Bulk Carrier Practice - Safe use of pesticides
With kind permission from the author, Capt. Jack Isbester and in association with The Nautical Institute the UK P&I Club, in the interests of its members presents the second edition of the highly acclaimed, Bulk Carrier Practice.
In the coming months the UK P&I Club will be serialising extracts of the book in order to raise awareness of issues in the Bulk Carrier trade.
Safe use of pesticides
In recent years the authorities have become increasingly concerned at the dangers associated with the use of pesticides aboard ships. There is the possibility that edible cargoes will be contaminated by the use of pesticides and that crew members will be harmed by contact with them.
Before describing routine procedures a warning must be given. On at least one occasion ships’ personnel and stevedores required treatment when they breathed fumigant laden dust from a grain cargo while it was being loaded! The ship, in a western Canadian port, had received no warning that the cargo had been fumigated before loading. The Master should enquire whether the intended cargo is under fumigation or has been fumigated and should arrange for the supply of suitable approved protective masks if necessary.
Full recommendations for the use of pesticides aboard ship have been published by the IMO28. A copy of this document should be held aboard ship and studied before pesticides are used. The following paragraphs indicate the areas covered by the recommendations, but it must be emphasised that pesticides can kill and should not be used except when the full instructions have been studied.
A ship may be infested by insects or by rats. Infestation by insects may exist aboard ship or may be brought aboard with the cargo. The purpose of its removal may be to satisfy the agricultural authorities in the discharge port or to ensure that the cargo remains acceptable to the receiver. Infestation can cause cargo to overheat. Infestation by rats must be eliminated in accordance with International Health Regulations. Infestation is assisted by dirt and cargo residues. Holds, accommodation, storerooms and machinery spaces should be kept very clean to remove any opportunity for infestation.
Prevention of infestation: Cargo spaces and other parts of the ship should be kept in a good state of repair, clean and free of rubbish. Any infested material collected during cleaning should be disposed of or treated immediately so that infestation cannot spread. Treatment of infestation: An infestation of a cargo space or an infestation of cargo must be eliminated with the use of a fumigant. Fumigants are administered as gases or liquid sprays and the compartment fumigated must be made gas tight. Evacuation of the space being fumigated is mandatory and it may be necessary for the whole ship to be evacuated. The gas may be delivered in pellets which decompose during the voyage and give a slow release of gas. Fumigant gases are poisonous to humans and their use requires special equipment and skills. They should be used by specialists and not by the ship’s crew. There are detailed recommendations for the use of fumigants. The illustrations (Figs. 21.1 and 2) show hoses which are led through the access hatches and put in place in the empty, hold where they become submerged in the cargo. When loading is completed and the fumigant has been pumped into the cargo the hose ends on deck are dropped through the access hatches into the hold. The accesses are then closed and sealed.
In some ports of the USA the fumigation process requires the ship to circulate the fumigant gas through the cargo for a set number of days. This is achieved by portable fan units situated inside the access hatches (Fig. 21.3). During the gas circulation strict precautions must be followed to ensure that the access hatch is fully sealed and does not allow any of the gas to escape. (The access hatch remains cracked open about 10mm to allow the electric cable through and the crack is sealed with heavy duty tape such as Ramnek tape. During heavy weather the circulation is suspended, the power supply disconnected and the access hatch tightly battened down)263. Ship’s staff must be prohibited from entering any area where gas circulation is occurring. A large NO–GO area must be maintained for safety reasons.
At the end of the circulation period the fans are switched off and unplugged and remain inside the hatch access until the discharge port. Full safety precautions, using breathing apparatus, must be taken when the fans are switched off and the power cable disconnected. At the arrival berth the fans can only be removed from the access hatches when the atmosphere is found safe to do so.
The Master should be provided with full written instructions in a language he can readily understand about the fumigant used and precautions required. The fumigator-in-charge is responsible for evacuating the crew, posting watchmen and warning notices, injecting the fumigant, issuing respirators if required, testing the spaces to ensure they are gas free, and issuing a clearance certificate when all traces of gas and fumigant material have been removed.
