22:00, Wednesday, 22 May 2013

This morning, after a short visit to the botanical garden and zoo established by mining company Vale in a conservation project, as part of their commitment to sustainable development, we were taken to the iron ore mining site. Despite the limited time available, we visited the core mining location, from which rich, friable hematite, containing 65% iron, is extracted.

The site is really large, and carefully designed to ensure accumulated rainwater does not affect the mining process.

In the afternoon, we left Carajas and moved to São Luis, the location of the loading port.  There, I was briefed on the details of the process to control moisture levels in the iron ore, which must be within strict limits. This procedure is essential for the safety of ships involved in the bulk carriage of iron ore.

I viewed the train terminal where the iron ore is unloaded from trains, via an underground transfer channel, to the stock-piling site, where it is left for some days to settle and drain before being conveyed to the loading arms at the ship terminals.  Due to heavy rainfall, terminal operation was stopped and I was not able to observe first-hand the process of loading the iron ore onto one of the Valemax ships. But the technical staff of the company were confident about continuing their solid record of safe carriage of the product over almost three decades since export of iron ore began from Carajas, in 1985.

Tomorrow, according to the plan, I will be visiting an off-shore oil platform.

21:30, Tuesday, 21 May 2013

I am in Brazil on an official State visit this week. After a visit to the 1st Naval District Headquarters Office, where I received a warm welcome from the Commandant of the Navy, Admiral Moura Neto, and, visits to Rio de Janeiro’s Port Authority and Seafarers Instruction Centre, I transferred to Carajas by aircraft, having accepted an invitation from Vale to visit the world biggest iron ore mining site. The trip was arranged by the Brazilian Navy.

 Carajas is an amazing place, situated at 700m above sea level and right in the middle of the Amazon jungle. The airport runway is surrounded by tall rainforest trees. The plane flew over the world’s biggest mining site and landed in a thin strip cut into the rainforest.

 The purpose of my visit to the mining site is to directly observe the way Vale operates its mining activities, to better understand whole the process of mining, the specific features of this mining site and how iron ore is treated and transported for shipping.  Liquefaction of fine minerals during navigation is a matter of great concern in the maritime community and an IMO Sub-Committee is currently considering strengthening safety measures to protect bulk carriers from the risk of capsizing due to liquefaction. Before establishing any international safety measures, it is important to fully understand the process of mining, land transport, preparation for shipping and control measures already implemented by the industry.

I am being accompanied on my visit by Brazil’s Permanent Representative to IMO, Admiral Umberto de Mendonça, and with the support of the mining company Vale.

Visit to Australia and the Great Barrier Reef

Today, I have attended the 2013 Asia- Pacific oil spill preparedness and response conference, Spillcon 2013, taking place in Cairns, Queensland, Australia.

This event is one of the most important international conferences aimed at promoting an international exchange of information and knowledge with regard to oil spill prevention, preparedness, planning, response, salvage and the restoration process. In order to build a consistent regional approach, and in the context of technical cooperation, representatives of local, regional and global environmental and shipping organizations, as well as government and non-government organisations have been invited to participate, and the conference has been a great success.
 
Taking the opportunity of visiting Cairns, I took a helicopter ride to observe the coral of the Great Barrier Reef, which is a world heritage site and the first Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) designated by IMO, in 1990. The visit was kindly arranged by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA). I was hugely impressed by the scale of the area, the colour and beauty of the water surrounding the reefs and, of course, the efforts made by the Australian Government,  local authorities and the GBRMPA to preserve the marine environment in this world heritage site. I am particularly grateful to Russell Reichelt, Chairman of the GBRMPA for providing his Director of Tourism and Recreation Chris Briggs  as guide and expert on our short trip to Green Island, during which we were accompanied by Graham Peachey Chief Executive Officer of AMSA.
 
IMO has established a total of 14 PSSAs, and is currently preparing a permanent display at IMO Headquarters to highlight them all and to showcase IMO’s efforts in preserving the marine environment through establishing special protective measures for each of them. Upon my call, Finland, Australia, the Netherlands, Germany, the Republic of Korea and Sweden have all contributed to the setting up of the display, and we are now in preparation for its unveiling during the forthcoming meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) in May.
 
IMO’s activities in designating PSSAs should also be considered in the context of the designation of world heritage sites and marine protective areas, and I have invited the heads of UNEP and UNESCO- IOC to participate in the unveiling on 16 May at IMO Headquarters. I am intending to establish a meaningful linkage with information available in other UN Agencies, in an effort to demonstrate our UN wide approach to preserving sensitive sea areas.
 
Koji Sekimizu

IMO Secretary-General on official visit to Finland

7:00pm, 7 March, 2013

 I am currently in Helsinki on an official visit to Finland.

 Today, I paid a courtesy visit to the President of the Republic of Finland and held a meeting with Minister of Transport, Ms Merja Kyllonen, for an exchange of views about a number of current important issues in the shipping industry and IMO, including my review and reform process, winter navigation and preparation of the Polar Code, GHG emissions from ships, sulphur regulations and the availability of low-sulphur fuels and alternative fuels.  Ambassador Pekka Huhtaniemi was with me throughout my official visits to the President and Minister Kyllonen and I appreciate very much his support during my visit to Finland.

 I am really impressed by the recent actions taken by the Finnish Government to support the shipping industry in preparation for compliance with the 2015 sulphur regulations, and their decision to provide State aid for promotion of new technology and innovation, such as ships using LNG as fuel, in order to meet environmental regulations.

 The shipping industry is facing a difficult time, having to survive the current economic situation in addition to making efforts to comply with three sets of major environmental regulations: energy-efficiency measures (EEDI), ballast water management and sulphur regulations.  It needs support from Governments, and Governments should establish clear policies to support shipping , to help it meet the challenges of compliance with these new environmental regulations.

 I was encouraged to learn that, under the guidance of the Finnish Government,  NESTE OIL is making the necessary investment to produce sufficient volumes of the low-sulphur fuels and alternative fuels.  Actions taken by the Finnish Government should be followed by other IMO Member Governments so that we can collectively support the shipping industry to overcome the current challenges to meet the requirements for the protection of the environment.

 I also had the privilege to experience ice navigation in the biggest port of Finland, aboard an ice breaking power tugboat of NESTE OIL, and experienced the high performance of the tugboat and observed the double-action oil tanker which is designed to navigate backwards to break the ice with its stern - an innovative design indeed. We have many things to learn from Finland with regard winter navigation, in the context of preparation of the Polar Code, with the target year of 2014.

IMO Secretary-General visits the expansion project site of the Panama Canal.