The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has published a list of revisions to various documentation from 8 June to 15 July 2022.
All M-Notices (MSNs, MGNs and MINs) can be found through the use of the search engine on the MCA website.
Issued 9 June 2022
SI 2022 No. 0629 – The Merchant Shipping (Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments) Order 2022 Continue reading “Revised MCA documentation issued between 8 June and 15 July”
Passenger and fishing safety, new technologies and a greener future are the top priorities for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) for the coming year.
Reducing the numbers of deaths in the fishing industry, keeping people safe on-board ships, and continuing to drive forward greener maritime are all featured in the MCA Business Plan for 2022/23.
The Agency continues to focus on maritime safety, pledging to improve how it responds to search and rescue incidents, promising to prioritise safety inspections on domestic passenger ships and fishing vessels. Continue reading “MCA publishes new business plan”
Manufacturers looking to make sure they get UK approval for the marine equipment they produce are being given a helping hand by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA).
It will become mandatory from 1 January next year for all new marine equipment placed on board UK vessels to have the UK approval – previously it was covered by the EU regulations. The race is on for equipment producers to meet that deadline and – as it stands – there are not enough accredited organisations to do all the work.
Now there are plans to give the organisations – known collectively as Conformity Assessment Bodies (CAB) – currently going through the accreditation process provisional approval to do the work. Continue reading “MCA works to improve support for people to get UK approval for marine equipment”
In recent weeks the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency has published a number of revised and amended documents, as well as announcing a new Statutory Instrument (SI).
Issued on 10 January 2022
MSIS 27 – Annex 1 – Under 15 m LOA FV Inspection Regime (Rev. 12/21)
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Issued on 12 January 2022
Safety Bulletin 024 – Non-SOLAS Lifejacket Servicing Requirements
Click for more details Continue reading “Recent new and updated documents issued by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency”
Seafarers will be better protected as new UK rules come into force to tighten up safety for those involved in enclosed space entry onboard vessels. The updated legislation goes further than that currently required under international maritime law and is part of the ongoing commitment by the UK to seafarer welfare.
Enclosed spaces include chain lockers, cargo holds, duct keels and water tanks – or any area that has been left closed for any length of time without ventilation.
Six people have died over a ten-year period from 2009 to 2019 in UK ports Continue reading “MCA publishes new guidance on enclosed space entry”
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has published guidance on safety bulletin 24 – Non-SOLAS lifejacket servicing requirements. The MCA has published this guidance based on a recent survey of a fishing vessel which highlighted that the vessel’s complement of inflatable, non-SOLAS lifejackets had not been serviced in accordance with the requirements of MGN 553: Inflatable Non-SOLAS Liferafts and Life-saving Appliances. The lifejackets had undergone servicing with a service provider that did not hold manufacturer’s approval for that particular make and model. Continue reading “MCA releases guidance on Safety Bulletin 24 – Non-SOLAS lifejacket servicing requirements”
From its beginnings with coastal lookouts to today’s hi-tech national network of coordination centres, from small localised beginnings to international players – one thing has stayed the same for two centuries – Her Majesty’s Coastguard seeks to search, to rescue and to save.
Two hundred years of saving lives along the UK coast and at sea, as well as coordinating rescues for those in distress in international waters, is being marked this year as HM Coastguard celebrates its milestone anniversary.
It was on 15 January 1822, that HM Coastguard was formally brought into existence and has been working to keep people safe at the coast Continue reading “UK Coastguard celebrates 200 years of service”
On 5 January 2022 the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) published a consultation on an amendment to update MGN 306(M) Designing and Operating Smaller Passenger Vessels: Meeting the needs of persons with reduced mobility. The reason for looking to publish an amended version of the MGN is to update it in certain areas due to changes in legislation, documentation, practice and to obtain the views of interested parties. Continue reading “MCA opens consultation for the inclusion of new guidance for meeting the needs of persons with reduced mobility on small passenger vessels”
The UK maritime regulator, the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA), has issued and distributed the following new documentation over the past few weeks.
02 December 2021
SI 2021 No. 1316 – The Merchant Shipping (Radiocommunications) (Amendment) Regulations 2021
View details Continue reading “Recent MCA documentation amendments released in December 2021”
The consultation seeks your views on the draft Marine Guidance Note MGN 653(M) Electric Vehicles Onboard Passenger Ro-Ro Ferries. The increase in electric vehicle (EV) numbers in the UK has led to increasing demand for transit of EV onboard passenger Ro-Ro ferries (Ro-Pax). Currently, there are limited requirements specific to the charging of electric vehicles onboard UK vessels. However, noting the increasing popularity of electric vehicles it has become apparent that there is a potential for users of these vehicles to expect charging to be available onboard, and for operators of such vessels to consider offering this facility. This marine notice provides guidance for the safe carriage and charging EVs. Continue reading “Consultation for the carriage and charging of electric vehicles on Ro Ro ferries is now open”
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency is to work with industry to develop local self-regulated schemes for the safe disposal of redundant pyrotechnics (flares) from the pleasure vessel sector. It follows a consultation (which concluded on 15 March) with the industry, industry regulators and boat-owners to seek ways considered acceptable to all for the effective means of disposing of flares.
The MCA supported a proposal for an industry-led, self-regulated disposal service that complies with existing legislation. It was also felt this was an opportunity for small regional businesses to tailor a disposal service that meets local needs, enabling an effective geographical spread of options available to boat-owners. Continue reading “New chapter for safe disposal of marine flares from the pleasure boat sector”
New guidance on mitigating the risk of serious injury from whole body vibration on small vessels has been published today in MGN 436 (Amendment 2) by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA).
Whole Body Vibration (WBV) and Repeated Shock (RS) injuries are a known issue of travelling on small vessels at high speeds. When they occur, they can be life-changing or even fatal. MGN 436 (Amendment 2) is aimed at operators of small vessels and focuses on mitigating strategies, following several serious incidents in recent years. It provides guidance on ways to alleviate risk of injury, both severe and chronic, for crew and passengers.
This latest update to the guidance reflects the evolving knowledge and best practice including the use of shock mitigating technology and Continue reading “MCA publishes MGN 436 new guidance to mitigate serious injury on small vessels”
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