Fumigation with aeration (ventilation) should always be carried out alongside or at anchorage. The detailed precautions to be adopted are listed28.
In-transit fumigation: In-transit fumigation is fumigation which is commenced in port under specialist supervision, but which continues at sea with only the ship’s crew aboard to supervise and control the process. It may be proposed if the ship’s stay in port is not long enough for the planned fumigation, or if it is found that the fumigant gases have not completely dispersed at the planned time of completion of fumigation and the spaces have to be resealed. It is also likely to be proposed when an infested cargo such as grain is loaded and fumigation can only commence on completion of loading or when it is a term of the contract of sale.
In-transit fumigation is hazardous because of the lack of experience of the crew and the dangerous nature of fumigants, and is forbidden by some flag State administrations. Before he agrees to in-transit fumigation the Master must ensure that he has the permission of the ship’s flag State administration, and of the port State administration.
At least one officer and one rating are to receive training to enable them to take responsibility for ensuring safe conditions throughout the ship. They must be familiar with the characteristics and properties of the fumigant and the manufacturer’s recommendations regarding methods of detection, symptoms of poisoning, relevant first aid and special medical treatment, and emergency procedures.
The crew must be briefed. The cargo spaces to be fumigated must be inspected before loading and must be certified by the specialist as gastight and satisfactory. The ship must carry gas detection equipment and instructions, at least four sets of appropriate protective equipment, instructions on disposal of remaining fumigant material, medicines and medical equipment and a copy of the latest version of the Medical First Aid Guide for Use in Accidents Involving Dangerous Goods (MFAG194).
The fumigator-in-charge must provide a written notice of all spaces which are unsafe to enter during fumigation and must check surrounding spaces for safety. He must remain aboard until the fumigant gas reaches sufficiently high concentrations to ensure that any leak can be detected and until such leaks have been eliminated, and must then issue a written statement that these requirements have been met and that the ship’s representative is fully trained in the use of the gas detection equipment provided.
Whilst satisfying the above requirements the fumigator-in-charge may be able to leave the ship before she sails or may undertake part of the voyage with the ship, but in both cases he leaves before the ship is free of fumigant gas. Whilst in-transit fumigation is taking place, warning notices should be posted, adequate stocks of gas detection and respirators (with consumables) should be maintained and spaces around the compartment being fumigated should be checked every eight hours or more often, for gas concentrations and the readings obtained should be logged.
Spaces under fumigation should never be entered unless absolutely essential and then only by two persons, both wearing adequate protective equipment, safety harnesses and lifelines. The lifelines should be tended by persons outside the space who should also wear self-contained breathing apparatus.
In normal circumstances the ventilators will remain sealed and no ventilation will be attempted for a cargo under fumigation. This will continue either for a stated number of days after which the spaces are to be ventilated or, less commonly, for the entire passage to the discharge port. When a space under fumigation has to be ventilated every effort should be made to prevent gases from entering accommodation or work areas. In these circumstances ventilation is best undertaken when there is a strong cross-wind, blowing exhausted air away from the ship. When ventilation takes place accommodation and work areas should be checked for gas concentrations and if they ever exceed the threshold limit value (TLV) for the fumigant the space must be evacuated.
At least 24 hours before arriving at the discharge port the Master must inform the authorities that a fumigation-in-transit is being carried out and must provide relevant details. The requirements of the receiving country regarding the handling of fumigated cargo should be established and observed. Personnel employed in opening hatches should wear respirators and the area should be checked for gas concentrations, with readings recorded in the log.
Discharge should be carried out by mechanical means. If anyone is required to enter the hold and at the completion of discharge, it should be checked for gas concentrations and respirators should be worn if required. When discharge is completed and the ship is free of fumigants and certified as such, all warning notices should be removed.
Every step in the fumigation process, including instrument readings obtained when required, should be recorded in the vessel’s log book.
Model checklists for in-transit fumigation are available in Appendix 3 to the document28.
Available for purchase from The Nautical Institute website www.nautinst.org
The second edition is available to UK P&I Club Members at a discounted rate.
Also included in this offer is the UK P&I Club DVD Bulk Matters. A guide to identifying bulk cargo claims and measures how they may be avoided.