Date for global sulphur cap set
During last week's MEPC 70 in London
In a landmark decision for both the environment and human health, January 1st 2020 has been set as the implementation date for a significant reduction in the sulphur content of the fuel oil used by ships.
The decision to implement a global sulphur cap of 0.50% in 2020 was taken by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the regulatory authority for international shipping, during its Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), meeting for its 70th session in London.
It represents a significant cut from the 3.5% global limit currently in place and demonstrates a clear commitment by IMO to ensuring shipping meets its environmental obligations.
IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim welcomed the decision which he said reflected the Organization’s determination to ensure that international shipping remains the most environmentally sound mode of transport.
“The reductions in sulphur oxide emissions resulting from the lower global sulphur cap are expected to have a significant beneficial impact on the environment and on human health, particularly that of people living in port cities and coastal communities, beyond the existing emission control areas,” Lim said.
Ships can meet the requirement by using low-sulphur compliant fuel oil. An increasing number of ships are also using gas as a fuel as when ignited it leads to negligible sulphur oxide emissions. This has been recognised in the development by IMO of the International Code for Ships using Gases and other Low Flashpoint Fuels (the IGF Code), which was adopted in 2015. Another alternative fuel is methanol which is being used on some short sea services.
Ships may also meet the SOx emission requirements by using approved equivalent methods, such as exhaust gas cleaning systems or scrubbers, which clean the emissions before they are released into the atmosphere. In this case, the equivalent arrangement must be approved by the ship’s administration (the flag state).
The new global cap will not change the 0.10% limits in SOx Emission Control Areas (ECAs), which were established by the IMO in January 2015.
