Yacht Paint and the Regulatory Challenge

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1 Contact details: Louise Bebbington Ltd Felling Tyne and Wear Tel: Fax Yacht Paint and the Regulatory Challenge Dr Julian Hunter, Product Regulatory Affairs Manager from reviews the challenges the yacht paint industry faces from current and future environmental regulations. Never a day goes by without an environmental issue being in the news and public awareness of the key issues is now greater than ever. Climate change, and the link with man-made greenhouse gas emissions, has moved all environmental issues up the agenda of public concern. This has had knock-on effects in the political arena and calls are being made to reduce the environmental footprint of all of man s activities. Key environmental issues such as air and water pollution, threats to sensitive ecosystems, the ever increasing waste mountain and the effects of chemicals in our diet are now also under review with a view to further minimising emissions which may impact our world. The leisure industry is no exception to this trend and the yachting and boating industry is experiencing attention from government legislators keen to introduce laws reducing emissions into the environment. All aspects of pleasure boating are receiving attention - from engines to the chemicals present in paint applied to protect and beautify boats.

2 The coatings industry faces the challenge of producing effective products for its customers which comply with ever tightening environmental laws. This article highlights some of the issues facing marine paint manufacturers and discusses how we are reacting and preparing to provide products which will comply with both today s and tomorrow s legislation. Hull fouling and antifouling paints Prevention of settlement and growth of sea creatures on the hulls of boats is essential, if vessels are to operate efficiently and safely. If left unchecked, fouling will result in an increase in fuel consumption and on engine wear, resulting in more harmful emissions into the environment. A fouled hull can also bring a loss of manoeuvrability which compromises the safety of boating. An unprotected hull has been shown to provide an opportunity for non-native species brought in from overseas to hitch a ride into new waters where they may flourish, out-competing native species and disturbing the ecological balance in sensitive areas. Control of fouling on the hull is thus a key element in minimising the environmental footprint of all types of boats and ships. Probably the most scrutinised area of marine coatings is biocidal antifouling paints. Once applied to the hull, small amounts of biocide are released from the paint film over time, preventing settlement of algae and barnacles on the hull. Beginning in the mid 1980s, antifouling paints containing the then state-of-the art antifouling biocide TBT (Tributyltin oxide) were shown to affect oysters and coastal whelks close to marinas. In the 1990s effects were seen on deep sea whelks living close to shipping lanes and later TBT residues were detected in dolphins, sea birds and fish. Having banned their application to pleasure craft less than 25 m in length in 1987, in 2003 the EU introduced laws forbidding the application of TBT antifoulings in all EU boatyards and to all vessels flying the flag of an EU country. Under this law, no commercial or pleasure boat with active TBT antifouling paint on the hull will be allowed to enter EU ports and harbours from 1/1/2008. Boats with TBT on the hull should either remove all residual TBT antifouling before this date or apply a sealer-coat to prevent any further TBT from being released from the paint film. In addition the EU

3 law requires all vessels over 24 meters in length, flying flags of EU countries, to carry evidence that the hull is compliant. In the case of boats over 400 gross tonnes, the vessel must be surveyed and certified as compliant by a classification society acting on behalf of the flag state. In the case of boats over 24 meters and less than 400 gross tonnes the captain must self-certify the boat as TBTfree. The European Commission who drafted this law on behalf of the EU countries has also recently announced that it intends to modify the European law on Port State Control in order to permit port state control authorities to inspect and sample paint films from boats they suspect may still have active TBT on the hull. Fines and penalties for non-compliant boats are set by EU countries under national laws. In addition to these EU laws, recognising that shipping and boating is a global activity, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) agreed a global treaty to prevent harmful effects of antifouling paints on the environment in The International Antifouling Systems (IMO-AFS) Convention is likely to become active in international law in 2008, as it is expected the number of signatures from countries necessary to bring the Convention into law will have been received by IMO this year. The IMO-AFS Convention prevents application of TBT-based antifoulings to any vessel and prevents boats with active TBT on the hull from entering the ports, harbours and marinas of countries who have signed up to the treaty from 1/1/2008. As is the case with the EU law, boats over 24 meters in length must carry a certificate of compliance and vessels over 400 gross tonnes must be surveyed and certified compliant by an official body acting on behalf of the flag state. Penalties for non-compliance are likely to be high, for example Greek legislation implementing the IMO-AFS Convention sets fines of EURO 90,000 per boat. The coatings industry, working alongside representatives from the marine industry, played an active role during negotiations of both the EU and the IMO regulations and advising on technologies available to prevent fouling.

