multidisciplinary research and cooperation between science and industry have
been gaining in significance.
The European Union creates, a favorable environment for international
cooperation on various projects. Involvement in these initiatives is becoming a
must as it guarantees access to new technologies and stimulates joint
undertakings necessary for developing knowledge based economy [6].
1. PRS
participation in EU projects
Polish Register of Shipping (Polski Rejestr Statków - PRS) actively participates in EU R&D projects,
inter alia, under Framework Programs, cooperating in international project
consortia. Under the 5 Framework Programme PRS is involved in the following
programs:
1. Research project "Detection and discrimination of corrosion attack on ships (tankers) with acoustic emission (AE)”,
2. "Safety and Reliability of
Industrial Products, Systems and Structures SAFERELNET ” - program, under the
theme "Promoting competition and sustainable growth”.
Near the end of the year 2005, PRS joined the HISMAR project “Hull
Identification System for Marine Autonomous Robotics”, covered by the 6
Framework Programme.
In the years 2004–2005, Polski Rejestr Statków was also involved in
the EUREKA Initiative, initiated in 1985 by European industry and economy in
response to the threat of economic domination by countries from other parts of
the world. EUREKA supports the competitiveness of European countries through
international collaboration in creating links and networks of innovation aiming
at increasing modernity and productivity of European industry. Under the EUREKA
Initiative, PRS participated in the project “E! 2968 – Ecological Dock –
Environmental Friendly Floating Docks”. Its objective is preventing
environmental pollution from floating docks both newly built and in service.
2. European
community PRS recognition
On September 29, 2006 Polish Register of Shipping was granted limited
recognition of European Community. It marks an important milestone in PRS
development, providing official grounds for services rendered on behalf of EU
Members States Maritime Administrations. The pursuit of ever higher standards
of safety and quality is, and will remain, the primary goal of PRS and will
contribute to the achievement of EU and international standards.
3. The EU 7th
framework programs - environmental
friendly (green) ship recycling concept
Existing ship’s recycling regulations are not sufficient. This is
reflected in bad condition of environment and workers’ accident statistics in
countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, China etc.
In the opinion of Polski Rejestr Statków the decision of European
Union to develop policy and recycling standards for ships by creating new
programs based on 7 Framework Programme started a new era of development in the
European and international ship’s recycling industry. Such an approach should
ensure that the safety, ecological and management levels for environmentally
friendly ship recycling are achieved when appropriate design, constructions and
survey satisfy class rules and industry standards.
There are 4 main keystones in the European Green Ship Recycling:
Concept :
1. Ships recycling is an integral part of the life
cycle management of ships;
2. Ships
have to be recycled at the end of their life in a responsible way.
3. New ships
should be designed in such a way that they can be recycled easily;
4. A long
term solutions for ship recycling industry has to be based on an international
legal framework, according to the IMO, ILO, Basel Convention etc.
4. Background to
the development of the new international convention
The issue of ship recycling was first brought to the attention of the
IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) at 42 Session in 1998 and at
the following sessions of the Committee it was generally agreed that IMO had an
important role to play in ship recycling, including preparation of a ship
before recycling commences, and a coordinating role towards the International
Labour Organization (ILO) and the Basel Convention (BC) in recycling matters [1, 2, 3,
4].
In July 2005 at 53 rd session MEPC agreed that IMO should develop a
new mandatory instrument on ship recycling, with a view to providing
legally-binding and globally applicable regulations for international shipping
and for recycling facilities. Subsequently on 1 December 2005 the 24th session
of the Assembly adopted resolution A.981(24) on: New Legally Binding Instrument
on Ship Recycling. With this resolution, MEPC was requested to develop a
mandatory instrument with its adoption time 2008-2009.
This new instrument will regulate:
1. the design, construction, operation and preparation of ships for environmentally
friendly recycling, without decreasing
their safety,
2. the operation of ship recycling facilities in a safe and
environmentally friendly manner,
3. the establishment of an appropriate enforcement mechanism for
ship recycling (certification/reporting
requirements).
Work is now at an advanced stage and MEPC 55 (9-13 July 2007) formally
agreed to request the IMO Council to allocate a five-day international
conference in the 2008-2009 to adopt the new Convention.
5. ILO/IMO/BC co-operation
IMO co-operates with the ILO and the Basel Convention on issues
relating to ship recycling and the establishment by the three Organizations of
the Joint ILO/IMO/BC Working Group on Ship Scrapping is evidence of this
co-operation at the international level [4].
