MEMBER ALERT Shipowners Claims Bureau, Inc., Manager One Battery Park Plaza 31 st Fl., New York, NY 10004 USA Tel: +1 212 847 4500 Fax: +1 212 847 4599 https://www.american-club.com American Club Member Alert – January 14 , 20 2 2 1 JANUARY 14, 2022 ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION FINES IN TURKEY: AN UPDATE A revised Pollution Fine Tariff has come into effect as of January 1, 2022. In the event of sea pollution events, fines may be levied by the Turkish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or by local Harbor Masters. Pollution fines levied by the EPA Fines apply both to individuals (real persons) and triple in values for fines levied on legal entities (e.g., shipowners and disponent shipowners) as follows in Turkish Lira (TRY): Tonnage (GT) Individuals Legal Entities Pollution from petroleum tankers and derivatives (raw petroleum, fuel oil, bilges, oil mud, refined product oil waste, etc.) Up to 1,000 GT 901.56 TRY/GT 2,704.68 TRY/GT Between 1,000 and 5,000 GT 225.40 TRY/GT 676.20 TRY/GT More than 5,000 GT 22.53 TRY/GT 67.59 TRY/GT Dirty ballast discharged to sea by tankers Up to 1,000 GT 164.26 TRY/GT 492.78 TRY/GT Between 1,000 and 5,000 GT 32.77 TRY/GT 98.31 TRY/GT More than 5,000 GT 5. 20 TRY/GT 15.60 TRY/GT Pollution from ships and other vehicles that release petroleum or petroleum derivatives (bilge, oil mud, freight mud, fuel il, oil waste or dirty ballast) Up to 1,000 GT 450.78 TRY/GT 1,352.34 TRY/GT Between 1,000 and 5,000 GT 90.16 TRY/GT 270.48 TRY/GT More than 5,000 GT 22.53 TRY/GT 67.59 TRY/GT Garbage and sewage discharged by sea or any other sea vehicles Up to 1,000 GT 225.40 TRY/GT 676.20 TRY/GT Between 1,000 and 5,000 GT 45.08 TRY/GT 135.24 TRY/GT More than 5,000 GT 22.53 TRY/GT 67.59 TRY/GT Notes: (1) Fine amounts for the above categories shall be doubled and tripled for repeat offenders for any recurrences of pollution within three years for the same vessel. (2) If the hazardous substances and wastes are disposed to the sea, the fines will be calculated at ten times the amounts calculated for pollution from petroleum tankers. (3) If the vessel eliminates the pollution by its own means, the fine levied will be 1/3 of the stated amounts above. MEMBER ALERT Shipowners Claims Bureau, Inc., Manager One Battery Park Plaza 31 st Fl., New York, NY 10004 USA Tel: +1 212 847 4500 Fax: +1 212 847 4599 https://www.american-club.com American Club Member Alert – January 14 , 20 2 2 2 Members are entitled to lodge an appeal to any fines before an administrative court within 30 days of the fine’s notification date. However, appealing the fine will not result in lifting of a fined vessel’s arrest order and appeals have a low probability of success. Under the relevant code, the Turkish environmental authorities are entitled to ask for cash settlement of the fine and generally will not accept any form of security to release an offending ship. On an exceptional basis, the authorities may accept bankers’ drafts and/or payment guarantees issued by the ship’s agents, payable within a maximum of 1-2 days and without any conditions. In previous cases, the authorities released vessels against a letter of undertaking (LOU) issued by a P&I club or insurance company recognized by the Turkish Government. However, the authorities’ demand for the original LOU with its notarized official translation led to considerable delays to vessels. It is significant to note that the pollution fine amount may be reduced by 25% if settled immediately, which would also all