Tag: regulatory update

In September 2019, shipping experts from around the world gathered at the IMO headquarters to discuss how to proceed on the topic of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS), at the first Intersessional Working Group (WG) on MASS, IMarEST informed. 

Finland informed that the legislation on the delivery of waste from ships to ports will be updated. The aim is to improve the treatment and reception of waste in ports, which will reduce the generation of marine litter and consequently the discharge of plastic into the seas.

In this article, Charles Anderson, Senior Vice President, Head of Skuld New York, provides a brief guide to US Ballast Water Regulations, the Vessel General Permit and the 2018 Commercial Vessel Incidental Discharge Act.

Last week, the European Political Strategy Centre (EPSC) published a strategic note for Clean Transport at Sea, describing the course for European Leadership, including the confirmation of the European Commission's President, Ursula von der Leyen’s ambition to add maritime transport into the EU’s Emission Trading System.

1st January of 2020 marks the beginning for many regulatory updates for shipping. One of them is the new IMO requirements for the maintenance, examination, operational testing, overhaul and repair of lifeboats and rescue boats; the following article outlines key changes to assist operators in effective compliance with new requirements.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (the CJEU) confirmed that waste from ships is not subject to the requirements of EU law on transfer of waste. The legal case arose from the fire on board the MSC Flaminia in 2012.

The USCG issued a circular providing guidance on the agreements between the US, the European Community and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which are included in the  European Economic Area (EEA) on the Mutual Recognition of Certificates of Conformity for Marine Equipment as allowed by Title 46 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) subpart 159.003.

Lately the shipping industry has shed its focus on the 2020 sulphur cap, however, other important regulatory updates are expected to become effective from January 1st  as well; for instance in the area of ship recycling, the Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) is going to bring changes for which operators need to be aware of for compliance with the requirements of both Hong Kong Convention and EU-Ship Recycling Regulation.

Following an EU ban on cod fishing in Baltic Sea in late July, the Commission has recently made a new proposal in an effort to reinforce control and data collection in the area and assist all fishermen affected by the closure of the Easter Baltic cod fishery. Namely, the Commission suggests that from 2020, those vessels should be equipped with a vessel monitoring system or other equivalent electronic monitoring system and have observers onboard. This would allow scientists to gather more and better data on the stock.

Norway is working on a new regulation, to prevent the discharge of sewage, and contribute to less sewage discharge along the Norwegian coast. The government aspires to have the new rules in place by March 1, 2020.