Tag: IMO

During the 2019 SAFETY4SEA Conference, Mr. Dimitrios Ioannis Kalfas, Engineering Team Leader, Argo Navis, insisted on proper and timely planning for a BWTS or a scrubber retrofit as the best way to deal with the developing industry bottleneck. He also outlined a series of retrofit Pain Points which can set calendars back during planning, such as class approval, owner supplied items, yards and transportation of equipment.

We are currently navigating the 4th industrial revolution, the so called Shipping 4.0 which focuses on digitization, environmental leadership and safety excellence. During the course of 2018 we have ween IMO announcing an ambitious strategy toward 2050 emissions reduction by 50%, discussions over the forthcoming 2020 Sulphur Cap implementation and also a heated debate on whether to scrub or not to scrub.

The Baltic Ports Organisation conducted a seminar in order for discussions to begin concerning port emissions in European ports. Approximately 80 participants gathered in Gdynia, Poland, in the early days of March to discuss the issue of air pollution in ports. 

A new set of publicly-available guidelines for monitoring plastics and microplastics in the oceans, published by the Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection, aims to help harmonize how scientists and others analyze the scale of the marine plastic litter problem. 

Shell agreed with Dutch tank terminal firm HES International to partially restart the operation of a German oil refinery mothballed since 2011, in order to address new restrictions coming into force on marine fuels from January 1st 2020. The plant is expected to process heavy, low-sulphur crudes, aiming to produce various products, including the 0.5% sulphur fuel oil or distillate marine fuels.

Adding iron or other nutrients into the oceans to improve natural processes to draw carbon from the atmosphere and creating foams to reflect sunlight back into the atmosphere, are geoengineering practices which have been put forward as potential tools for countering climate change. However, a new report calls for precautionary approach towards these techniques which involve deliberate large-scale manipulation of the environment.

Due to the International Women's Day 2019, IMO highlights the position of women in the maritime sector. IMO launches a video trailer for a forthcoming film which will showcase success stories of how IMO’s Women in Maritime programme has positively affected women in ports, on the shoreside and on ships.

The side-event 'Sea-Based Sources of Marine Litter', in the margin of the UN Environment Assembly, was conducted in Nairobi Kenya - 11 to 15 March- in light of acknowledging the threat plastic debris poses in seas and the ways to get rid of it. 

On the occasion of this year’s International Women's Day, SAFETY4SEA focuses on a very specific aspect of sex discrimination: Women in leadership roles. The participation of more women in leadership roles is a major field of the global fight to equality.

IMO issued a report to assess current knowledge and data regarding marine coatings as microplastics sources, identifying very little practical research or knowledge on the topic. The IMO review came after a report by IUCN which showed that hull scrapings, marine coatings and anti-fouling systems are potential sources of microplastics in the oceans.