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prepared by Mikhail Kashubsky
On 17 September 2007, the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization announced that the requirements for the entry into force of the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on Ships 2001 (AFS Convention) were fulfilled with the deposit of an instrument of accession by the Republic of Panama earlier that day.
The requirements for the entry into force of the Convention are set out in Article 18, which provides:
(1) This Convention shall enter into force twelve months after the date on which not less than twenty-five States, the combined merchant fleets of which constitute not less than twenty-five percent of the world’s merchant shipping, have either signed it without reservation as to ratification, acceptance or approval, or have deposited the requisite instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession in accordance with article 17.
In accordance with this Article, the Convention will enter into force on 17 September 2008, which is twelve months after the date on which the requirements for entry into force were met.
The AFS Convention, which was adopted on 5 October 2001, will prohibit the use of harmful organotins in anti-fouling paints used on ships and will establish a mechanism to prevent the potential future use of other harmful substances in anti-fouling systems.
‘Anti-fouling systems’ are defined in Article 2 as ‘coating, paint, surface treatment, surface, or device that is used on a ship to control or prevent attachment of unwanted organisms’.
The Contracting Parties are required to prohibit and/or restrict the use of harmful anti-fouling systems on ships flying their flag, as well as ships not entitled to fly their flag but which operate under their authority and all ships that enter a port, shipyard or offshore terminal of a Party.
To comply with the AFS Convention, the ship must not bear such compounds which act as biocides on its hull or external parts or surfaces, or must bear a coating that forms a barrier to such compounds leaching from the underlying non-compliant anti-fouling systems.
This requirement applies to all ships except fixed or floating platforms, floating storage units (FSUs), and floating production storage and off-loading units (FPSOs) that have been constructed prior to 1 January 2003 and that have not been in dry-dock on or after 1 January 2003.
Although these requirements do not apply to offshore platforms, FSUs and FPSOs which have been constructed prior to 1 July 2003, but have not been into dry dock on or after that date, it is still recommended such offshore installations comply with the prohibition as soon as reasonably practicable.
The survey and certification requirements of the AFS Convention are slightly different from other IMO conventions, such as MARPOL. Under the AFS Convention, only ships of 400 gross tonnage and above (excluding fixed or floating platforms, FSUs and FPSOs) engaged in international voyages are required to undergo surveys. Similarly, only ships of 400 gross tonnage and above engaged in international voyages are required to have an International Anti-Fouling System Certificate.
In addition, ships of 24 metres or more in length but less than 400 gross tonnage (excluding fixed or floating platforms, FSUs and FPSOs) are required to carry a Declaration on Anti-Fouling Systems signed by their owner or authorised agent. A Declaration needs to be accompanied by appropriate documentation, such as a paint receipt or a contractor invoice. This is to evidence the fact that the ship’s anti-fouling system is compliant with the Convention.
The Convention also contains provisions on management of wastes from application or removal of harmful anti-fouling systems.
As of 4 February 2008, there were 28 Contracting States to the AFS Convention with 43.79% of the world’s tonnage.
Before the Convention enters into force, port States cannot apply any requirements of the Convention to foreign ships calling into their ports. However, flag States may apply the requirements of the Convention to their national fleet, depending on their national legal system, but they may not expect the International Certificates to be recognised as effective until the date of entry into force.
Twenty Five Contracting States (the Combined Merchant Fleets of Which Constitute Approximately 38.09% of the World’s Merchant Shipping).
Source: IMO Circular AFS.1/Circ.14 of 17 September 2007.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued a Marine Notice 21/2007, which provides information for ship-owners, ship-operators and service providers regarding the status, both internationally and in Australia, of the AFS Convention, noting in particular that Australia ratified the AFS Convention in January 2007, and that the Convention will enter into force for Australia, as well as internationally, on 17 September 2008.
The domestic legislation that gives effect to the AFS Convention in Australia is the Protection of the Sea (Harmful Anti-fouling Systems) Act 2006 (Cth).
Source: IMO Circulars and Information Resources. See also AMSA Marine Notices on the AFS Convention.
The Marine Information System (MARIS) is a relational database of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), based on Geographical Information System (GIS), covering the distribution of radioactive and stable isotopes and other tracers in the marine environment. MARIS also includes oceanographic parameter data, such as seawater temperature, salinity and bathymetry.
