New International Maritime Security Regulations To Take Effect On July 1st
The pirate-infested waters flowing through the Strait of Malacca in Southeast Asia carry up to a quarter of the world’s annual maritime trade and nearly half of the oil shipments on which the East Asian economies sorely depend. If a cargo freighter was to unexpectedly sink as a result of a bomb being placed in a shipping container, the resulting impact on global trade could be devastating, particularly in this era of just-in-time delivery. This is to say nothing of the danger posed by a hijacked vessel being used as a floating missile to crash into a major U.S. port or oil refinery.
In light of the increased threat posed to global shipping and trade by such acts of terrorism, the United States Coast Guard has spearheaded an international effort to codify and standardize a comprehensive and consistent approach to international maritime security. After a year of intensive negotiation and searching for the most practical solutions, the Intersessional Working Group of the Maritime Safety Committee of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) unveiled the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code) in December 2002. The goals of the ISPS Code are to enable the detection and prevention of maritime shipping threats within an international framework by combining flexible, multi-national best practices with standard international requirements. The ISPS Code, now recognized as the only internationally accepted blueprint for maritime security infrastructure, will go into effect on July 1, 2004.
The ISPS Code is in large part the result of legislation passed by the U.S. Congress in the aftermath of the events of September 11, 2001. The Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (MTSA) (Public Law 107-295, 116 STAT. 2064) required the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to assess the security measures in place at foreign ports that are served by vessels that also call upon the U.S. States and to see that measures are implemented at such ports to deter terrorism and to safeguard international shipping.
In order to implement this Congressional mandate, the Coast Guard developed the International Port Security Program (IPSP), to encourage bilateral and multilateral discussions with trading nations around the world in an effort to exchange information and share best practices that align implementation requirements of the MTSA with the ISPS Code and other international maritime security standards. During the past year, members of the Coast Guard visited various nations that export goods to the U.S. by vessel in order to share ideas and information on how best to construct and implement the ISPS Code. International Port Security Program Liaison Officers were established to facilitate close cooperation with foreign governments. The Coast Guard plans to visit many more foreign ports in the future in order to review and assess port security measures.
By July 1, 2004, all shipping companies must have a designated company security officer for the company and a security officer for each ship in its fleet. The security officers are responsible for the performance of the Ship Security Assessment and the approval of the Ship Security Plans. All ships must carry an International Ship Security Certificate indicating ISPS Code compliance. Port facilities carry similar responsibilities in ensuring the completion of the Port Facility Security Assessment, which determines whether a port security officer and security plan is needed. Ships are subject to port security inspections and requests for information regarding cargo and passengers. Entry into a port can be denied under certain circumstances, resulting in adverse financial consequences to shipping companies and importers.
Recently, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Ridge announced that the United States was in compliance with the ISPS Code. The U.S. implementation strategy includes screening containers, using tamper-proof containers, requiring complete cargo manifests to be provided 24 hours before sailing and installing silent alarms on ships. Vessels must also provide 96 hours advance notice to the Coast Guard before entering a U.S. port. Additional measures that will take effect after July 1, 2004 include the offshore boarding of vessels that pose a higher security risk. The determination as to which vessels to board will be based on the cargo, size of the ship, voyage, security history and special intelligence. All vessels will be boarded on their first visit to the U.S. after July 1, 2004 in order to ensure they adhere to the ISPS Code. Large scale gamma and X-ray technologies will be deployed as well.
With less than two weeks to go before the July 1compliance deadline, the IMO reports that 83.6% of gross tonnage and 67.4% of cargo ships are already registered or in compliance with the ISPS Code.
More information on the ISPS Code and the IPSP can be found at the following Web sites: www.imo.org/home.asp, www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/ and www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mp/mtsa.shtml.
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