Loss Prevention 03 Feb, 2025 Turkey - Pollution Incidents on the Rise Marcus Winchester Loss Prevention Officer The Club would like to draw Member’s attention to a concerning trend of pollution incidents involving vessels operating within Turkish waters and calling in at Turkish ports. We remind Members of the need to strictly adhere to all relevant national and international requirements relating to pollution and the importance of implementing appropriate operational precautions. Download PDF This comes at a time when fines for pollution events have been substantially increasing over the last 12 months by the Turkish authorities as previously communicated by the Club . A Member’s vessel recently called into a Turkish port to conduct a transfer of slops from the vessels slop tank to an adjacent barge. Due to lapse from the barge and the vessel, a quantity of slops were discharged into the sea because of a leakage that wasn’t immediately noticed. The de-slopping operation was soon after halted and the local Turkish Coast Guard was notified. This resulted in a significant fine. The Club wants to highlight some key recommendations for vessels transiting Turkish waters when engaging in any operations where there is a risk of pollution. While the list of recommendations is not exhaustive, it is imperative to comply with all relevant anti-pollution procedures within Member’s Safety Management Systems and ensure crews are fully familiar with these procedures.  Vessels to conduct environmental briefings for all crew prior to arriving in Turkish waters to ensure they understand the heightened risks when operating in the region. De-ballasting operations should be avoided. If the vessel is fitted with an approved BWTS, this system shall be used with all appropriate details noted into the vessel's ballast log during such operation. All the sensors and associated components should be checked for faults to verify the system is fully operationally compliant before discharging