Green Economy in a Blue World-Full Report

in a Blue World

Seaborne oil trade and tanker spills

Number of spills

Billion Tonne - Miles

120

12 000

100

10 000

80

8 000

60

6 000

40

4 000

20

2 000

0

0

1970

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

Source: International Tanker Owners’ Pollution Federation Ltd. (ITOPF) Note: number of spills over 7 tonnes are accounted in this chart

their regulators to respond to various technical and political challenges, for the most part very effectively, although there is of course always more to be done. To a large extent, however, the importance of environmental protection, and the implementation of green management practices, is already a major feature of modern international shipping operations, underpinned by a comprehensive framework of international regulations, mainly developed by governments at the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The ultimate goal of the shipping industry and its regulators is zero accidents and zero pollution. Although these goals have not yet been fully achieved, considerable progress has been made, especially in the context of pollution from ships, an achievement all the more impressive when it is considered that the total amount of seaborne trade, measured in tonne-miles, has almost doubled since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 – from 17.54 billion tonne miles to an estimated 32.74 billion tonne miles, an increase of around 85 per cent. By way of example, the figure above provides data showing considerable growth in seaborne oil trade since themid-1980s, with, nevertheless, a significant reduction in the number of oil spills from ships. This is attributable to a number of leading factors, including the existence of relevant IMO standards, improving implementation and enforcement of those standards, heightened environmental awareness within the shipping industry and the application of industry best practices. In this regard, apart from the substantial legal and commercial penalties confronting shipping companies which might be associated with

any non-compliance with widely enforced international regulations governing the protection of the marine environment, not least the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution by Ships (MARPOL) 1973/1978, the importance of environmental protection is widely inculcated amongst shipping company personnel, both ashore and at sea. Indeed, seafarers serving on merchant ships are required by IMO’s revised International Convention on the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) 1978, to undertake environmental awareness training. The safety and security of life at sea, protection of the marine environment and over 90 per cent of the world’s trade depends on the professionalism and competence of seafarers. In 1997, IMO adopted a resolution setting out its vision, principles and goals for the human element, which is a complex multi-dimensional issue affecting shipping operations and environmental protection and involving the entire spectrum of human activities performed by ships’ crews, shore basedmanagement, regulatory bodies and others. All need to co-operate to address human element issues effectively, and environmental protection should be integral to the human element vision and actions. Until relatively recently, the main pressure on the shipping industry, from the environmental perspective, has been to develop means of reducing its impact on the marine environment through the prevention of pollution of the oceans and coastlines, especially from damage which might be caused by oil spills, whether carried as cargoes or bunker fuel. The initial impetus came from the understandable outrage which followed several serious oil spills which caused dramatic (albeit temporary)

41