Maritime Accidents And Environmental Pollution The X Press Pearl Disaster

This book discusses in detail the facts and findings related to the X-Press Pearl container vessel accident that occurred in May 2021 off the coast of Colombo, Sri Lanka. The ship was carrying a large consignment of chemicals and diverse hazardous materials that caused a disastrous and vast environmental and social catastrophe in the region. Through many case studies, accumulated knowledge, and experiences, the authors discuss the accident response, risk mitigation, investigation, and damage assessment activities from the very onset of the accident. It helps researchers and regulators understand the facts of this unique marine chemical accident and to formulate necessary future regulations as well as to develop robust safety and sustainability management systems and safety cultures. Features: Written by authorities who led the team involved in accident response and damage assessment Focuses on identifying plausible root causes, pitfalls in accident response, and weaknesses in current regulatory and management protocols Delivers in-depth understanding of a unique marine chemical accident to help formulate necessary future policies and regulations related to such disasters Includes many case studies related to the accident illustrated with photos and figures that are true evidence of the disaster, the response, and the mitigation Explains and discusses key research findings in a streamlined manner understandable for a wide audience A valuable resource for readers in environmental management and policy creation, as well as for researchers, professionals, academics, and students involved in environmental science, chemical engineering, technical safety and sustainability management, maritime, polymer, and ocean sciences. Countries where maritime disasters are a concern will also find this book is an important guide for taking a responsible approach when handling similar situations in the future; not least to avert such events from occurring.

Written by authorities who led the team involved in accident response and damage assessment Focused on identifying plausible root causes, pitfalls in accident response, and weaknesses in current regulatory and management protocols Delivers in-depth understanding of a unique marine chemical accidental to help formulate necessary future policies and regulations related to such disasters Includes many case studies related to the accident illustrated with photos and figures that are true evidence of the disaster, the response, and the mitigation Explain and discusses key research findings in a streamlined manner understandable for a wide audience

Despite widely-accepted international systems of liability for pollution damage to the marine environment, uniformity is far from being achieved. This book is based on the papers delivered at the CMI seminar on liability for pollution damage. The purpose of the seminar was to take stock of the legal position worldwide as a prelude to discussions on unification of laws relating to the admissibility and assessment of claims. Among the main issues addressed are - oil pollution prevention and response, the effectiveness of present compensation methods, the importance of recent protocols to the compensation conventions, the ramifications of OPA 90, the underwriting of oil pollution risks and the need for an international convention on hazardous and noxious substances. These issues are covered by a broad range of international experts.

International shipping is currently at a crossroads. The decision of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in April 2018 to adopt an Initial Strategy so as to achieve by 2050 a reduction of at least 50% in maritime greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions vis-à-vis 2008 levels epitomizes the last among a series of recent developments as regards sustainable shipping. It also sets the scene on what may happen in the future. Even though many experts and industry circles believe that the IMO decision is in line with the COP21 climate change agreement in Paris in 2015, others disagree, either on the ground that the target is not ambitious enough, or on the ground that no clear pathway to reach the target is currently visible. This book takes a cross-disciplinary view of the various dimensions of the maritime transportation sustainability problem. “Cross-disciplinary” means that a variety of angles are used to examine the book topics, and these mainly include the technological angle, the economics angle, the logistics angle, and the environmental angle. The book reviews models that can be used to evaluate decisions, policy alternatives and trade-offs. For sustainable shipping, a spectrum of technical, logistics-based and market based measures are being contemplated. All may have important side-effects as regards the economics and logistics of the maritime supply chain, including ports and hinterland connections. The objective to attain an acceptable environmental performance, while at the same time respecting traditional economic performance criteria so that shipping remains viable, is and is likely to be a central goal for both industry and policy-makers in the years ahead. At the same time, policy fragmentation is likely to create distortions of competition and sub-optimal solutions. This book attempts to address these issues and identify better solutions. /divSustainable Shipping: A Cross-Disciplinary View includes chapters that cover many relevant topics. These include a general view of maritime transport sustainability, green ship technologies, information and communication technologies (ICTs) for sustainable shipping, green tramp ship routing and scheduling, green liner network design and speed optimization. Market based measures, oil pollution, ship recycling, sulphur emissions, ballast water management, alternative fuels and green ports are also covered. The book concludes by discussing prospects for the future, with a focus on the IMO Initial Strategy. "This book contains a unique wealth of information on sustainable shipping. The knowledge it provides is rigorous, complete, and well supported by statistics, technical reports, and scientific references. The treatment of the various topics is not only informative but also analytical and critical." —Gilbert Laporte, Maritime Economics & Logistics (12 May, 2020)