Challenges for a Sustainable Maritime Transport?
New challenges are presented in the face of an unprecedented digital transformation for the maritime industry, scenarios that promise greater cooperation to face new challenges. The factremained developers in shipping triggers do a global humanitarian crisis that led the International Maritime Organization (IMO) declared to seafarer’s workers as essential.
One of the major concerns of the IMO, in recent months has been the work performed by the seafarers on board ships. Merchant seamen with great resilience have maintained maritime transport without stopping, important organizations related to international trade and shipping have spoken out requesting the greater collaboration of government and their authorities.
The global health crisis caused by the pandemic to the altered the changes to the crews of ships. This time it remained hundreds of sailors on board takes its task, its results are manifested in the health and welfare of seafarers' which puts at risk the safety of shipping. The constraints, lack of coordination, poor flexibility to enter and leave ports and more forceful action by government and authorities have prolonged the crisis of the crew change, violated human rights also apply in the sea.
Beyond this reality, which deserves priority attention and, without comparison, there are other activities inherent to the industry that also require attention to continue advancing towards a safe, protected, ecologically sound, efficient and sustainable maritime transport.
Maritime Security
The shipping industry is on the front lines of the new security threats posed by global terrorism and modern piracy in the world's oceans. For its part, the IMO, although it provides a regulatory framework and maintains capacity-building activities to improve maritime security, both for ships and port facilities, armed robbery against ships, the illegal arms trade, smuggling, narcotics trafficking and human trafficking, added to the kidnapping of crews, constitute a challenge given the large number of cases presented this year 2020.
Protecting what s ships and its crew, is a joint work and the jurisdiction and rights sovereign exercise by States either can be an obstacle to the moment of deploying actions to combat piracy. The technology is increasingly necessary to combat these risks that threaten the smooth running of the shipping, criminals use increasingly modern forms of assault, thus joining efforts to further promote coordination and cooperation on protection maritime transport between States, regions, organizations and the maritime industry, it is imperative, security is vital to keep the transport of goods in motion in the world.
Pollution Prevention:
The air pollution and emissions of greenhouse gases, as well as preventing from contamination of waste causing operations vessels, regulated by the Annex VI of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), seek to prevent and reduce the generation of dumping of waste from ships in the discharge of bilge water, ballast water and wastewater, as well as solid waste that is transferred to the marine environment from various sources that convert it into marine waste, regulated by another instrument such as the London Protocol on the prevention of pollution of the sea by dumping of waste and other matters. these effects directly pollution of the oceans, without dismissing important achievements are needed more forceful action.
Climate change
The change climate has been a concern marked by the IMO, the gas emissions internal combustion engine merchant ships that cause pollution atmospheric require greater commitment, verify that this reduction is being fulfilled has to continue as a constant. The efforts being made to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is one of the greatest challenges facing the maritime industry. These operational measures to reduce emissions from ships, seeking to make transport more efficient in energy consumption, which means the sector financial savings, a significant reduction in the sulfur content of the fuel oil consumed by ships, although impacts on the costs of construction of ships using combustibles cleaner alternative should be the goal that must be achieved.
Facilitate Maritime Trade
The electronic exchange of data and reducing documentation for maritime transport , with the direction set towards digitization, is a priority to achieve a transmission, reception and response of the information , which contributes to reducing the arrival, stay in port and departure of ships on international voyage , as provided for in the Convention to Facilitate Maritime Traffic, public-private collaboration is also important to allow harmonization of electronic data to save time and effort in an optimized way.
Path to Sustainability
On World Maritime Day the IMO has raised the f leaving commitment to contribute a transport sustainable maritime and sustainable planet, as a specialized agency of the Organization of United Nations and responsible for global standards for maritime transport It is carried out in a safe, protected, clean and efficient manner. Shipping plays a key role, it has been able to keep trade flowing during the global fight against COVID-19. For those unaware of the work accomplished by this sector to the global economy and were little familiar now know that over from some 150,000 seafarers every month is essential for them to enter and exit of vessels where they work, changes that have to be done to ensure compliance with international maritime rules.
Keep longer trapped sailors on board ships is unsustainable for humanitarian reasons, the risks to transportation and commerce are increasingly imminent. Countless cases show that the well-being of seafarers has been affected, charities that protect human rights at sea with real events have shown it.
Convention Maritime Labor is has been violated with changes in crew, so that, maintain and strengthen at work the played by joint working groups and special expert of the International Organization of Labor (ILO) in conjunction with the IMO They are essential to monitor compliance as they are guarantors in the execution of the standards established in the aforementioned Agreement.
Maritime transport is an essential element of sustainable economic growth for any country, maintain cross - border trade flows despite the pandemic is a need to advance the recovery, ships have to go navigation and ports continue to open to supply the world population of essential goods.
The impact and crew changes and the consequent humanitarian crisis, conducive review the form of cooperation by States. Implementing and enforcing agreements and regulations adopted within the IMO, it is an inescapable duty by the Member States. P or its part, the organization international l and corresponds continue to support and extend the rule of law with their building programs legal capacity.
Training of skilled professionals as experts’ maritime law by institutions such as University World Maritime, it is also necessary to help implement and enforce maritime law, especially in developing countries.
The maritime industry is adapting to a new way of business platforms global digital promoting technological innovation and mark the path of a digital transformation is a reality, changes that are transforming and promote collaboration and standardization of the transport maritime, essential to achieve the digitization of a sector that contributes to global economic development.
The measures adopted to prevent and manage pollution of the oceans have to be increasingly rigorous by the States, improving the technical means of wastewater management on board ships and in ports is possible, provided that activities are carried out that tend to prevent, reduce and, where possible, eliminate the pollution caused by the dumping of waste into the sea.
The initiative of corporate sustainability proposed the Global Compact of the United Nations are made up of principles that constitute pillars of responsibility, stands how the companies, can alert governments to put an end to labor abuses that are suffering the mariners, a topic that was addressed at the 2020 World Maritime Day conference.
TheOMI continue its important work and will continue to have a key role , especially in an effort to promote programs for capacity building to support the consolidation of legislative, scientific and technological able States, will contribute for adoption measures that guarantee a rapid and sustainable recovery , in any way, only global cooperation and the greatest commitment of States, companies and organizations will allow us to achieve an innovative maritime transport that advances on the path of sustainability.
# Sea And Coast Magazine