Ingangsdatum: 06-03-1992
Geldig tot en met: 12-03-2000
2.5.1 Ship personnel will almost always be in the
best position to take quick action to mitigate or control the discharge of oil
from their ship. The plan should provide the master with clear guidance on how to
accomplish this mitigation for a variety of situations. The Plan should not only
outline action to be taken, but it should also identify who on board is
responsible so that confusion during the emergency can be avoided.
2.5.2 This section of the Plan will vary
widely from ship to ship. Differences in ship type, construction, cargo,
equipment, manning, and even route may result in shifting emphasis being placed on
various aspects of this section. As a minimum, the Plan should provide the master
with guidance to address the following
.1 Operational spills : The Plan should outline the procedures for
removal of oil spilled and contained on deck. This may be through the use of
on-board resources or by hiring a clean-up company. In either case the Plan should
provide guidance to ensure proper disposal of removed oil and clean-up materials.
.1.1 Pipe leakage : The Plan should
provide specific guidance for dealing with pipe leakage.
.1.2 Tank overflow : Procedures for dealing with tank
overflows should be included. Alternatives such as lowering cargo or bunkers back
to empty or slack tanks or readying pumps to transfer the excess ashore should be
outlined.
.1.3 Hull leakage : The Plan
should provide guidance for responding to spillage due to suspected hull leakage.
This may involve guidance on measures to be taken to reduce the head of cargo in
the tank involved either by internal transfer or discharge ashore. Procedures to
handle situations where it is not possible to identify the specific tank from
which leakage is occurring should also be provided. Procedures for dealing with
suspected hull fractures should be included and they should carry appropriate
cautions regarding attention to the effect corrective actions may gave on hull
stress and stability.
.2 Spills
resulting from casualties : Each of the casualties listed below should be treated
in the Plan as a separate section comprised of various checklists or other means
which will ensure that the master considers all appropriate factors when
addressing the specific casualty. These checklists must be tailored to the
specific ship. In addition to the checklists, specific personnel assignments for
anticipated tasks must be identified. Reference to existing fire control plans and
muster lists is sufficient to identify personnel responsibilities:
.2.1 grounding;
.2.2 fire / explosion;
.2.3 collision;
.2.4 hull
failure;
.2.5 excessive list.
2.5.3 In addition to the checklists and
personnel duty assignments mentioned in paragraph 2.4.2, the Plan should provide
the master with guidance concerning priority actions, stability and stress
considerations, and lightening.
2.5.3.1
Priority actions: This section provides some general considerations that apply to
a wide range of casualties. The Plan should provide ship-specific guidance to the
master concerning these topics.
.1 In
responding to the casualty, the master's priority will be to ensure the safety of
personnel and the ship and to take action to prevent escalation of the incident.
In casualties involving spills, immediate consideration should be given to
measures aimed at preventing fire and explosion, such as altering course so that
the ship is upwind of the slick, shutting down non-essential air intakes, etc. if
the ship is aground, and cannot therefore manoeuvre, all possible sources of
ignition should be eliminated and action taken to prevent flammable vapours
entering accommodation and engine-room spaces. When it is possible to manoeuvre,
the master, in conjunction with the appropriate shore authorities, may consider
moving his ship to a more suitable location in order, for example, to facilitate
emergency repair work or lightening operations, or to reduce the threat posed to
any particularly sensitive shoreline areas. Such manoeuvring may be subject to
coastal State jurisdiction.
.2 Prior to
considering remedial action, the master will need to obtain detailed information
on the damage sustained by his ship. A visual inspection should be carried out and
all cargo tanks, bunker tanks, and other compartments sounded. Due regard should
be paid to the indiscriminate opening of ullage plugs or sighting ports,
especially when the ship is aground, as loss of buoyancy could result.
.3 Having assessed the damage sustained
by the ship, the master will be in a position to decide what action should be
taken to prevent or minimize further spillage. When bottom damage is sustained,
hydrostatic balance will be achieved fairly rapidly, especially if the damage is
sever, in which case the time available for preventive action will often be
limited. When significant side damage is sustained in the way of oil tanks, cargo
or bunkers will be released fairly rapidly until hydrostatic balance is achieved
and the rate of release will then reduce and be governed by the rate at which oil
is displaced by water flowing in under the oil. When the damage is fairly limited
and restricted, for example, to one or two compartments, consideration may be
given to transferring oil internally from damaged to intact tanks.
2.5.3.2 Stability and stress
considerations : Great care in casualty response must be taken to consider
stability and stress when taking actions to mitigate the spillage of oil or to
free the ship if aground The Plan should provide considered. Noting in this
section shall be construed as creating a requirement for damage stability plans or
calculations beyond those required by relevant international conventions.
.1 Internal transfers should be
undertaken only with a full appreciation of the likely impact on the ship's
overall stress and stability. When the damage sustained is extensive, the impact
of internal transfers on stress and stability may be impossible for the ship to
assess. Contact may have to be made with the owner or operator or other entity in
order that information can be provided so that damage stability and damaged
longitudinal strength assessments may be made. These could be made within the head
office technical departments. In other cases, classification societies or clearly
indicate who the master should contact in order to gain access to these
facilities.
.2 Where appropriate, the
Plan should provide a list of information required for making damage stability and
damaged longitudinal strength assessments.
2.5.3.3 Lightening : Should the ship sustain extensive structural
damage, it may be necessary to transfer all or part of the cargo to another ship.
The Plan should provide guidance on procedures to be followed for ship-to-ship
transfer of cargo. Reference may be made in the Plan to existing company guides. A
copy of such company procedures for ship-to-ship transfer operations should be
kept with the Plan. the Plan should address the need for co-ordinating this
activity with the coastal State, as such operation may be subject to its
jurisdiction.
2.5.4 In order to have
the necessary information available to respond to the situations referred to in
paragraph 2.5.2, certain plans, drawings, and ship specific details such as, a
layout of a general arrangement plan, a tank plan, etc. should be appended. The
Plan should show where current cargo, bunker and ballast information, including
quantities and specifications, are available.