Polar Code causes concern


Development of the Polar Code to cover ships operating in the Arctic and Antarctic has raised a number of issues, not least as far as the design of vessels is concerned, writes Sandra Speares.


2012, when the Design and Equipment Sub-Committee meets to review progress on the particular challenges posed by the increasing use of Polar waters for maritime transportation. As operations in Polar waters seems to


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offer increasing potential, not least in terms of reduced voyage times, attention has turned to demands that will be placed on crews, ship design and operations in a hostile climate, with floating ice and the need for icebreakers. Te Explorer cruise casualty in 2007, when


over 150 passengers and crew had to take to the lifeboats aſter the ship hit ice in the Antarctic, is just one example of the dangers of operating in ice-infested waters. Speaking at the International Chamber


of Shipping conference in September, Daniel Hosseus, of the German Shipowners’ Association noted a shortage of places of refuge, not to mention poor communications and limited search and rescue and pollution response capabilities. Te issues are due to be debated at the


IMO’s design and equipment subcommittee in February 2012. Issues under discussion include the demands on various ships types and challenges posed by different ship categories operating in areas with varying ice cover, including what additional structural requirements and compliance mechanisms will be needed. Demands on shipbuilders and designers to


meet the challenges of new regulation alongside the demands of a hostile environment, may have serious effects on crews’ operational capabilities that need to be considered. Te many points raised were outlined in a


report prepared by Norwegian classification society Det Norske Veritas for the IMO which was released last month. Te hazard identification (Hazid) report


touches not only on issues concerning ship design, but also on emissions control, safety measures in Arctic and Antarctic waters,


The Naval Architect January 2012


ssues relating to the Code are due to be debated at the International Maritime Organization (IMO)


in February


• Greater energy efficiency as outlined in MARPOL Annex 6


• Limited size of fuel oil tanks, or greater sub division of tanks


• Damage stability and other survivability requirements


• Larger waste carrying capacity (so waste can be offloaded in safer locations)


• Use of water instead of oil based hydraulic fluids


• Ensuring appropriate hull residual strength for the conditions


• Improved propeller design to reduce propeller noise


David Tongue, director of regulatory affairs at the International Chamber of Shipping.


search and rescue, high level navigational hazards and equipment requirements. While the Polar Code is intended to cover


both the Arctic and the Antarctic, it has been recognised that there are a number of differences between the two, one example being the need to consider human populations in Arctic regions – less of an issue in the Antarctic. If some of the high level hazards ships


face are no different from those they face elsewhere in the world – ship to ship collisions, groundings, fires and explosions for example – the consequences of such hazards occurring in Polar waters may be very different. Other issues to be considered include the effects of high latitudes on ships’ electronic equipment, the need for equipment that will be able to function effectively in extremely cold conditions, restricted bunker fuel types that are fit for purpose, to name but a few issues. As far as the report is concerned, some


• Taking the environment into account when designing ship systems, for example


of the issues to be considered relating to the design of ships include:


• Using fuels with lower carbon content, for example LNG or LPG


installing more efficient combustion systems and low emission burners


• Sufficient engine power to operate in ice


• Load monitoring systems to detect stresses on ship


wearing heavy


•Improved ship manoeuvrability and crash stop capability.


According to David Tongue, director


of regulatory affairs at the International Chamber of Shipping, some of the general implications for shipbuilders of the development of the Polar Code may include the need for more icebreakers and ice class vessels, possible changes to performance and text standards for equipment used on ships operating in polar waters, and the potential for increased complexity of “interaction between IMO, flag and class requirements for individual ships depending on the intended service”. “If Northern sea routes become more


available in general, then in addition to standard ships being able to transit areas of clear water, there are likely to be increased opportunities for transit of areas that are not ice free but where the ice cover has reduced enough to allow voyages such that increases in fuel consumption due to transit through the ice are still outweighed by the advantages of reduced voyage distances and times, thereby leading to an increase in the demand for ice-class ships.


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• Equipment designed to be easy to use in cold environments for example when


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