Paris MOU To Enforce ISM Compliance

The Paris MOU on Port State Control will start strict enforcement of the ISM Code on 1 July during a 3-month Concentrated Inspection Campaign. Last month the Port State Control Committee of the Paris MOU agreed to verify compliance with the ISM on all ships due for an inspection in one of the ports within the region. No extensions will be granted to the ship types which become compliant on July 1, 2002. Other ship types which already have been certified in accordance with the ISM Code will also be subject to the inspection campaign to verify that the safety management system (SMS) is actually working on board.Port State Control officers in the MOU countries will be using a standard inspection form to verify critical areas of the management system. Deficiencies in any of these areas will be considered as "major non-conformities" which will lead to the detention of the ship.Ships which have not been certified in accordance with the Code will also be detained. If no other deficiencies are found the detention may be lifted and the ship will be refused access to all Paris MOU ports until the ship and/or company have valid certificates. Statistical evidence over the past 3 years has indicated a steep increase of safety management defects (150% over last 3 years). In particular older ships (³15 years) show 14 times as many non-conformities when compared to younger ships (