Oct. 7, 2011
ClassNK issues Technical Information TEC- 0866 regarding Designation of US Caribbean Emission Control Area under MARPOL ANNEX VI (Regulations for the Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships) as follows:
Information on Emission Control Areas (hereinafter referred to as ECA) specified in MARPOL ANNEX VI (hereinafter referred to as ANNEX VI) has already been provided in ClassNK Technical Information No.TEC-0654 issued on 13 April 2006, No.TEC-0771 issued on 13 May 2009 and No.TEC-0832 issued on 11 November 2010.
In this connection, the United States Caribbean Sea area has been designated as a new ECA in accordance with the amendments to ANNEX VI adopted at the 62nd session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 62) held in July 2011.
The relevant information has been circulated by the IMO as the attached Resolution MEPC.202(62). This ClassNK Technical Information provides information relating to the above matter.
1. Sea area newly designated as ECA
The United States Caribbean Sea area (the sea area located off the Atlantic and Caribbean coasts of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands) is designated as ECA for NOx, SOx and Particulate Matter (PM) emissions. Please refer to IMO Resolution MEPC.202(62) for the detailed definition of the sea area.
2. Application
The amendments will enter into force on 1 January 2013. However, the requirements regarding SOx and Particulate Matter (PM) emissions (Regulation 14 of ANNEX VI) in the United States Caribbean Sea area will commence on 1 January 2014, because an exemption clause for the first 12 months is specified in ANNEX VI. On the other hand, the requirements for NOx emissions in the United States Caribbean Sea area will commence after 1 January 2016*, because NOx Tier III requirements specified in Regulation 13 of ANNEX VI will be applied in the ECA at that time.
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