6. Structure of
the new convention
The new Convention on ship recycling will include:
1. Regulations for the design, construction, operation and preparation
of ships so as to facilitate safe and environmentally friendly recycling but
without compromising their safety and operational efficiency;
2. Regulations for the operation of ship recycling facilities in a
safe and environmentally friendly manner; and
3. Regulations for the establishment of an appropriate enforcement
mechanism for ship recycling.
The Convention’s preamble is followed by the Articles which define
higher level requirements. Presently there are 21 Articles in the draft
Convention. These are followed by the Annex to the Convention which contains
regulations concerning requirements for ships, on design, construction,
operation and maintenance, preparation
for ship recycling, surveys and certification, requirements for recycling
facilities, reporting requirements, the list of hazardous materials controlled by the Convention, standard formats for relevant certificates.
7. Guidelines
The Annex and the appendices
the Convention necessitates the development of certain guidelines
providing further specification and establishing uniform procedures for a
number of technical issues arising from the provisions of the Convention.
The following is the provisional list of
guidelines for the ship recycling Convention:
1. General (guidelines for
communication of information).
2. Guidelines for ships (guidelines
for the development of Inventory of hazardous materials, the submission of a
proposal to control hazardous materials, surveys and certification, inspection
of ships, establishing gas-free-for-hot-work conditions).
3. Guidelines for ship recycling yards
(authorization of ship recycling yards, safe and environmentally friendly ship
recycling, development of Ship Recycling Plan).
8. Elements and
mechanisms to control and enforcement
The following Control Elements have been introduced in the
draft Convention on ship recycling:
1. An inventory of hazardous materials,
specific to each ship, and an associated International Certificate for a Ship
Inventory of Hazardous Materials;
2. A list of hazardous materials
whose installation or use in ships is prohibited or restricted in shipyards,
ship repair yards, and ships of Parties to the Convention, is provided as an
appendix to the Convention;
3. A new surveying regime,
presently envisaging an initial survey to verify the inventory of hazardous
materials, surveys during the life of the ship, and a final survey prior to
recycling;
4. Introduction of the “Recycling Plan”,
developed by the recycling yard to specify the manner each ship will be
recycled, depending on its particulars and its inventory;
5. Introduction of the International Ready
for Recycling Certificate, to be issued to the ship following its final
survey verifying ship related statements on the Recycling Plan;
6. Authorization of recycling facilities
by their States, in accordance with the requirements of the Convention;
7. A Statement of Completion of Ship
Recycling, issued by the recycling facility and reporting completion of
recycling of an individual ship to the recycling State authorities and to the
flag Administration.
The above elements are put together in the Convention so as to build
control and enforcement mechanisms for its effective implementation throughout
the life of a ship, while avoiding as far as possible unnecessary increases in
the administrative burden to Parties, to the shipping industry and to recycling
facilities.
Requirements are also set for -
- the
establishment of sanctions under the national law of Parties; and
- Auditing
implementation: a system for auditing the implementation of the Convention
is included in the draft Convention.
9. Issues under
discussion
Inventory – new and existing ships
The objective of the inventory of hazardous materials (IHM) is to
provide specific information on the location and quantities of potentially
hazardous materials on board each ship so as to protect the health and safety
of workers and also to prevent environmental pollution at the recycling
facilities.
Inventories will consist of 3 Parts:
Part I: Materials
contained in structures and equipment of the ship;
Part II: Operationally
generated wastes; and
Part III: Stores.
For new ships:
For new ships it is intended that the shipbuilder will prepare Part I
of the inventory, mostly based on a collection of a large number of
declarations made by the individual suppliers in the shipbuilding supply chain.
For existing ships:
The development of inventories of hazardous materials (IHM) for existing
ships is much more challenging because of the following 3 issues:
(1) the difficulty of defining
the necessary level of accuracy for the quantities of hazardous materials and
the associated difficulty of collecting sufficiently accurate information based
mostly on surveying findings;
(2) issues on the safety of
personnel involved in surveys of hazardous materials; and
(3) the timing for the
provision of the inventory of existing ships.