The database was developed at the Radiometrics Laboratory of the IAEA’s Marine Environment Laboratory (MEL) located in Monaco. MARIS is a part of a larger database – the Global Marine Radioactivity Database (GLOMARD), also developed and maintained at MEL.
MARIS has two main objectives:
1. to provide information on the radioactive contamination of the marine environment (This function was formerly supported by the Global Marine Radioactivity Database); and
2. to provide information on distribution of radioactive and stable isotopes, tracer metals and organic compounds in the world oceans and seas, which could be used as tracers for investigation of marine processes.
MARIS contains data on the most important radionuclides in the world’s oceans and seas, (both in the open sea and in coastal zones), specifically in seawater, particulate matter, biota and sediment. These data are based on published scientific papers, reports and databases created within institutes or scientific programmes in member States.
The IAEA acts as a clearing-house for information on radioactive contaminants in the marine environment and makes data on marine radionuclide levels available to member States for future assessment studies and the evaluation of trends in contamination of the marine environment.
In this respect, MEL has been acting as a central facility for the collection, synthesis and interpretation of data on marine radioactivity in the world ocean. It aims to:
• provide immediate and up-to-date information on radionuclide levels and inventories in the seas and oceans;
• provide a snap-shot of radionuclide levels at any time in any location;
• investigate changes with time in radionuclide levels and inventories;
• provide data for validation of models on the dispersion of radionuclides in the marine environment;
• provide bases for assessments of radiation doses to local, regional and global human populations and to marine biota; and
• identify gaps in available information.
MARIS provides member States with assistance in sampling missions, analysis of radionuclides in the marine environment, development of new radioanalytical methods, applications of nuclear and isotopic tracers in oceanographic studies, analytical quality control services, as well as capacity building and training.
The data provided by MARIS will be used as the international reference source on radionuclide contamination of the marine environment so that any further contributions from nuclear industry, radioactive waste disposal sites, nuclear weapons test sites and possible nuclear accidents can be easily identified. In addition, the data stored in MARIS can be used for water and sediment dynamics studies, investigation of processes in the water column, seawater-sediment inter-actions, and seawater-groundwater interactions, as well as for validation of models used in climate change studies.
MARIS data are available for the public through a website interface called Nucleus Online Portal. The website is password- protected and first-time users of MARIS are required to create a user account before they can access the database.
Source: This information on MARIS database was distributed by the IAEA through the UN Atlas of the Oceans in February 2008. MARIS has also been added to the list of topics of the UN Atlas.
The IMO Maritime Safety Committee Resolution MSC 202(81) on Adoption of Amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea 1974, which establishes SOLAS Chapter V Regulation 19-1 on long-range identification and tracking of ships (LRIT), entered into force on 1 January 2008.
The LRIT regulation was introduced to SOLAS in May 2006 as a mandatory requirement for SOLAS ships and mobile offshore drilling units. The LRIT system is currently in its final stages of implementation with a compliance date of 31 December 2008. This gives the contracting States one year to set up and test the system, and ship-operators one year to fit new equipment or upgrade existing equipment so that their ships can transmit LRIT information.
Australia has participated in the development of the LRIT and is one of the first flag State administrations in the world to meet its international LRIT obligations. To facilitate the implementation of the system, a whole-of-government approach has been taken, with the formation of the LRIT Sub-Group under the existing Information Sharing Working Group, which forms part of the Joint Agencies Maritime Advisory Group process.
Timeline for Implementation of the LRIT System
Source: Jillian Carson-Jackson, AMSA Vessel Tracking Manager, ‘Overview of AMSA Vessel Tracking Program’ presentation at the National Shipping Industry Conference 2007, Brisbane, 12 December 2007.
To ensure timely compliance with the SOLAS LRIT requirements, Australia has put in place a ‘commercial data centre’ solution. The Australian Government has contracted the services of a commercial data centre provider –Pole Star Space Applications Limited (Pole Star).
