EU impact assessment favours Med ECA

The results of the European Commission-funded impact assessment, produced by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), were aligned with the latest findings of the French ECAMED report published in mid-January 2019. Both studies concluded that a combined ECA and NOx ECA would save up to 10,000 lives by 2050.

Meanwhile, the IMO Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC) delivered a draft technical and feasibility study to examine the possibility of designating the Mediterranean Sea, or parts of it, as an ECA under IMO’s prevention of pollution convention (MARPOL) Annex VI at a regional workshop on 11-13 December 2018.

The study, produced by a consortium led by Energy & Environmental Research Associates (EERA), found that implementing a Mediterranean ECA standards will achieve about a 95% reduction in SOx emissions form ships compared with current operations, or a 20 percentage point increase on the reduction under MARPOL VI rules. Particulate matter (PM) emissions will decline by 62% if a Mediterranean ECA were designated, an 11pp increase compared with MARPOL VI.

The draft recommendations for the IMO are likely to be discussed at the 74th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) on 13-17 May 2019. The final report including a road map and conclusions is expected to be submitted to the Thirteenth Meeting of the Focal Points of REMPEC, scheduled to be held in Malta from 11 to 13 June 2019, for its review and recommendations.

The IIASA and ECAMED studies will also discussed at the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) meeting in February 2019 as well as at the IMO MEPC 74th session in May 2019.

Interestingly, the IMO is clarifying existing IMO procedures relevant for impact assessments in an agenda item prior to the consideration of new ECAs and PSSAs. This may impact the applicability of particulate matter (PM) assessments in impact assessments, for example. Greece noted in its submission to the REMPEC report that the introduction of an ECA would have broader macroeconomic effects on its economy, owing to increased transportation costs between the mainland and its island communities.