2025 Polar Maritime Seminar

image

IMO and Norway's Chairship of the Arctic Council, in cooperation with the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment Working Group of the Arctic Council (PAME), are organizing a Polar Maritime Seminar, co-sponsored by Norway as Chair of the Arctic Council, in cooperation with PAME.

Date: 23 and 24 January 2025 

Time: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm and 9:30 am – 14.00 pm

Place: in person at IMO Headquarters, London. 

Please find the photos of the event here. 

The main topics on the agenda at present include trends in Arctic and Antarctic vessel activity, voyage planning, the PAME project 'Review of the Polar Operational Limit Assessment Risk Indexing System (POLARIS)', search and rescue, training of seafarers for polar operations, and fishing vessel safety. Also on the provisional agenda are important topics concerning pollution prevention, preparedness and response including, measure to reduce underwater radiated noise from shipping, the behaviour of low sulphur fuels in cold water conditions, black carbon from ships, plastics pollution, arrangements for port reception facilities, and issues surrounding invasive species.

Please find more information in Circular Letter No.4934/Rev.1 of 24 December 2024. 

The seminar builds on the success of the previous seminar in 2022, when IMO and The Nautical Institute convened a Polar Maritime Seminar working closely with Arctic States and Antarctic States, together with other interested parties, with a particular focus on International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters (Polar Code), as well as fishing vessel safety.

IMO as an active Observer of the Arctic Council has continued to contribute to the work of the Arctic Council and has recognized the importance of cross–collaboration with the Antarctic.

Agenda and presentations

Please find the final agenda here with abbreviated version below:

Day 1, Thursday 23 January


Opening and welcome

10.00 – 11.00 - Session 1: Trends in Arctic and Antarctic Vessel Activity

Moderator - Mr.Drummond Fraser (Marine Safety Policy Advisor, Transport Canada)

10.45 – 11.00 - Discussion

11.00 – 11.20 - Coffee Break

11.30 – 12.15 - Session 2: Voyage Planning

Moderator - Mr. Peter Oppenheimer (Chief, International Section, NOAA Office of General Counsel)

12.05 – 12.20 - Discussion

12.20 - 13.00 - Session 3: Polar Operational Limit Assessment Risk Indexing System (POLARIS) Review

Moderator - Mr. Michael Kingston (IMO Consultant)

  • POLARIS - Ms. Ivana Kubat, Director, Research and Development for National Research Council Canada; Mr. Rob Hindley, Head of Consultancy & Technology Development, Aker Arctic; Mr. Drummond Fraser, Senior Policy Advisor, Transport Canada; Mr. James Bond, Director, Polar Research and Ice Class Ships, American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) & Mr. Morten Mejlænder-Larsen, Director - Arctic Operation and Technology, DNV

13.00 - 14.00 - Lunch

14.00 – 15.20 - Session 4: Search and Rescue

Moderator - Ms. Hanne Bragstad (Director, Norwegian Joint Rescue Centre, Norway)

15.05 – 15.20 - Discussion

15.20 – 15.45 - Coffee Break

15.45-17.00 - Session 5: Polar Waters Training

Moderator - Mr. Haakon Storhaug (Norway) (Chair of the IMO Sub-Committee on Human Element, Training and Watchkeeping)

16.45 – 17.00 - Discussion

17.00 - Closing Comments

End of Day 1

Day 2, Friday 24 January

09.30 – 10.45 - Session 6: Underwater Radiated Noise

Moderator - Ms. Michelle Sanders (Alternate Permanent Representative of Canada to IMO)

10.30 – 10.45 - Discussion

10.45 – 13.00 - Session 7: Pollution Control Measures

Moderator - Mr. Loukas Kontogiannis (Marine Environment Division, IMO)

11.15 – 11.30 - Coffee Break

Session 7 Continues

12.30 – 13.00 - Discussion

13.00 – 13.45 - Session 8: Fishing Vessel Safety / Cape Town Agreement

Moderator - Mr. Michael Kingston (IMO Consultant)

  • Cape Town Agreement - Ms. Heike Deggim, Director, Marine Environment Division, IMO; Mr. Cagri Kucukyildiz, Maritime Safety Division, IMO; Mr. Hjalti Hreinsson, Project Manager, PAME Secretariat & Mr. Jose Casado, Technical Advisor on Maritime Safety and Environment, Directorate General for the Merchant Marine, Spain 

For further information please see INTERIM GUIDANCE TO ASSIST IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CAPE TOWN AGREEMENT FOR THE SAFETY OF FISHING VESSELS 2012

13.45 - Closing Remarks

End of Day 2

Registration and participation

Participation in the Polar Maritime Seminar is open to all IMO Member States and Associate Members, United Nations and specialized agencies, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations in consultative status and, by invitation, to the representatives of Arctic Indigenous People's organizations, academic institutions and other organizations with an interest in polar shipping.

To participate, registration is required by 10 January 2025 using the following link: https://forms.office.com/e/jwWFaf2s6g. In case of any further queries, please contact the organizers at: polarseminar@imo.org.

Media wishing to attend, please contact: media@imo.org

More information

IMO in the polar environment: the Polar Code explained

 

IMO in the polar environment: Search and Rescue