SOLAS Convention
The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea is an international maritime treaty which sets minimum safety standards in the construction, equipment and operation of merchant ships. The convention requires signatory flag states to ensure that ships flagged by them comply with at least these standards.
The current version of SOLAS is the 1974 version, known as SOLAS 1974, which came into force on 25 May 1980. As of November 2018, SOLAS 1974 had 164 contracting states, which flag about 99% of merchant ships around the world in terms of gross tonnage.
SOLAS in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships.
Signatories
As at March 2016, SOLAS 1974 had 162 contracting States, which flag about 99% of merchant ships around the world in terms of gross tonnage., the non-parties to SOLAS 1974 include Bolivia, Lebanon and Sri Lanka, all considered flag of convenience states.Provisions
SOLAS 1974 requires flag states to ensure that ships flagged by them comply with the minimum safety standards in the construction, equipment and operation of merchant ships. The treaty includes articles setting out general obligations, etc., followed by an annexe divided into twelve chapters, two new chapters were added in 2016 and 2017. Of these, chapter five is the only one that applies to all vessels on the sea, including private yachts and small craft on local trips as well as to commercial vessels on international passages. Many countries have turned these international requirements into national laws so that anybody on the sea who is in breach of SOLAS V requirements may find themselves subject to legal proceedings.;Chapter I – General Provisions: Surveying the various types of ships and certifying that they meet the requirements of the convention.
;Chapter II-1 – Construction – Subdivision and stability, machinery and electrical installations: The subdivision of passenger ships into watertight compartments so that after damage to its hull, a vessel will remain afloat and stable.
;Chapter II-2 – Fire protection, fire detection and fire extinction: Fire safety provisions for all ships with detailed measures for passenger ships, cargo ships and tanker.
;Chapter III – Life-saving appliances and arrangements: Life-saving appliances and arrangements, including requirements for life boats, rescue boats and life jackets according to type of ship. The specific technical requirements are given in the International Life-Saving Appliance Code.
;Chapter IV – Radiocommunications: The Global Maritime Distress Safety System requires passenger and cargo ships on international voyages to carry radio equipment, including satellite Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons and Search and Rescue Transponders.
;Chapter V – Safety of navigation: This chapter requires governments to ensure that all vessels are sufficiently and efficiently manned from a safety point of view. It places requirements on all vessels regarding voyage and passage planning, expecting a careful assessment of any proposed voyages by all who put to sea. Every mariner must take account of all potential dangers to navigation, weather forecasts, tidal predictions, the competence of the crew, and all other relevant factors. It also adds an obligation for all vessels' masters to offer assistance to those in distress and controls the use of lifesaving signals with specific requirements regarding danger and distress messages. It is different from the other chapters, which apply to certain classes of commercial shipping, in that these requirements apply to all vessels and their crews, including yachts and private craft, on all voyages and trips including local ones.
;Chapter VI – Carriage of Cargoes: Requirements for the stowage and securing of all types of cargo and cargo containers except liquids and gases in bulk.
;Chapter VII – Carriage of dangerous goods:Requires the carriage of all kinds of dangerous goods to be in compliance with the International Bulk Chemical Code, The International Code of the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Liquefied Gases in Bulk and the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code.
;Chapter VIII – Nuclear ships: Nuclear powered ships are required, particularly concerning radiation hazards, to conform to the Code of Safety for Nuclear Merchant Ships.
;Chapter IX – Management for the Safe Operation of Ships: Requires every shipowner and any person or company that has assumed responsibility for a ship to comply with the International Safety Management Code.
;Chapter X – Safety measures for high-speed craft: Makes mandatory the International Code of Safety for High-speed craft.
;Chapter XI-1 – Special measures to enhance maritime Safety: Requirements relating to organizations responsible for carrying out surveys and inspections, enhanced surveys, the ship identification number scheme, and operational requirements.
;Chapter XI-2 – Special measures to enhance maritime security: Includes the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code. Confirms that the role of the Master in maintaining the security of the ship is not, and cannot be, constrained by the Company, the charterer or any other person. Port facilities must carry out security assessments and develop, implement and review port facility security plans. Controls the delay, detention, restriction, or expulsion of a ship from a port. Requires that ships must have a ship security alert system, as well as detailing other measures and requirements.
;Chapter XII – Additional safety measures for bulk carriers: Specific structural requirements for bulk carriers over 150 metres in length.
;Chapter XIII - Verification of compliance: Makes mandatory from 1 January 2016 the IMO Member State Audit Scheme.
;Chapter XIV - Safety measures for ships operating in polar waters: The chapter makes mandatory, from 1 January 2017, the Introduction and part I-A of the International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters.
History
Origin and early versions
The first version of SOLAS Treaty was passed in 1914 in response to the sinking of the RMS Titanic, which prescribed numbers of lifeboats and other emergency equipment along with safety procedures, including continuous radio watches. The 1914 treaty never entered into force due to the outbreak of the First World War.Further versions were adopted in 1929 and 1948.
1960 version
The 1960 Convention was adopted on 17 June 1960 and entered into force on 26 May 1965. It was the fourth SOLAS Convention and was the first major achievement for International Maritime Organization. It represented a considerable step forward in modernizing regulations and keeping up with technical developments in the shipping industry.1974 version
In 1974 a completely new Convention was adopted to allow SOLAS to be amended and implemented within a reasonable timescale, instead of the previous procedure to incorporate amendments, which proved to be very slow. Under SOLAS 1960, it could take several years for amendments to come into force since countries had to give notice of acceptance to IMO and there was a minimum threshold of countries and tonnage. Under SOLAS 1974, amendments enter into force via a tacit acceptance procedure – this allows an amendment to enter into force on a specified date, unless objections to an amendment are received from an agreed number of parties.The 1974 SOLAS came into force on 25 May 1980, 12 months after its ratification by at least 25 countries with at least 50% of gross tonnage. It has been updated and amended on numerous occasions since then and the Convention in force today is sometimes referred to as SOLAS, 1974, as amended.
In 1975 the assembly of the IMO decided that the 1974 convention should in future use SI units only.