New Clean Shipping Fuel Rules, But Who Will Police the Polluters?
December 19, 2019 by Reuters
By Jonathan Saul LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) – Sweeping new fuel rules aiming to cut pollution belching from ships and save lives are now just a couple of weeks away but with no central policing agency and several countries still not signed up to them, compliance is a major concern.
From January 2020, ships must use fuel with a sulfur content of 0.5%, down from 3.5%, or install devices that strip out the toxic pollutant – known as scrubbers.
As a result, refiners and shipping companies will spend billions of dollars in the years ahead on ensuring fuel and engines comply.
But enforcement of the United Nations convention on cleaner fuels – known as MARPOL Annex VI – rests with individual countries and flag states, meaning for some routes and regions, compliance is already looking patchy.
A handful of major states resisted pressure this month at the UN’s COP25 climate talks in Madrid to ramp up efforts to combat global warming, underscoring a need for collective action to cut carbon emissions and wider pollution.
Despite two decades in the making, countries such as Israel and New Zealand have been unable to sign up in time for the 2020 IMO start date, while others such as Malaysia are considering how to apply the rules.
“I am sure there will be pockets (of non-compliance) initially,” said Guy Platten, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping association.
“Without co-ordination and consistency, shipowners will be placed in a no-win situation,” he said.
So far, over 90 countries have adopted the rules, which were set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), leaving large parts of Africa and South America yet to sign up.
Russia said in October that while it pledged to stick to its obligations in international waters from 2020, it wants to postpone introduction of the rules domestically to prevent a sharp jump in marine fuel prices for its domestic river fleet.
The IMO said flag states which have signed up represented almost 97% of world merchant shipping by tonnage.
“It is recognized that in some areas the coverage by port state is not 100%, but as soon as a ship trades to a state which has acceded to MARPOL Annex VI they could be subject to control,” it said.
All commercial ships have to be registered, or flagged, with a particular country, partly to comply with safety and environmental regulations.
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