The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL 73/78) Annex II, Regulation 16 requires the Government of each member within the convention to have surveyors for exercising control procedures as developed by the IMO.
Namely, according to the UK Government a MARPOL Surveyor will only be able to attend if a ship owner or his agent requires it. The duties of a MARPOL Surveyor are briefly:
- To attend the completion of the unloading of all Category X substances and verify that the pre-wash has been conducted.
- To attend where the unloading of Category Y and Z substances cannot be carried out in accordance with the ship’s Procedures and Arrangements Manual.
- To attend vessels, such as “offshore supply vessels,” and verify that cargo tanks which have contained noxious liquid substances of pollution category X, Y or Z have been cleaned and the residues and washings have been put ashore to port waste reception facilities in accordance with the Procedures and Arrangements Manual.
- To exempt ships from the requirements of Regulation 13.4 of MARPOL ANNEX II, Exemption for a “pre-wash”, as required. If the pre-wash requirements cannot be met at the discharge port, but will be carried out at the next port, it is to confirmed in writing that a reception facility at the other port is available and is adequate for such purpose.
- To endorse each ship’s Cargo NLS Record Book accordingly.
- To provide prompt and accurate returns, using the returns form and including nil returns, every six months.
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When attending a vessel, the MARPOL Surveyor should be supervised by a responsible ships officer who takes part in cargo operations. The responsible ships officer should be present when any cargo sampling is conducted.
The responsible ships officer should also be satisfied that the sampling equipment is compatible with the ship’s sampling points before starting any sampling.
What is more, the surveyor should only take samples from a specific sample point, as indicated by the ships officer. The sampling operations have to be conducted in a safe and efficient manner which will prevent any escape of cargo liquid or vapours to the atmosphere or the deck of the ship beyond that required by the sampling process. Any spillage has to be cleaned up immediately.
Another important fact is that the surveyor should not be left unattended whilst taking samples.
Fees for MARPOL surveyor duties
MARPOL Surveyors may charge for their services, which fees should be fixed by agreement between the Ship’s Master and Surveyor.
Registration of MARPOL surveyors
MARPOL Surveyors must re-register with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) every year in order for the Authorisation to be valid. It is the responsibility of the company to ensure that details of all authorised MARPOL Surveyors are sent to the MCA from 1st to 31st October of each year.
Finally, MARPOL surveyors must notify UK MCA if they change employer as this requires a new authorisation. If a surveyor does not inform the Maritime and Coastguard Agency of such changes, his/hers MARPOL Surveyor Authorisation will become invalid.
In October 2018, UK MCA updated its list of approved MARPOL surveyors to include the following individuals: