IMO Moves Toward Arctic Heavy Fuel Oil Ban
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) and its member states have agreed on the draft amendments to MARPOL Annex I to ban the use and carriage of heavy fuel oil (HFO) by ships in Arctic waters on and after July 1, 2024.
The draft amendments will be submitted to the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 76) to be held in October with a view to approval and circulation for adoption at MEPC 77 in spring 2021.
The prohibition would cover the use and carriage for use as fuel of oils having a density at 15°C higher than 900 kg/m3 or a kinematic viscosity at 50°C higher than 180 mm2/s.
Ships engaged in securing the safety of ships, or in search and rescue operations, and ships dedicated to oil spill preparedness and response would be exempted.
In line with the draft amendments, ships that meet certain construction standards with regard to oil fuel tank protection would need to comply on and after July 1, 2029.
“A party to MARPOL with a coastline bordering Arctic waters may temporarily waive the requirements for ships flying its flag while operating in waters subject to that party’s sovereignty or jurisdiction, up to July 1, 2029,” the IMO said.
NGOs led by the Clean Arctic Alliance and Indigenous groups cautiously acknowledged the progress on regulating the use and carriage of HFO in the Arctic.
However, the NGOs denounced the inclusion of loopholes in the text that mean the ban will not come into effect until 2029, leaving the Arctic “exposed to the growing threat of HFO spills for close to another decade.”
“While the IMO has made some progress on controlling heavy fuel oil use and carriage as fuel in the Arctic, it is outrageous that Member States are prepared to accept another decade of threats from HFO spills to Arctic communities, the environment and wildlife,” said Sian Prior, Lead Advisor to the Clean Arctic Alliance, a coalition of 18 non-governmental organisations.
“With the climate crisis already having significant impacts across the Arctic region and routes opening up to increased ship traffic, IMO Member States must take a more ambitious stance later this year, by agreeing to rid the Arctic of HFO in 2024.”
Meanwhile, the Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR) established a correspondence group to further develop draft guidelines on measures to reduce risks of use and carriage of HFO as fuel by ships in Arctic waters.
The draft guidelines would cover ship operation, ship construction and heavy fuel oil bunkering, infrastructure and communication, enhancement of heavy fuel oil spill preparedness, early detection and response, and drills and training.
PPR acknowledged a study concluding that fuel oil aromatic content is a key parameter for black carbon emissions. However, the sub-committee invited member organizations to conduct more research, and it was agreed to establish a Correspondence Group to PPR 8.
The International Standardization Organization (ISO) said it was in the process of monitoring properties of very low sulphur fuel oil and high sulphur fuel oil and would provide feedback on their performance. ISO will examine the possibility to add a further measure to provide an approximate indication as to whether a fuel is more paraffinic or aromatic, based on the characteristics already included in the ISO 8217 standard.
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