Double-Hull Tanker Legislation An Assessment of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (1998) / Chapter Skim
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7 Conclusions and Recommendations
7 Conclusions and Recommendations
Pages 142-150
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From page 142... ...
Section 4115 and the MARPOL Regulations I3F and I3G (MARPOL 13F and 13G) differ in their approach and timing, although both sets of regulations require new tank vessels to have double hulls and provide for the gradual phaseout of existing single-hull vessels while the owners of oil tank vessels change or modify their capital plans to reflect new design requirements.
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From page 143... ...
On the basis of the difficulties encountered in obtaining reliable oil spill data for the purposes of the present study, the committee identified some opportunities to enhance the USCG oil spill database. First, the USCG should recognize the importance of historical oil spill data as a primary indicator of achievements in the field of marine environmental protection.
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From page 144... ...
In the view of the committee, a number of factors other than Section 4115 probably contributed to the recent reduction in oil spills. These include an increased awareness of the financial consequences of oil spills on the part of vessel owners and operators and a resulting increase in attention to policies and procedures aimed at eliminating vessel accidents; actions by port states to ensure the safety of vessels using their ports; increased efforts by classification societies to ensure that vessels under their classification meet or exceed existing requirements; improved audit and inspection programs by charterers; and the increased liability, financial responsibility, and other provisions of OPA 90.
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From page 145... ...
DESIGN OF DOUBLE-HULL TANK VESSELS Since the passage of OPA 90, research on double-hull tanker design has provided significant insights into the impact of vessel design on double-hull tanker operations and pollution prevention capability, as measured in terms of expected oil outflow in the event of an accident. Overall, this research has demonstrated that effectively designed double-hull tankers and tank barges offer a significant improvement in environmental protection compared to that provided by singlehull vessels.
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From page 146... ...
Design requirements should ensure that all new double-hull tankers offer environmental performance at least equivalent to that provided by the IMO reference double-hull designs.2 Design requirements should include an assessment of intact stability throughout the range of loading and ballasting conditions to identify potentially unstable conditions. Following the lead taken by IMO and to provide consistency with anticipated international requirements, adequate intact stability should be achieved by design.
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From page 147... ...
The committee is concerned that in the future, there may be an overall deterioration in the quality of the VLCC fleet trading to the United States as the international VLCC fleet ages and other nations, such as Japan and Korea, introduce age restrictions on vessels calling on their ports. In the view of the committee, the United States needs to take appropriate measures to ensure that the older VLCCs operating under the OPA 90 deepwater port and lightering zone 3Vessels of pre-MARPOL design are required by Regulation 13G to use hydrostatically balanced loading (HBL)
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From page 148... ...
to extend the life of pre-MARPOL single-hull vessels beyond 25 years. However, such life extension requires expensive special surveys that will raise operating costs for older tankers, and the use of HBL will reduce cargo capacity and revenues.
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From page 149... ...
There are some indications that domestic tank vessels in the coastal products trade are becoming less attractive economically than the alternatives namely, pipelines and foreign tankers carrying imports of refined products. An increase in freight rates to induce replacement or conversion of singlehull vessels to double hulls might encourage pipeline expansion or an increase in product imports, thereby further reducing the demand for Jones Act vessels.
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