Marpol Annex VI

• This international legislation covering all shipping activity establishes Sulphur Emissions Control Areas (SECAs) which are geographically defined areas where ships must limit their SOx emissions.
• The first of these, the Baltic Sea, will come into effect on May 20, 2006, with the North Sea and English Channel becoming SECAs in 2007.
• For further information and the detailed text of legislation, click on INDEPTH below and visit www.imo.org

INDEPTH
The relevant MARPOL Annex VI clause on SOx abatement is: While ships are within SO, emission control areas, at least one-of the following conditions shall be fulfilled:

(a) the sulphur content of fuel oil used on board ships in a SO, emission control area does not exceed 1.5% m/m;

(b) an exhaust gas cleaning system, approved by the Administration taking into account guidelines to be developed by the Organization, is applied to reduce the total emission of sulphur oxides from ships, including both auxiliary and main propulsion engines, to 6.0 g SOx/kW h or less calculated as the total weight of sulphur dioxide emission. Waste streams from the use of such equipment shall not be discharged into enclosed ports, harbours and estuaries unless it can be thoroughly documented by the ship that such waste streams have no adverse impact on the ecosystems of such enclosed ports, harbours and estuaries, based upon criteria communicated by the authorities of the port State to the Organization. The Organization shall circulate the criteria to all Parties to the Convention; or

(c) any other technological method that is verifiable and enforceable to limit SO2 emissions to a level equivalent to that described in sub-paragraph (b) is applied. These methods shall be approved by the Administration taking into account guidelines to be developed by the Organization