PANOLIN America offers environmentally considerate Greenmarine lubricants that comply with new Vessel General Permit (VGP) regulations.
December 2013 marked the renewal of the Environmental Protection Agency’s VGP for commercial vessels. To protect US national waters from ship-borne pollutants, the new regulations include updated conditions for mechanical systems that can potentially leak lubricants.
The new EPA standards require that vessel operators document their use of "environmentally acceptable lubricants" in all oil-to-sea interfaces in official reports. This includes use in equipment and machinery such as stern tubes, thrusters, stabilisers, deck cranes, actuators and gear boxes, as well as wires and cables subject to immersion.
The permits’ required reports specifically ask whether a vessel uses environmentally acceptable lubricants for oil-to-sea interfaces and requires listing of the brand used.
According to EPA definitions, compliant lubricants are "biodegradable", "non-toxic" and are not "bioaccumulative". This requirement applies unconditionally to vessels constructed on or after December 19, 2013, as well as to existing vessels, unless technically infeasible to do so. In such cases, documentation is required for reporting non-compliance.
Vessel owners and operators can easily comply with VGP requirements for environmentally acceptable lubricants, at no extra cost over the time in use, and without sacrificing performance. The PANOLIN GreenMarine line of environmentally considerate lubricants offers solutions for every part of a vessel.
The GreenMarine range includes high-duty gear oil, production line control fluid and hydraulic fluids, as well as various lubricants for stern tubes, gear boxes, cables and sliding parts.
Readily biodegradable, according to OECD 301B/ASTM D 5864, GreenMarine lubricants produce minimal toxicity to aquatic life. PANOLIN’s unique technology employs 100%-saturated synthetic esters and special additives to create lubricants that produce no bioaccumulation.
PANOLIN GreenMarine products reduce CO2 emissions by decreasing the frequency of oil changes and enhancing machine operating efficiency. Field tests document that these synthetic lubricants also have a much longer life than comparable mineral oil products.