Pole Star is a privately owned company registered in the United Kingdom with global operations and its headquarters in London. The company specialises in the provision of fleet management systems and services. Pole Star’s systems are used by a large number of commercial marine companies and government agencies worldwide, currently tracking, managing and reporting on over 12,000 vessels. Pole Star is the proprietary owner of Purplefinder (TM) technology which provides the basis for all Pole Star’s systems and products.
Pole Star will provide similar National LRIT Data Centre services to the Marshall Islands, covering approximately 1000 ships, and it is currently negotiating with several other major flag State administrations for provision of the same services.
Australian registered vessels to which the LRIT requirements apply will work directly with Pole Star to ensure their six hourly reports are transmitted, received and forwarded, as required, to the International Data Exchange (IDE). It is expected that in this manner, Australia will be well-placed to respond to the obligations for LRIT and the data will be made available to relevant Commonwealth agencies to enhance maritime domain awareness.
Pole Star has recently completed the training of the appointed Australian LRIT personnel, comprising of teams from AMSA and the Border Protection Command (BPC), and will continue to work closely with AMSA, BPC and Australian-flagged ship-owners and ship-operators to assist with LRIT compliance.
It is also confirmed that Inmarsat C will be specified as the main LRIT communication system of choice, as the majority of ships required to comply with the regulation are already fitted with compatible Inmarsat C GMDSS and Mini-C type SSAS systems. By adopting this approach, no major hardware investment should be required on the part of the ship-owners or ship-operators, but different contracting States may adopt slightly different LRIT implementation strategies. Some may request voluntary compliance in advance of the 31 December 2008 compliance deadline in order to fully test their Data Centres (DC), as it is expected that DCs will be integrated with the IDE by 1 July 2008.
Pole Star has developed LRIT hardware, software and testing products, including the LRIT Equipment Conformity Testing product, and Compliant LRIT Equipment hardware. It also has the Fleet Management product, which is a system that has the same compliance and performance requirements as those of the LRIT. For Pole Star’s Fleet Management customers, the LRIT compliance testing is straightforward and requires only that a specific testing procedure is followed. Other ship-operators wishing to test their terminal compliance, by the Fleet Management product on a trial basis, are also advised to contact Pole Star.
To assist stakeholders to meet their LRIT obligations, in January 2008, Pole Star launched the LRIT website (www.lrit.com). The website is specifically designed to support contracting States, flag State administrations, and ship-operators in meeting their IMO obligations with respect to the LRIT.
The website will be regularly updated with the latest LRIT news and developments including relevant IMO resolutions and circulars, ad-hoc LRIT Group meeting reports, LRIT-compliant shipborne technologies, as well as links to the various maritime administrations’ websites and their national Marine Notices and Orders for which Pole Star is the selected LRIT Data Centre Administrator.
The website also provides useful information on Pole Star’s Terminal Compliance Testing Program. The testing program will last for one month from its operational activation. On conclusion of testing, participants will be issued a formal test report determining whether or not nominated terminals are compliant. Ship-operators are advised to test their nominated terminals with Pole Star as soon as possible and no later than March 2008, as advised by their Flag Administration.
Ship-owners and ship-operators who are already customers of Pole Star are offered the opportunity to register their vessels in advance to ensure they are included in the first testing schedule.
Ship-operators must ensure that terminal systems conform to the performance standards and functional requirements adopted by the IMO as defined in Resolution MSC.210(81) and that terminals are of the type approved by their Flag Administration. However, terminals do not have to undergo a separate process of regulatory type approval such as that required for GMDSS equipment.
Because of the serious consequences of non-compliance, it is important that equipment performance is as reliable as possible. While the existing Inmarsat C GMDSS equipment will be technically compliant in most cases, ship-operators are reminded that there is still 20-25% probability of existing Inmarsat C GMDSS terminals not conforming to the performance standards and functional requirements for a range of operational and physical reasons. In addition, full compliance with the performance standards and functional requirements demands that the correct operational procedures are followed on board the vessel. Ship-operators should regularly check that they have the latest marine guidance notices issued by their Flag Administration in this respect.
Source: AMSA, ‘Long Range Identification and Tracking’ Factsheet, February 2008. Some of the information was provided courtesy of Pole Star Space Applications Limited.
[1] The information and material used to compile this section often come from other sources. Every effort has been made to acknowledge such sources and, where possible, to contact copyright holders.
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