Friday, 16th March 2007
16 March 2007:
INTERTANKO has warned of an increase in the imposition of ballast water (BW) fines by the State Inspectorate for the Protection of the Black Sea (SIPBS).
INTERTANKO reports incidents in the ports of Odessa, Ilychevsk and Yuzhny.The procedure as detailed below (21st February 2006) includes testing of BW samples for the following levels:
- oil products 0.05mg/litre
- iron 0.05mg/litre
- suspended solids 0.75mg/litre or 2mg/litre depending on the regulatory source.
Members are advised to inform INTERTANKO of any further cases of what they consider to be unwarranted penalties.
21 February 2006:
State requirements for the protection of the Black Sea include:
- On entry segregated ballast must be exchanged for Black Sea ballast
- Record this exchange in the oil record book and the logbook
- Declare to the agent the amount of ballast to discharge at loading berth
- On berthing the ballast water will be sampled and tested before discharge is allowed
It appears that even Black Sea ballast can fail the testing process resulting in either:
- Fines against the master and the shipor
- Leaving the berth to de-ballast outside the 12 mile zone
The cost of leaving the berth appears to invariably exceed the level of fines.
Members should contact Ukrainian correspondents Dias Co. Ltd or James Moran James.moran@nepia.com at North of England for advice.