AMSA has recently published Marine Notice 03/2024 on the “Testing and Inspection of Oil Filtering Equipment Approved to Meet Resolution MEPC.107(49).” This notice aims to inform ship operators and recognized organizations about AMSA’s guidelines for the installation and testing of oily water separators on ships. It also highlights that AMSA port State control officers (PSCOs) will inspect the condition and operation of the oily-water separator, filtering equipment, alarm systems, and monitoring arrangements as outlined in the 2023 Resolution A.1185(33) Procedures for Port State Control.
According to the Marine Notice, the operational testing of oil filtering equipment requires it to be set up in a configuration that circulates liquid between bilge tanks (recirculating facility) and provides an effluent sample to the 15ppm bilge alarm, simulating the discharge of 15ppm bilge separator effluent overboard.
AMSA interprets the failure of the 15ppm bilge alarm to activate the automatic stopping device, in the absence of a representative effluent sample, as non-compliance with Resolution MEPC.107(49). This indicates that there is no fail-safe arrangement required as per technical specification 4.1.3 of Resolution MEPC.107(49).
For full details, the Marine Notice is available from AMSA here.