4 In addition to banning the use of TBT, the IMO-AFS Convention can restrict or ban the use of any antifouling system in future, if the Marine Environmental Committee of IMO (IMO-MEPC) decides they are having unacceptable effects on the environment. This is a clear incentive to the coatings industry to develop effective products which have the lowest possible environmental impact. The risk to the environment from any product is therefore in the forefront of minds of marine coatings companies, from the antifouling paint development chemist to the marketing executive. Going forward, the environmental impact and safety aspects of antifouling paints containing biocides will be further scrutinised under the scope of laws governing use of pesticide and biocidal products. For example in Europe all biocides used in antifoulings are currently under review following rigid procedures laid down under the EU Biocidal Products Directive. Under this law the environmental and safety profile of any biocide must be shown to be safe if it is to be listed as permitted for use in antifouling paints used in Europe. Generating the required data to prove a biocide as safe is expensive and estimates from biocide manufacturers indicate a cost as much as EURO nine (9) million per biocide. A consequence of this is that many biocides used in antifouling paints will not be supported through the review process and hence not available for use in antifouling paints in future. Once the EU has decided which biocides are acceptable for use, products containing these biocides must then be assessed by government authorities before a registration for use is granted. The impact of the Biocidal Products Directive is already being felt. For example of 44 biocides notified by biocide manufacturers as used in antifouling paints sold in Europe in 1999, only 10 remain supported with required data and hence allowed for continued use in the EU. The next big milestone is in 2008 when the European authorities will announce its decisions after assessing the biocides it has reviewed. When a biocide is approved, paint suppliers must then submit applications for use of products containing the approved biocides. The first applications, which include full dossiers of information proving the product safe to man and environment, will be made in late 2009 / early 2010.

5 How is all this impacting on the boat-owner, the boatyard and the paint supplier? Supply of effective but greener antifouling paints to the boating industry has been our primary aim for many years. Biocides have been introduced which quickly degrade in water and new sophisticated antifouling paint compositions have been developed which release the minimal amount of biocide required to be effective. Experts from the paint industry have been working with government regulators to encourage a practical and pragmatic approach in their reviews of antifouling products. If common sense prevails, boat owners can expect efficient and safe antifouling paints to be available to them after We anxiously wait to see the outcome of the forthcoming deliberations from Europe. Solvent (Volatile Organic Compound) legislation affecting marine coatings in the EU Under pressure to reduce air pollution and to address the ecological impact of solvents emitted from industrial activities, the European authorities passed a series of laws restricting emissions of VOCs across Europe. In recent years this has significantly impacted industries such as auto manufacturing and building construction/decoration, but now these restrictions are affecting boatyards too. As in the case of antifoulings, the coatings industry is representing the interests of the yacht industry alongside its partners in the marine industry trade association ICOMIA, to ensure that regulations are implemented fairly and pragmatically across the EU. In the case of VOC regulations, boat yards in the EU applying paints are directly affected. The legislation, known as the Solvent Emissions Directive (SED), divides facilities emitting VOCs into three tiers depending on the amounts used. In the case of boatyards: Yards using below a total of 5 tonnes of solvent per year Yards using between a total of 5 and 15 tonnes per year Yards using above a total of 15 tonnes per year

6 For yards using below the 5 tonne threshold there is currently no action to be taken. 5 tonnes may sound like a lot of solvent, but in terms of the amount of paint used, a yard could easily be at the limit if more than 10 pallets of paint are used per year and solvents used for cleaning equipment, wiping down surfaces and solvent found in cleaning products, sealants and adhesives are also included. In reality, solvent consumption in a boatyard can be up to 40% more than that which is present in paint alone. So what does all this mean for the marine industry? Yards in either the second or third tier will have to register with local environmental authorities and comply with restrictions on the amount of solvent that can be emitted. From the end of October 2007, new VOC emission reduction targets apply, reducing emissions permitted from boatyards. In the second tier the total amount of VOCs emitted must not exceed 37% by weight of the total weight of wet paint applied in the yard. In the third tier, permitted VOC emissions must be reduced to 27%. As an alternative to making these reductions in solvent use, the legislation allows yards to take all coating operations indoors and vent and remove VOC emissions from waste gases before they are released into the atmosphere. In most cases this option is seen as unrealistic practically or economically. A yard failing to work within these restrictions faces fines of up to 2,500 per week along with temporary shutdown and revocation of any environmental permits. As yards are forced to meet new limits on the amount of VOC that can be used, paint products containing less solvent will be required to help the yards comply. Along with the marine trades association ICOMIA, the coatings industry has been working to ensure the SED is implemented consistently and practically across the EU, allowing yards the flexibility to select the mix of products they need to comply whilst maintaining the high level of performance demanded by boat owners. Such a mix of products could include use of solvent free adhesives where dry times might be less important, the use of waterbased cleaning products and high solids paint products in the priming stages prior to topcoat and undercoat. In this way the high cosmetic standards demanded for