Surveying:
Presently, the draft Convention makes provisions for the following
surveys:
1. One initial survey; for new ships
an initial survey would take place before the ship enters service, while for
existing ships the survey would take place before the inventory is issued;
2. Periodical surveys, on the basis of
a 5 yearly cycle, verifying continuing compliance with the Convention and
ensuring that any relevant alterations are reflected on the inventory;
3. Additional surveys, which the ship
owner may request to take place at his option after alterations to the
structure, machinery or equipment of the ship; and
4. One final survey prior to the
ship being taken out of service, so that all 3 Parts of the inventory are
completed and checked.
The above surveys may be conducted by officers of the flag
Administration, or by surveyors nominated by the Administration, or by
surveyors of a Recognized Organization.
Pre-cleaning:
The issue of pre-cleaning (i.e. decontamination prior to recycling)
had been a divisive one, with some stakeholders promoting requirements for
pre-cleaning in a developed country prior to arrival at a recycling yard in a
developing country.
Other stakeholders have claimed that pre-cleaning has to take place at
the facility where the ship is due to be recycled, because decontamination
inevitably results to the loss of seaworthiness and therefore to the ship’s
inability to sail safely to a different location for its actual demolition. If
a ship contains materials which are not within the capability of a recycling
yard, then the ship owner’s choice would be either to select another yard
suitably authorized, or to organize pre-cleaning of all materials which are
outside the selected yard’s capabilities.
In this respect it is noted that the underlying
philosophy of the IMO Convention is to establish common standards for all ship
recycling operations, without distinction as to which part of the world they
take place, or the economic situation of the country in which they are carried
out. The new Convention will therefore establish a global regulatory
regime for the safe and environmentally friendly recycling of ships.
The threshold 500 GT:
At 55th MEPC session agreed to establish a threshold of 500 gross tons
in Article 3 of the draft Convention on ship recycling. According to Lloyd’s
Register Fair play in 2005 there were 47,258 merchant ships of 500 GT and over
in the world fleet [5].
Application of the Convention to domestic ships:
Domestically trading ships should not be excluded from the application
of the Convention, as this could create a loophole for some ships to avoid the
requirements of the Convention.
On the other hand it has been stressed that some countries have
thousands of domestic and inland vessels which, if covered by the Convention,
would impose a very heavy workload to the Administration (approval of
inventories of hazardous materials, surveys, and certification).
It has been proposed that the Convention should exclude domestic
trading ships which are recycled domestically. This issue has not been resolved
as yet.
10. Schedule for the development of the convention
MEPC 55 in October 2006 agreed to establish an international
Correspondence Group and also an international Working Group for the period
prior to MEPC 56, in order to expedite the development of the draft Convention
and its guidelines. MEPC 56 (9-13 July 2007) will receive the report of the intersessional
Working Group and will also establish during its session a Working Group to
continue the development of the draft Convention and will also decide whether
it is necessary to establish a further intersessional Correspondence Group.
Conclusions:
Ship recycling contributes to sustainable development and is the
environmentally friendly way of disposing of virtually every part of ships.
However, the reported status of working practices and environmental standards
in recycling facilities often leaves much to be desired. Such growing concerns
about environmental safety, health and welfare matters in the ship recycling
industry have resulted in a growing belief that an international instrument to
regulate the ship recycling process is urgently needed.
The practice in the maritime industry in dealing with vessels at the
end of their useful lives has been to sell them for scrap on the international
market. However, the dismantling of vessels in many developing countries is
often not performed with due regard to accepted environmental, health and
safety standards. Having become aware of the need to reduce risks related to
ship recycling, as well as the need to secure the smooth withdrawal of ships
that have reached the end of their operating lives, the IMO, the ILO and the
Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes
and their Disposal have taken action to develop a realistic and effective
solution to the problem of ship recycling.
References:
1. Mikelis N.: Developments and
Issues on Recycling of Ships., The East Asian Seas Congress. 2006.
2. Industry Code of Practice
on Ship Recycling, developed by ICS and other industry organizations (www.marisec.org/recycling).
3. Sixth Meeting of the
Conference of Parties to the Basel Convention: Technical Guidelines for the
Environmentally Sound Management of the Full & Partial Dismantling of
Ships. 2002 (http://www.basel.int/ships/techguid.html).
4. 289th session of the
International Labour Organization’s Governing Body: Safety &Health in
Shipbreaking, Guidelines for Asian countries &Turkey. 2004. (www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/sectors/shipbrk/index.htm).
5. Lloyd’s Register
Fairplay.: World Fleet Statistics. 2005.
6. Polski Rejestr Statków.:
Annual Review 2004-2005.
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