The autumn meeting of the INTERTANKO Chemical Tanker Sub-committee of the Americas (CTSCA #19) was held on 31 October 2012 in Houston, Texas and covered, among other things, issues with port state control inspections, the ongoing revision of the IBC Code and revisions to inert gas regulations, as well as an update on the IMO requirements for ballast water management.
The meeting was chaired by Roger Restaino of Stolt-Nielsen USA Inc. and was attended by representatives of ship owners and charterers. Also participating were the US Coast Guard (USCG) Captain of the Port and senior representatives of the Houston-Galveston Sector as well as senior representatives from the USCG Texas City and Port Arthur sectors.
Fredrik Wilson of USCG Sector Houston-Galveston provided the Sub-committee with a presentation on Port State Control Statistics for 2012. Wilson also highlighted and discussed issues that are being raised through port state control inspections.
The Sub-committee re-elected Roger Restaino for a second term of two years and discussed a wide range of topical issues such as the ongoing revision of the IBC Code, the revisions to the inert gas regulations, CDI ship-vetting and associated issues, and the work of the US Chemical Transportation Advisory Committee (CTAC).
Niels Lyngso of the West Gulf Maritime Association (WGMA) provided the Sub-committee with an update on the work of the recently created “Lone Star Harbour Safety Committee”. This committee is a public forum to address Maritime Transportation System issues with particular emphasis on navigation safety related matters involving the ports of Houston, Galveston, Texas City and Freeport, including the associated waterways of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and offshore lightering zones.
Source: INTERTANKO
