SOPEP Function In The Shipping World

Ships over 400 GRT are required to follow the rules International Prevention of Marine Pollution which ratification in MARPOL 73/78, especially with the ship sailing in the international ocean.

And one of the MARPOL 73/78 rule is MARPOL Annex 1, which discusses the International Oil Pollution Prevention. In the Regulation 37 of MARPOL Annex 1 states that each tankers over 150 GRT and vessels other than tankers over 400 GRT must have on board a Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (SOPEP) approved by the Flag Administration or Classification in fact on behalf of the flag admin.

SOPEP in itself will be a guide line how the response of the ships crew in case of oil pollution and how to report, who will be report and what should be report. It also gives a guide line to control discharge action (which consideration based on Navigation Measures and Seamanship Measures).

Oil pollution itself is divided as probably and actual spill. Actual spill is a oil discharge caused damage of vessels body or equipment or to secure the safety purpose vessels or Saving Live at sea or discharge of oil during operation ships, which caused a oil discharge exceeding 15 ppm and in a very excessive amount that will be result ecosystem contamination of sea, coastline and communities with the voyage itself.

Probable spill is a more to direct if immediate action by ship crew is not done secure the system in which failure will cause the oil spill, for example equipment failure (broken oil Hose), failure of operation management, hazard to shipping (rich Dangerous Goods) and going collision.

If the reaction on the situation and condition of the improvement is not made soon will increase the oil spill in the ship and cause loss of strength Structural integrity and make its navigation hazard for traffic flow mentioned vessels.

In the other section in SOPEP also discussed about the prevention measures that must be done before the occurrence of Operational Spill, when bunker oil, or if pipe line leakage occur, tank overflow, hull leakage, spill caused by equipment in Machinery Spaces.

To overcome the operational problems usually in ships should be provided spillpaks in addition to the oil dispersant.
At Spillpak, there are:
Absorbent socks 76 cm. He x 1.2 m (6nos)
Absorbent socks 76 cm. He x 3.66 m (3nos)
Absorbent pads 41 x 51 cm (125nos)
Pillows absorbent (46 x 46 cm) 6nos
and PPE required + disposal bags and manual instructional.
Beyond that usually also in the machinery room in the ship 2x provided Multi purpose absorbent (which can be used as, Pad, Sock, wipe and roll) of cause this tools used prior to oil spill.

In addition to oil spill can caused casualties some of the following:
- Ship grounded / stranded
- Fire and Explosion
- Collision
- Hull Failure
- Excessive Listing
- Ship submerged / foundered / wrecked
- Hazardous vapor release
- Transfer of Bunker / Lightening

In SOPEP advisable to take precautions ekskalasi of that Incident. Immediate action must consider the possibility of a fire and explosion and contamination of crew from the toxic gas because the spill.

SOPEP also include Mitigating Activities action as follows:
- Assessment of the situation and monitoring requirement
- Personnel Protection Issue (Protection equipment, Health and threats to safety, Isolation Procedures, decontamination of personnel, and disposal of removed Oils and clean-up material.

SOPEP also gave guide who should in the report, what the content of report and share responsibility for running ship crew to perform its role in case of oil spill.