In 2017, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) established a historic governance regime for polar waters. The International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters (or the Polar Code) created binding or mandatory international standards for commercial ships and passenger vessels (500 tons and larger) operating in Antarctic and Arctic waters.
The lengthy process of developing a Polar Code began in 1993 with an outside working group led by Canada, which produced a draft code in 1998. The IMO adopted voluntary guidelines for ships in Arctic waters in 2002, followed by voluntary ship guidelines for all polar waters in 2010. However, the Arctic states and maritime communities recognized that mandatory rules and regulations would be necessary, and negotiations commenced in relevant IMO committees.
The Polar Code is a set of amendments to three existing IMO conventions, which showcase the complexity of 21st-century global shipping regulation: the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea addressing marine safety; the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships; and the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers. The IMO sought to create a uniform and nondiscriminatory set of rules and regulations that provide a level playing field for all polar marine operators. Key beneficiaries of the code include the marine insurers, ship classification societies, shipbuilders, ship owners, investors, and Arctic coastal (subsistence) communities.
One of the IMO’s key decisions was where to place the boundaries in both polar oceans for application of the code. For the Southern Ocean surrounding the Antarctic continent, the code boundary corresponds to a political boundary: 60 degrees South, the boundary for the Antarctic Treaty. In the Arctic Ocean, the code boundary was influenced by both political and environmental considerations. The boundary in the Bering Sea was drawn at 60 degrees North to provide some measure of protection for the region’s world-class fishery. The boundary encompasses all of Greenland and runs northeast along the east Greenland coast and north of Iceland until it intersects with the Russian Arctic coast in the Barents Sea. This was a necessary northerly adjustment to account for the warmer waters of the North Atlantic; the entire coastlines of Iceland, Norway, and the Kola Peninsula in northwest Russia are not within the code’s area since these waters are ice-free year-round.
The complex mandatory and voluntary components of the code cannot be fully addressed in this cursory review. However, notable requirements include: structural standards for seven polar classes; marine safety equipment designed for polar environments; training and polar experience for ship’s officers and crew; three ship categories, A, B, and C (A and B for operations in ice and C for ships sailing in ice-free conditions); a polar ship certificate issued by the flag state administration or an authorized representative; an onboard Polar Water Operational Manual unique to a ship indicating operational capabilities and limitations; and, environmental rules regarding the discharge of oil, noxious liquids, sewage, and garbage.
Under the code, the owners or operators of ships are required to perform an operational assessment to determine the limitations (and mitigation measures) of operating in their specific polar region. Central to the code’s implementation requirements is a flexible, goals-based approach advanced by the IMO. The IMO stipulates the high standards, but the onus is on the owners and operators to use competent bodies to develop measures to meet these standards.
From the outset, the code was meant to be a work in progress that would be updated to reflect changing conditions and new technologies. Work is underway to include fishing vessels and small yachts under the code’s mandate. Policy advances have addressed black carbon, heavy fuel oil in polar waters, and other ship emissions consistent with progress on global regulations. While implementing and enforcing the code are challenges, monitoring ships in polar waters remains a critical task.