SOx emission rules being avoided

Source Lloyd’s List vom 19.12.2011

A significant minority of about a fifth of ships are not complying with European requirements on sulphur emissions, according to research by the Seafarers' International Research Centre at Cardiff University, which has called for more effective enforcement of sulphur regulations. This is among the findings of an interim report on the effectiveness of international regulation of pollution controls: the case of the governance of ship emissions funded by the UK Economic & Social Research Council and supported by the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency. The research is based on ships calling at ports in the UK and Sweden. The research project continues through to the end of 2012. The report says that, based on its evidence, it is clear that a minority of berthing ships in the UK and Sweden are continuing to burn non-compliant fuel. Its estimate of 18% non-compliance for western Europe and the Baltic is mostly due to the supply of off-spec fuel, rather than conscious regulatory avoidance, but there is evidence of some deliberate avoidance. It notes ships deliberately avoiding compliance are unlikely to send samples for testing. There could be some additional inadvertent non-compliance of vessels with single service tanks operating an inadequate changeover procedure. It suggests the proportion of non-compliant ships varies considerably and for ships transiting UK and Swedish waters, but not calling there, the figure could be higher. In fact, fuel testing by Swedish authorities in Swedish ports revealed non-compliance of just 4%. This low figure could be due to longstanding financial incentives there to burn low-sulphur fuel, with an established fuel-sampling programme, for the high proportion of ships calling in Swedish ports that operate continuously in the Baltic and North Sea emissions control areas. It warns of the danger the shipping industry's culture of compliance could break down in this regulatory area, due to the substantial cost savings from running on non-compliant fuel. This supports the need for effective enforcement measures. “A reliance solely on visual checking of documents does not seem appropriate to this need for particularly effective enforcement," the report says. "If the EU 0.1% sulphur pot fuel regulations are not to appear toothless, non-compliant vessels need to be named and shamed on the Equasis website." Among its recommendations are that the MCA pilots the use of fuel sampling and testing kits, similar to those already in use in Sweden, German and the Netherlands, in conjunction with laboratory testing. All EU countries should inform the European Commission of vessels found to be non-compliant. Agreement should be sought at the International Maritime Organization for a new format of bunker fuel delivery note in English that should state the sulphur content and the deliverer of the fuel.