In a far-reaching move to tackle hazardous liquid pollution at its flagship Jebel Ali Port, DP World UAE Region signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department of Planning and Development – Trakhees, the regulatory arm of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation in Dubai, PCFC, to enforce the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL).

MARPOL, mandated by the maritime regulatory body International Maritime Organisation (IMO), is the main international convention covering prevention of pollution of the marine environment by ships.

All reception facilities catering for vessels at Jebel Ali Port will be required to ensure that starting January 1, 2017 they are required to be certified under IMO-MARPOL protocol.

The MoU, signed by Arif Obaid Al Dehail, CEO, Trakhees-PCFC, and Mohammed Al Muallem, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, DP World UAE Region, is designed to pave the way for preventing and minimising pollution from vessels calling at Jebel Ali through rigorous inspections by Trakhees-PCFC officials, and will cover the discharge of oil and other noxious liquid substances, whether caused accidentally or during routine operations.

Mohammed Al Muallem, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, DP World, UAE Region, said:"DP World UAE Region is committed to minimising the environmental impact of its business activities in order to bring sustainability into every aspect of our work. We have an active pollution monitoring and control system at our flagship port and strongly believe this MoU with Trakhees will further strengthen our resolve to implement the IMO’s MARPOL regulations to ensure all service providers at our port conform to these international standards."

Arif Obaid Al Dehail, CEO, Trakhees- PCFC, said:"Trakhees-PCFC is responsible for environmental safety at DP World UAE Region facilities and enforcing the IMO-MARPOL protocol will take our involvement to an enhanced level. We thank DP World UAE Region for the high level of cooperation with our teams and look forward to raising the bar for pollution prevention and control in Dubai through the IMO-MARPOL initiative."

MARPOL convention includes six technical annexes to regulate the prevention of pollution by oil, noxious liquid substances in bulk, harmful substances carried by sea in packaged form, sewage, garbage, and air pollution from ships.

Source:WAM