MARPOL Annex VI Treaty Āpitihanga VI o Te Tiriti MARPOL

New Zealand has signed up to MARPOL Annex VI. This means that communities living near New Zealand’s ports will start to see improvements in air quality due to new requirements to reduce harmful emissions from ships.

Signing up to MARPOL Annex VI will now mean many New Zealand flagged ships will need to meet Annex VI requirements. New laws, including new marine protection rules, implementing MARPOL Annex VI requirements will come into force in New Zealand on 26 August 2022.

Signing up to MARPOL Annex VI is an important move in our domestic effort to decarbonise maritime transport and supports the collective international effort to reduce the global impact of shipping on the environment.

Information for the shipping industry and the new marine protection rules is on the Maritime New Zealand website: www.maritimenz.govt.nz/MARPOL(external link).

Information for the fuel industry is available on the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment Trading Standards website: https://www.tradingstandards.govt.nz/(external link).

The Maritime Transport (MARPOL Annex VI) Amendment Act 2021 (the Act) came into force on 15 November 2021.

The Act amends the Maritime Transport Act 1994 (MTA) to allow New Zealand to accede to Annex VI of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL).  MaRPOL Annex VI seeks to address the effects of shipping emissions on human health, environments in and around port communities, as well as on climate change, and depletion of the ozone layer.

Passing the Act is the first step that needs to be taken so that New Zealand’s legislation aligns with the rules in MARPOL Annex VI. This legislation includes new marine pollution rules which will be administered by Maritime New Zealand. Changes to regulations made under the MTA are also needed. Marine Protection (Offences) Amendment Regulations will prescribe new offences and infringements for breaches of the marine protection rules. Maritime (Charges) Amendment Regulations will provide for charges for additional categories of work and services (such as certifications) required by MARPOL Annex VI.

Amendments are also required to regulations made under the Energy (Fuels, Levies and References) Act 1989. These changes will prescribe MARPOL Annex VI specifications for marine fuel oils and for the sampling of those fuel oils.

MARPOL Annex VI will come into force in New Zealand three months after New Zealand legislation has been aligned and the instrument of accession has been deposited with the International Maritime Organization. The Government had originally signalled that New Zealand would become a party to MARPOL Annex VI in late 2021, but this has been delayed due to COVID-19 disruptions.

It’s now expected that all of the rules and regulations needed to enable New Zealand to be a party to MARPOL Annex VI will be in place by late February / early March 2022. This means that MARPOL Annex VI requirements under those rules and regulations will now likely become effective by late May / early June 2022.

Maritime New Zealand will provide detailed guidance to the shipping industry about MARPOL Annex VI obligations, such as the timing of new survey and certification obligations. Similarly, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment will be providing guidance to oil fuel suppliers in relation to the new marine fuel oil requirements.

For more information, please see Maritime New Zealand’s website:  https://www.maritimenz.govt.nz/rules/MARPOL-Annex-VI/default.asp(external link)

Submissions are open until midnight Sunday 27 June 2021 and can be made here(external link)(external link)

In 2019, Cabinet agreed to accede to Annex VI, subject to undertaking a National Interest Assessment. This assessment was completed in June 2020 and it was recommended that accession to Annex VI was in New Zealand’s interests.

Annex VI requirements will be largely implemented through the Maritime Transport Act 1994 (MTA). Before New Zealand can accede to Annex VI, minor amendments to the MTA are needed to ensure that the rule-making and enforcement provisions in the MTA provide the authority required to fully implement the legal obligations of Annex VI.

The Maritime Transport (MARPOL Annex VI) Amendment Bill aims to align the MTA with Annex VI. This will enable New Zealand to accede to Annex VI.

The Maritime Transport (MARPOL Annex VI) Amendment Bill would allow the Minister of Transport to make marine protection rules in relation to Annex VI. It would also grant the Director of Maritime New Zealand the power to conduct inspections and audits in relation to Annex VI requirements, and to detain ships that breach Annex VI requirements.

Maritime New Zealand will be consulting on the marine protection rules and associated regulations later this year.

Maritime NZ will be consulting for four weeks, until 5.00pm Wednesday 4 August 2021, to give interested stakeholders and members of the public an opportunity to provide feedback. Anyone wishing to make comment can access the draft Marine Protection Rules here: https://www.maritimenz.govt.nz/public/consultation/marpol-annex-VI/default.asp(external link)

Feedback on the draft Marine Protection Rules and any other related questions and comments can be emailed to MarpolAnnexVIProject@maritimenz.govt.nz, as well as through the submission form accompanying the draft Marine Protection Rules on Maritime NZ’s website.

Maritime New Zealand is working closely with the Ministry of Transport and other government agencies to implement MARPOL Annex VI and ensure the new requirements are introduced in a way that supports New Zealand’s fleet to comply with the changes.

Following consultation, Maritime New Zealand will refine the draft Rules based on the submissions and will focus on implementation of the Rules through a variety of activities. This will include developing comprehensive guidance for how to comply with the new marine protection Rules.

Cabinet approved in principle New Zealand becoming a party to Annex VI, and the Government agreed to an expected implementation date of late 2021. This means Annex VI will come into force in New Zealand 3 months later.

Approval in principle meant the treaty and the national interest analysis were presented to the House for parliamentary treaty examination and select committee consideration. The Select Committee completed its consideration and reported back to the House in June. The analysis notes becoming party to Annex VI would benefit New Zealand’s international reputation and climate change engagement. The main benefits include:

• reducing public heath effects of marine pollution on communities close to ports and harbours
• strengthening New Zealand’s ability to play a credible role in IMO negotiations on climate change ̶  by pushing for global action and improving New Zealand’s ability to protect its trade and economic interests
• demonstrating New Zealand’s commitment to playing its part in the multilateral system.

The plan to accede to Annex VI by late 2021 is consistent with the Government’s commitment to taking action on climate change and recognises the time required to align domestic legislation with obligations under Annex VI.

Ships that operate only in domestic waters will have until early 2022 to meet requirements. This gives shipping and fishing industries enough time to prepare for the new regulations.

International treaty examination of the Annex VI regulations for the prevention of air pollution from ships contained in the Protocol of 1997 to MARPOL(external link)

The consultation focused on how acceding to the treaty would benefit New Zealand by protecting trade interests, promoting the interests of Pacific Island countries, improving both public health and New Zealand’s influence on climate policy, and making it easier for New Zealand-flagged ships to travel to other countries already signed up to Annex VI. It also noted the potential costs.

New Zealand relies on international shipping to move most of its imports and exports. Any New Zealand-flagged ship that enters the port of another country that is a party to Annex VI must meet the treaty’s requirements.

Until 2020, not being a party to Annex VI had limited material effect. However, a new low sulphur limit for marine fuels was introduced on 1 January 2020. This means that New Zealand-flagged ships burning heavy fuel oil need to change to low sulphur fuel. In addition, new global greenhouse gas emissions regulations are also being negotiated at the IMO, and are likely to be put in place under Annex VI by 2023.

Consultation feedback

We received 49 submissions in the consultation process — 44 were in favour of accession. Many agreed that alignment of domestic and Annex VI regulations would be beneficial. Overall, stakeholder engagement showed strong support for New Zealand becoming a party to MARPOL, even those that would be most affected by the new regulations. The main concern related to the timing of accession. Fuel companies and large ship operators stressed the importance of setting clear, reasonable and transparent timelines so they could prepare in a way that would minimise the impact on their businesses.