Tag: regulatory update

American yacht owners are now able to carry an American flag and register their yachts - over 300 GT - in the US. The new legislation aims to modernize outdated laws and bring the US in line with current times. Until now, Yachts over the 300-GT limit were only able to fly the US flag if they were registered as a commercial vessel.

In order to ensure ongoing compliance with MARPOL Annex I Regulation 37.2.4 and MARPOL Annex II Regulation 17.2.4, vessels should have access to a list of authorities or persons to be contacted in the event of pollution incident. The IMO is issuing every three months the updated list of national operational contact points for these shipboard pollution emergency plans.

The clock is ticking towards the 0.5% sulphur cap and although this is about to become effective globally in less than 18 months from today, the route to compliance remains challenging. Earlier in 2018, SAFETY4SEA launched a survey reflecting trends with respect to industry’s readiness to comply with the 0.5% sulphur cap. Key points and data analysis were presented at the 2018 GREEN4SEA Conference in March.

In a report presented to the European Parliament and Council in late July, the European Commission found that the goal of biologically diverse, clean and healthy seas by 2020 is unlikely to be achieved through the measures put in place by Member States under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a federal law on amendments to the merchant shipping code to pave the way for the formation of a Russian open register of ships. The register is anticipated for registration of marine vessels owned by foreign individuals and legal entities.

From June 1, 2017, Malaysia decided to loose the restrictions in cabotage policy in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan. However, this situation should be reconsider the Malaysia Shipowners' Association said, noting that it did not reduce the price of goods, and is damaging local shippers.

In a bid to improve domestic maritime competitiveness, India announced plans to relax its cabotage law, which has been a matter of discussion for many years. Under the present Merchant Shipping Act 1958, only Indian-flagged vessels or foreign-flagged vessels as licensed by DGS, can ply the coasting trade of India.

The fourth edition has been extensively updated and addresses: Lessons learned from incidents, most notably from failures of HMSF mooring lines; Human centred mooring designs and human factors in mooring operations; New and in-development regulations and guidance from the IMO on the safety of mooring; Alternative mooring technologies and how they can be incorporated safely into the design of mooring systems both for ships and terminals.

The ISM Code, part of the mandatory regulations in marine industry, goes back to the late ‘80s; which is therefore its impact to the maritime industry these twenty years?

UK MCA issued a Code of Practice for Intended Pleasure Vessels to be introduced on 1 January 2019 and to provide a framework for what is wanted by the Pleasure Vessel sector. Members of the boating community are urged to ‘have their say’ on the new Code, through a public consultation.