Features of Polar Code
- It has been developed to complement existing International Maritime Organization (IMO) equipment to enhance the safety of ship operations and reduce the impact on people and the environment in remote, vulnerable, and potentially hard polar waters.
- The Code acknowledges that polar water operations may impose additional demands on ships, their systems, and operations beyond the current conditions of the International Convention for the Protection of Life at Sea (SOLAS).
- The Code acknowledges that polar waters impose additional shipping requirements beyond the demands normally encountered.
- The Code also recognises that arctic ecosystems and Arctic coastal communities may be exposed to human activities like ship operations.
- The relationship between additional safeguards and the protection of the environment is accepted as a safeguard taken to reduce the likelihood of an accident, and the environment will benefit to a great extent.
- The Code is intended to be applicable to both the Arctic and Antarctic as a whole, though the legal and geographical distinction between the two regions is taken into account.
- The main principles behind developing the Polar Code are to use a risk-based approach and to take a holistic approach to determine the scope and mitigate the identified risks.
Polar Code
Recently the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences released India’s new Arctic Policy titled ‘India and the Arctic: Building a Partnership for Sustainable Development in February 2022, which aims at scientific research, sustainable tourism, and mineral oil in the Arctic region and to promote gas exploration. India’s new Arctic policy rests on six pillars. As the melting of ice in the Arctic is not only an important indicator of climate change, but it is also affecting all countries. Polar codes operate on blocks of symbols/bits and are therefore technically a member of the block code family. The polar code signifies its role by addressing the risk present in polar waters.