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28Maritime Reporter & Engineering News What has changed during2012 in the maritimeworld and how has it im- pacted industry? It is re-cent IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), changes.IMO has adopted amendments to the In-ternational Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL).These changes will have a vast and fun- damental impact on the maritime indus-try and the world over the next few years. With new IMO regulations pertaining to emission control areas, fuels, sewage, and garbage rampant and coming into effect throughout the world how will and do shipping companies survive and prosper? Fundamentally for successful compa-nies it will be a thorough and compre-hensive strategic plan that will allow implementation of these new rules and regulations. Much will have to go into these plans so that maritime companiescan adopt a systematic time basedmethodology that will allow them to ef- fectively complete a seamless transition. What are the key elements that ship- ping companies will need to be preparedfor due to the recently adopted IMOamendments to MARPOL:1.Designated the United States Caribbean Sea as a new Emission Con- trol Area (ECA), Annex VI. 2.Designated the Baltic Sea as a Spe- cial Area with respect to pollution by sewage from ships, Annex IV. 3.Adopted a revised Annex V related to the control of garbage. 4.Adopted mandatory measures to re- duce emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from international shipping. 5.Designated the Strait of Bonifacio as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) and adopted the first-ever in- ternational recommendations to ad- dress bio-fouling of ships, to minimize the transfer of aquatic species.6.Approved a number of ballast water management and ship recycling con- ventions. On July 15, 2011, the IMO officially designated waters around Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as an area in which stringent international emissionstandards will apply to ships. For this area, the effective date of the first-phase fuel sulfur standard is 2014, and the sec-ond phase begins in 2015. Stringent ni- trogen oxide (NOx) engine standardsbegin in 2016. While ships are operating in the USCaribbean Sea ECA, the sulfur content offuel oil used on board ships shall not ex- ceed 1% micrograms/milliliter (m/m)(weight) on and after 1 January 2014, and0.10% m/m on and after 1 January 2015.For ships, built on or before 1 August 2011 that are powered by propulsion boilers that were not originally designedfor continued operation on marine distil-late fuel or natural gas, the above sulfur requirements may not be applied prior to1 January 2020.Ships constructed on or after 1 January2016 shall comply with the NOx emis-sion limits when operating within the USCaribbean Sea ECA.IMO has additionally designated waters off both North American coasts as areas that will have stringent emissions stan- dards for vessels. In these areas the ef- fective date for sulfur fuel or sulfur oxide-(SOx) and Particulate Matter (PM) emissions has gone into force on August 1, 2011 and has been effective as of Au- gust 1, 2012. A second phase begins in 2015. Annex VI regulations include caps on sulfur content of fuel oil as a measure tocontrol SOx emissions and, indirectly, PM emissions (there are no specific PM emission limits). However in the future could we see the Environmental Protec- tion Agency (EPA) or IMO regulating PM within the US ECA? Alternative options are also permitted in the SOx ECAs and globally to reducesulfur emissions, such as through the useof exhaust scrubbers. For example, in lieu of using the 1.5% sulfur fuel in SOxECAs, ships can fit an Exhaust Gas Cleaning System (ECGS) or use any other technological method to limit SOxemissions.Another major switch would be finding an alternative fuel source such as LNG/Natural Gas or bio-fuels. Some re-cent developments in these areas include: A Louisiana-based marine transporta-tion company, specializing in towing drilling rigs and providing offshore sup- ply and support vessels for deep water operations in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, signed a contract in late 2011 to build 3 LNG powered clean running vessels characterized by state-of-the-art technol-ogy and outfitted beyond normal regula- tory requirements. This appears to further strengthen the case and trend for new builds to use clean fuels. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter HenryBlake refueled recently, using a 50/50 blend of petroleum and hydro-processed renewable diesel derived from algal oil, becoming the first Coast Guard cutter to use renewable diesel as part of an opera- tional evaluation. Successful evaluation of this fuel mixture can potentially helpfurther the development of alternative fuels in America, while reducing or elim- inating the United States dependence onforeign oil.IMO has given some reprieve on the ni- trogen oxide or NOx after treatmentemission requirements by not puttingthem into force until January 1, 2016.This was specifically done as NOx Tier III requirements per Annex VI would go into effect at that time. All vessels con- struction on or after January 1, 2016 is tohave diesel engines (2-Stroke and 4- Stroke) installed that meet Tier III re- quirements. NOx emission limits are set for dieselengines depending on the engine maxi-mum operating speed in RPM?s. Tier I and Tier II limits are global, while the Tier III standards apply only in NOx Emission Control Areas (ECA?s). Tier III standards will require dedi- cated NOx emission control technologiessuch as different forms of water induction into the combustion process (with fuel, scavenging air, or in-cylinder), exhaust gas recirculation, and selective catalytic reduction.Under the new global standards, NOx emissions will be reduced, and the fuelsulfur cap will drop to 5,000 ppm in2020. Under the new geographic stan- dards, ships operating in designatedECA?s will be required to use engines that meet the most advanced technology. These standards for NOx emissions begin in 2016, and will require fuel with a sul-fur content not exceeding 10,000 ppm in MARINE FUELS & LUBESNew Fuels, New Rules& New Tools to help the Maritime Community adapt to strict emission regulations The Strait of Bonifacio is the strait between Corsica and Sardinia named after the Corsican town Bonifacio. It divides the Tyrrhenian Sea and the western Mediterranean Sea. The strait is notorious among sailors for its strong currents, shoals and weather patterns as well as other obstacles.Since a tanker disaster in 1993, the passage through the Strait of Boni- facio has been prohibited for only French and Italian flag tank ships. MR#11 (26-33):MR Template 11/8/2012 10:19 AM Page 28