RI Conveys the Idea of Maritime Environmental Protection at the IMO Session

The delegation of the Republic of Indonesia actively participated in providing ideas at the 81st Session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 81) which was held at IMIO Headquarters, London, England on 18-22 March 2024.

The meeting chaired by Harry Conway (Liberia) as Chair of MEPC 81 and Hanqiang Tan (Singapore) as Vice-Chair discussed a number of main agendas, including determining elements of action efforts (measures) related to reducing Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, preventing marine pollution from ships, energy efficiency of ships, amendments to a number of provisions of the MARPOL Convention, the issue of marine plastic waste, protection of sensitive marine areas (PSSA) and other maritime protection issues

In his opening remarks, Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Arsenio Dominguez began by condemning the ongoing attacks by the Houthis on sailors and ships crossing the Red Sea which resulted in casualties and called for an immediate end to these attacks.

Most of the delegations present at MEPC 81, including Indonesia, supported the IMO Secretary General’s call for an immediate halt to attacks in the Red Sea by the Houthis and encouraged rescue and mitigation efforts for victims of attacks.

“We condemn the actions that have caused casualties among ship crews and hope that all countries can respect navigation safety, security and safety of seafarers as well as protection of the marine environment,” said Director of Shipping and Maritime Affairs Hartanto when delivering his intervention at the MEPC 81 Session, quoted from a press release.

At MEPC 81, Indonesia also emphasized that efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the shipping sector and energy transition should not burden developing countries, especially LDCs and SIDS.

“Indonesia also emphasized that revenue collection is not included in the 2023 GHG Strategy so it is not mandatory. Member countries can explore a wider range of options regarding funding for efforts to address climate change specifically designed for the shipping industry,” said Hartanto.

Furthermore, Indonesia hopes that the option chosen must be able to support transition efforts and also be acceptable to all parties.

After going through very intensive discussions, the MEPC 81 Session succeeded in agreeing on a way forward, including the preparation of a basket of measures related to GHG Emission Reduction which includes technical and economic efforts, the formation of the GESAMP-LCA Working Group, the implementation Fifth GHG Expert Workshop in order to develop further action efforts, as well as agreeing on the LCA Correspondence Group framework and the draft outline of the ‘IMO net-zero framework’.

“Member countries also agreed to wait for the results of a comprehensive impact study as a basis for determining the elements of mid-term basket measures,” he added.

On this occasion, the Indonesian Delegation also expressed condolences for the accident of the Motor Tanker Keoyoung Sun off the coast of Japan on March 20 2024 which had 8 (eight) crew from Indonesia, 2 (two) people from the Republic of Korea and 1 (one) person from China. It was recorded that 1 (one) crew member from Indonesia survived, 6 (six) Indonesian crew members died and 1 (one) person was still being searched for.

“We at the Directorate General of Sea Transportation continue to communicate with related parties, including the Transportation Attaché at the Indonesian Embassy in Japan, the Japan Coast Guard, as well as communication with the family,” concluded Hartanto.

For your information, the MEPC 81 meeting was attended by IMO member countries, representatives from UN special agencies, as well as observers from Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs) and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), as well as a number of associations related to the shipping industry with status consultative.

Also present as Delri were the Head of the Indonesian Quarantine Agency, Sahat Manaor Panggabean, the Indonesian Embassy in London’s Transportation Attaché Barkah Bayu Mirajaya, the Head of the Sub-Directorate for Pollution Prevention and Ship Safety Management and Environmental Protection in Waters, Miftakhul Hadi, representatives from PT. Classification Bureau, PT. Pertamina International Shipping Indonesia, and the Indonesian Embassy in London. (PF/MM/HB)

RI Conveys the Idea of Maritime Environmental Protection at the IMO Session