7 topcoats applied to boats and superyachts, at present unachievable with products containing less solvent, could be maintained with minimum impact on product performance. Tools to help yards calculate their annual solvent emission under the SED are soon to be introduced across Europe by ICOMIA and the coatings industry. What stands in the way of the introduction of the new VOC reduction targets across the EU is the potential for different approaches to implementation by the various member states of the EU. The marine industry as a whole is lobbying for a consistent approach to implementation of this directive. Readers may be wondering why they have not heard about this before. The timetable for compliance and a slow rate of implementation by national governments are probably key factors. The first limits targets for VOC reductions only came into effect in October 2005, and several member states have not fully implemented these into their national statute books, so compliance has not been an issue until now. But from October 2007 new stricter limits apply and the EU authorities will expect wider adoption of this directive across Europe. New laws on chemicals used in the EU the REACH regulations In June 2007 a new set of European Regulations came into force affecting every chemical used in any product manufactured or imported into the EU. This includes components of all paint products. These all-encompassing rules set out a plan to review the environmental impact and safety of all chemicals over an eleven year timescale, the most hazardous to be reviewed within three years. Ultimately the use of every chemical will be reviewed and only those uses proven safe will be registered for use. Use of unregistered substances will be illegal. As is the case with biocides used in antifouling paints, expensive experimental data will be needed from manufacturers to register their substances. Some key raw materials used in coatings may not be available going forward as suppliers opt to cease to produce certain raw materials due to the costs involved in registration. At greatest risk are raw materials purchased from smaller suppliers, unable to pay to generate data required for registration. After pre-registration of all substances, the first to be reviewed will be all hazardous substances classified by the EU as having properties that may cause cancer, mutations or damage to

8 reproduction in humans. Also up for early review within three years are chemicals known to be highly persistent in the environment and those with potential to accumulate in the food chain. Once reviewed continued use will only be permitted, or authorised, if less hazardous alternative chemicals do not exist. Many of these chemicals were removed from yacht and marine paint products several years ago. However there may be some products where alternative chemicals do not yet exist and compromises in product performance may have to be made if authorities fail to grant an authorisation to use a substance. Other substances will be reviewed and registered over an 18 year time period, with substances used in the highest volumes considered first. How are we, as a coatings supplier, preparing for the impact of REACH? We are reliant on our raw material suppliers to register their substances so we can keep using them in our products. This demands a special relationship with our suppliers and an exchange of information has begun to ensure all our key raw materials will continue to be available to us under REACH. In addition we are working with regulators and trade associations to ensure that uses of our products are fully understood so that the chemicals used in them are assessed accurately and fairly. Product Stewardship - keeping ahead of legislation How do we as a coatings manufacturer develop products which comply with complex legislation? How can we anticipate what we will face in the future and ensure our new products will comply and be available to customers in the foreseeable future? For many years we have operated an active Product Stewardship programme initiative where product safety and environmental impact is a key consideration throughout the product life cycle and in everything we do. Unacceptable substances have been removed from our product range and substituted with equally efficient alternatives. The way we communicate guidance to our customers on the safe use of products is regularly reviewed. Our product development chemists focus on developing products with a viable long-term future

9 and a key part of this is anticipation of future environmental legislation. This is where the experienced regulatory affairs expert can make a significant contribution to the business and play a key role in design of sustainable products for the future. Looking forward it is clear that the paint industry faces a plethora of new environmental regulations. New regulations put constraints on the substances we can use in products but by fully understanding our customers needs and anticipating the effect of regulations and the changes they will bring, the boater can be sure that we will continue to provide effective and compliant products to the industry. Julian Hunter 9/7/07 10 July 2007 Notes to the Editor:, based in Felling, Newcastle upon Tyne provides the latest antifouling paints, epoxy resins and associated boat maintenance products for the refurbishment and new build of all pleasure boats. is a leading supplier of high performance Marine Coatings and is a part of Akzo Nobel, a market driven, technology-based company. Akzo Nobel, based in the Netherlands, serves customers throughout the world with healthcare products, coatings and chemicals. Consolidated sales for 2003 totalled EUR 13 billion. The Company currently employs approximately 64,500 people in more than 80 countries., International, the Akzo Nobel logo and other products mentioned in this document are trademarks of, or licensed to, Akzo Nobel. Akzo Nobel 2007.