In a warning to non-compliant ports, secretary general Peter Hinchliffe told IAPH world conference attendees: “We’re certainly interested in following up on facilities that fall short of international legislation.”
He said that the ICS had received reports that early adopters of open loop scrubbers – an alternative means to comply with low sulphur legislation – have been refused entrance to some ports. Instead these ships have been told to switch to low sulphur fuel, against the installation advice of the scrubber manufacturer and increasing the risk of breakdown in the port entrance.
Additionally, users of closed loop systems have reported difficulties in landing waste sludge generated by their alternative systems.
“This is another example of a lack of waste reception facilities,” he said.
Mr Hinchliffe did concede that the regulatory process at IMO is in need of a “serious overall” and needs to be shifted to take account of the impacts on industry and on world trade.
“Unexpected consequences of regulation must be avoided,” he said. “We can control this process if we get a common industry determination with all the industry stakeholders, including ports, at the IMO.”
But, he said, this connection needs to be made quickly before the Ballast Water Convention, air emissions legislation and climate change considerations really “start to bite”.