Port maritime authorities undertake “concentrated inspection campaign”

The port maritime authorities that undertake regulatory checks on all ships are to add a “concentrated inspection campaign” from 2018 to ensure compliance with new sulfur limits in bunker fuel, the Danish Maritime Authority said in a statement on its website.

“The concentrated inspection campaign” follows a Danish-Dutch initiative to ramp up monitoring of the regulations and will see the authorities, known collectively as Port State Control, take part across the globe.

Peter Krog-Meyer, who is an adviser to the Danish Maritime Authority, said that it is a strong signal. He added that they have joined forces in their efforts to enhance the enforcement of the sulphur provisions across borders.

A thorough examination of sulfur

A concentrated inspection campaign means that the 45 countries covered by the Port State Control bodies under the so-called Paris and Tokyo memorandum of understanding regimes, will carry out a thorough examination of a chosen area, such as sulfur, when their officials inspect foreign ships.

The concentrated inspection campaign should increase compliance with the regulations as well as raising awareness among ship crews of new sulfur cap regulations.

The International Maritime Organization is to impose a global 0.5% sulfur cap on marine fuel from 2020. In emission control areas, currently enforced in North America ,North Sea and Baltic, a 0.1% sulfur cap is in place.