Green passports get stamp of approval

The inventory of hazardous materials – or green passports – is a requirement of the ship recycling convention, and class societies are helping their clients comply

There is a common thread among class societies which is their pledge to protect the environment by means of inventories of hazardous materials (IHM), also known as green passports.

Class societies know that the green passport is a requirement of the Ship Recycling Convention, adopted in May 2009. There are 25 regulations under this umbrella, and the requirement for an IHM is number 5.

This convention requires that ships have an IHM stipulating the materials present in the ship’s structure, systems and equipment that might be hazardous to health and the environment.

The Convention says it will eventually be required for all ships over 500gt (excluding naval ships and certain vessels that are used for non-commercial government purposes). Currently the IHM is voluntary for any vessel – but will become mandatory for most newbuildings over the next few years.

“It is expected that the new Convention could enter into force sometime around 2015. Once it does, all newbuildings will have to have an approved IHM. And within five years of the entry into force date it will be mandatory for in-service ships to maintain an inventory too,” says Jim Heath, green passport product manager at Lloyd’s Register.

Earlier this month the UK’s Environment Agency detained the LNG carrier Margaret Hill.The 1974-built, 50,748dwt vessel was suspected of containing hazardous material, and stopped from leaving the UK for scrapping. Although older vessels can contain such material, they must report to the relevant authorities before heading for scrapping. An investigation into what the ship had on board is being carried out.

Heath says some of the headache could have been spared if the vessel had an IHM. “In this instance it would act as a formal record stating that the vessel contained hazardous materials, and a detailed sampling plan to identify hazards could have been drawn up,” he explains.

“Not only would the crew and owners have focused on environmental, hazard management and health and safety issues while compiling the IHM, but a suitable authorised recycling facility could have been identified too.”  

The IHM records hazards, rather than prohibits them. The shipowner or builder provides the information on the inventory; the class society checks, approves and verifies this information. In addition, preparation of a sampling plan and a ...