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STATUTORY ALERT Regulatory update an overview of forthcoming legislation

APPLICABILITY Senior and executive managers of ship owning and operating companies

INFORMATION This edition of Classification News provides an overview of forthcoming safety andenvironmental legislation which may affect the management and operation of your ships.If you have any comments or queries about the information it contains, please contact ourExternal Affairs team in London: external-affairs@lr.org, or call +44 (0)20 7423 2846.

Revised SOLAS chapter IIChanges to chapter II-I of the SOLAS Convention mean that requirements for subdivisionand damage stability on board passenger and cargo ships will be based on the sameprobabilistic concept. In practice, this is likely to mean greater flexibility in the design ofcruise ships and more subdivision on car carriers and small coastal ships. The

amendments, which came into force on January 1, 2009, also require pipes in water tightcompartments to be fitted with non-return valves and specify a minimum height for doublebottoms. They may also increase the number of bilge pumps required under bulkheaddecks.

2008 Intact Stability CodeDesigners of passenger ships and other ships with large windage areas will need tocomply with weather criteria which will be mandatory under the new Intact Stability Code.This will be compulsory from July 1, 2010. The standard assumptions for the wind leverand angle of roll can be changed to those directly applicable to a specific ship by usingmodel tests. Some flag administrations may choose to use the new Code before thecompulsory implementation date. If changing to such a flag, ships may need to complywith the weather criteria retrospectively. If a computerised loading instrument is used to

support the approved stability book, it must be approved by the flag administration.

New requirements for passenger shipsPassenger ships built on or after July 1, 2010, carrying 36 people or more, will have to befitted with a detection system to alert the bridge in the event of flooding. In addition, shipswhich are longer than 120 metres or which have three or more vertical fire zones mustensure that essential systems remain operational after a fire or flooding.

International long-range identification and tracking (LRIT) systemChapter V of SOLAS requires passenger ships (including high-speed craft), cargo shipsof 300 gt and above (including high-speed craft) and mobile offshore drilling units totransmit LRIT information (the ships ID, position and time of position) at least four times aday. It applies automatically to ships built on or after December 31, 2008. For ships built

before this date, the compliance requirements will be phased in based on the shipscertified sea areas of operation (A1, A2, A3 and A4).

BC CodeAmendments to the SOLAS Convention will make the BC Code mandatory. It will now becalled the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) Code. It could beimplemented on a voluntary basis from January 1, 2009, and is expected to becomemandatory from January 1, 2011. A number of changes have been made to therequirements for carriage of cargo. These may require alterations to ships structure andequipment.

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Major revisions to MARPOL Annex VIRevisions to Annex VI of the MARPOL Convention will enter into force on July 1, 2010,resulting in a reduction in the sulphur oxide (SOx) emission limits in the Baltic Sea andNorth Sea Emission Control Areas (ECAs): from July 1, 2010 the current limit of 1.50%m/m will change to 1.00% m/m; and from January 1, 2015, it will change to 0.10% m/m.The SOx emission limits outside ECAs will change from the current 4.50% to 3.50% fromJanuary 1, 2012. Subject to a review of fuel availability, it is also proposed that a 0.50%

fuel sulphur limit will be introduced from January 1, 2020.

Lower nitrogen oxide (NOx) emission limits will come into effect for diesel enginesinstalled on ships constructed after January 1, 2011. For ships built after January 1, 2016,operating in ECAs, an 80% reduction, approximately, in NOx emissions will be required.Large diesel engines installed on ships constructed between 1990 and 2000 will also berequired to meet current NOx emission limits, provided that an Approved Method ofachieving the required reduction is available.

NOx Technical CodeThe revised NOx Technical Code enters into force on July 1, 2010. The main changes tothe Code cover: approval of existing (pre-2000) engines; approval of direct measurementand monitoring methods; and amended NOx emission calculation procedures.

Ballast Water Management ConventionUncertainties over the availability of type-approved ballast water treatment technologyhave led to a resolution being adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).This recommends that, for ships with a ballast water capacity of 5000 m3 built in 2009,the requirement to install and use a treatment system should not be enforced untilDecember 31, 2011. The Convention has not entered into force yet and needs to beratified by 30 states, representing 35% of world tonnage. To date, it has been ratified by16 states, representing 14.4% of world tonnage.

Installation of ballast water treatment systemsShipbuilders and shipowners are encouraged to consider installing ballast watertreatment systems on ships scheduled for construction in 2010, or, at the very least, to

consider making provisions in the design for their installation. Considerations fordesigners include: space for fitting ballast water treatment systems; system powercapacity requirements; and the design of ballast piping systems. Owners of existing shipsare also encouraged to investigate what will be required to retrofit ballast water treatmentsystems on their vessels.

Lloyds Registers Ballast Water Treatment Technology GuideAn updated version of our Ballast Water Treatment Technology Guide is now available.This provides an overview of ballast water treatment technologies and their status.The Guide can be downloaded at:http://www.lr.org/Industries/Marine/Services/Consultancy/Ballast+water+management.htm

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissionsThis is a key environmental issue for the marine industry, and a challenging one. TheIMO has been working on the development of measures to control GHG emissions primarily carbon dioxide (CO2) from ships for the past decade and progress has beenmade with technical and operational guidance. This includes the formulation of a shipOperational Energy Index and a Design Energy Index for new ships. Options for thestabilisation and reduction of GHG emissions from the world fleet are also beingevaluated.

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Draft IMO ship recycling conventionThe IMO has been developing ship recycling requirements covering: prohibited material;maintenance of inventories of hazardous materials on board; and survey and certificationschemes, including approval of ship recycling plans. The text of the new convention isscheduled to be adopted at the Diplomatic Conference in May 2009. There are still major

items to be addressed before the final convention text is adopted and the entry into forcecriteria are achieved.

Further information

Contact: External AffairsT +44 (0)20 7423 2846F +44 (0)20 7423 1564

E external-affairs@lr.org

www.lr.org

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