Page 26: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2000)

Safety At Sea

IMO, slightly modified, in the form of a joint submission from France, Belgium and Germany. This and several other ini- tial proposals call for the accelerated phase out of single hull tankers accord- ing to a schedule the world shipbuilding and scrapping industries could face problems in meeting if oil deliveries to global markets are to continue at current levels. The INTERTANKO submission to MEPC 45 is in the nature of an infor- mation paper, with comments to the var- ious proposals for single hull phase out.

INTERTANKO supports an open dis- cussion of the various proposals at IMO, leading to a reasonable and practical solution, and the Association has con- tributed extensive data to ensure that a final decision is based on comprehen- sive and accurate information. The

INTERTANKO proposal calls for entire phase-out to be gradually achieved, in a controlled manner, over the period 2010-2015, in a timetable which aligns, generally, with that specified in OPA 90 requirements for the phase-in of double hull tankers.

Exxon Mobil Appeal Rejected

The U.S. Supreme Court recently rejected an appeal by Exxon Mobil

Corp. over the $5 billion punitive dam- ages verdict against it for the 1989

Valdez accident. The justices let stand a

U.S. appeals court ruling that the award against the oil giant in a civil lawsuit brought by Alaskan fishermen and other plaintiffs should not be set aside because of irregularities during jury delibera- tions. The appeal centered on the mis- conduct of a court bailiff who escorted the jury during the 1994 trial and the deliberations. A dissenting juror had reportedly become emotionally dis- traught on the 32nd day of deliberations.

When the jurors returned from the holi- day weekend, the bailiff approached another juror and said the jurors were having problems with the distraught juror, the juror later testified at a hearing before the judge.

The bailiff then reportedly pulled out his gun and took out one of its bullets and said something about putting the juror out of her misery, the juror said.

He said he took it as a tasteless joke rather than as a threat or serious sugges- tion. The judge and then the appeals court ruled that Exxon Mobil had failed to prove that the jury had been preju- diced by the bailiff's misconduct. In its

Supreme Court appeal, Exxon Mobil said, "This case involves the fundamen- tal right to a fair and impartial jury." The

Supreme Court denied the company's appeal without any comment or dissent.

The company still has other appeals pending before the California-based appeals court, and that the high court's action was not the final word on whether the damages would have to be paid.

IMO Forum To Address

High-Density Oil Spills

During the recent IMO 45th session of its Marine Environment Protection

Committee (MEPC 45), it was agreed to hold a Research and Development

Forum in March 2002, which will focus primarily on response to spills of high- density oil. France will host the forum, which will be the third R&D Forum sponsored by IMO. High-density fuel oils such as that carried by Erika are among the most difficult and most cost- ly to deal with when spilled.

Ballast Water Exchange

An MEPC Working Group furthered the efforts to enact new regulations for ballast water management to prevent the transfer of harmful aquatic organisms in ballast water. It is planned to hold a diplomatic conference during 2002 or 2003 to adopt the new measures. The proposed new measures take a two-tier approach. Tier one includes require-

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