The Estonian Port of Tallinn has established new rules of cleaning and other procedures for the underwater surfaces of hulls. These can be carried out only with the permission of the Vessel Traffic Shift Manager.
The port said that the move was part of its strategy of reducing the environmental impact of the port and ships staying there.
The operator in charge of the service is Finland-based DG Diving Group, which uses patented technology to clean the ships with the help of specialized divers and is currently developing a hull cleaning machine that does not require divers.
The residue, consisting of both bio- and chemical materials, is collected in a tank on shore while the filtered water is let back to the sea.
Mika Rouhola from DG Diving Group said that “the ships need the hull cleaning depending on the season one to two times per month to prevent too large quantities of biological particles attaching to the underwater part. This enables the ships to be the most efficient in terms of fuel usage and speed, as well as keeping the hull well maintained overall”
In January the year the port launched a sustainable activity plan which focused on decreasing the environmental impact of the port and ships.