Polemis (ICS): the shipping it is not "a cow to milk"



Taking part today to the conference and international fair "CMA Shipping 2012" to Stamford, in Connecticut, organized from the Connecticut Maritime Association (CMA), the president of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), Spyros M Polemis, have emphasized that the measures for the control of the environmental impact of the economic activities must be rapportate to the truth of the economy.

In particular, referring to the field of shipping, the Polemis it has evidenced that "it is always important to emphasize that we are a total industry that demands total rules. If the more important economies as the United States adopt norms that are various from those agreed by the governments near the International Maritime Organization - have explained - we have the chaos. And it is also worse if the single States of the United States decide to adopt own rules in contrast with the federal dispositions: we run really the risk to double the chaos".

Polemis has cited for example the issue of the ballast water, "regarding which - it has explained - some single States speak about standard of treatment 100 times more rigorous than it is agreed in center IMO and for which the necessary equipments simply do not exist".

"Moreover - it has added - there is California, with own unilateral norms on the atmospheric pollution, that they are still object of reliefs from the legal point of view by the industry, even if after the effectiveness of the Marpol dispositions of the IMO on the sulfur emissions of the ships - Polemis has said - it is hoped diminishes the temptation for the single States to develop own environmental norms". "However - it has emphasized - as general observation I must say that we are disappointed by the appearing reluctance of the current American administration to defend federal norms respect to infractions store clerks from USA States".

"Unfortunately, with water of ballast - it has specified the president of the ICS - the problem that we have with some States of the USA that they choose to cover an own road is aggravated by the failure of the effectiveness of the Ballast convention Toilets Management of the IMO, even if one previews that this will happen in the next few years. Moreover, unfortunately, in a recent reunion of the IMO, under the pressure of the United States, or more precisely of the Environmental Protection Agency, important lines are proposed some important modifications to some guide in matter of sampling of the ballast waters that will be used by the inspectors of the State of landing place and that, if adopted from the IMO, could potentially be very harmful for the shipowners".

"At the end of the reunion of the IMO - Polemis has remembered - the ICS has introduced a energetic declaration about the direction that is taken and about the fact that the lines guides proposed they will have therefore to be reexamined. However this means that now that these lines guide on the examinations to champion they will not be approved of at least until 2013, what that in its turn would have to ulteriorly delay the ulterior ratifiche necessary in order to place in vigor the Ballast Toilets Management Convention of the IMO. This - it has found - creates other problems to the shipowners because of the fixed dates within which the existing ships must install the new equipment of treatment, very expensive, demanded from the convention".

"I mention this particular problem - Polemis has explained - to the aim to evidence the danger of a norm based on aspirations. For reasons notes, included the economic damage for the determined American economy from the problem of the zebrate mussels, it has been an enormous political pressure on the IMO so that in the 2044 the convention was adopted. But the equipments necessary in order to comply to new requirement, and the complex lines guide techniques necessary in order to guarantee the correct application, successively are not developed: this explains because only now the governments are next to the condition of being able to ratify. This - it has emphasized - is indeed a case of environmental aspirations that are incompatible with some of the technical truths, not to mention those economic ones".

Referring then to the measures for the control of the emissions of co2, Polemis has remembered that last July the IMO has reached "a pioneering agreement on the technical and operating measures in order to reduce the emissions of co2 of the marine transport, that has the full support of the international industry. The reduction of the emissions through the reduction of the consumption and a greater efficiency - it has observed - is of new a issue of illuminated personal interest: it is a fact and he is totally compatible with the bad conditions of the market that we are living in this moment. But when it is arrived to the debate on so-called the Market Based Measures - it has evidenced - for us it is important to be more guarded and cautious".

"The shipowning societies - it has explained - are with justice skeptical about the introduction of measures based on the market. The high cost of the fuel, that it seems destined to still grow, means that the shipowners have already all the interest to still reduce more their emissions. Recently the associations of the Table Round (the organization to which the main world-wide shipowning associations are under responsibility, ndr) have clarified that now the moment to impose additional costs on shipping that they seem to offer the little benefits from the environmental point of view, also those relative ones to global warming is not sure. However it is important to understand now that, to out of the United States - it has emphasized Polemis - many governments see the measures based on the market is as a aim in itself and a way in order to collect deep from the shipping is as means in order to supply economic resources to relative projects to the climatic change in the nations developing, as part of negotiations for a new total agreement that replaces the protocol of Kyoto, or simply as means in order to collect money that goes directly in the cases of the government".

"Many European governments - he has accused the president of the ICS - are many opening with regard to this and have suggested that until 40 billion dollars per year he could be collected from the shipping. This - it has denounced - is unjust. The ICS has put in clearly that the industry would not have to be considered as a cow to milk and that the expenditure of payments of such capacity could be seen with justice from the nations developing as a tax on the commerce and a kind of green protectionism".