Republic of Latvia Cabinet Regulation No. 810 Adopted 18 December 2018

Procedures for Ensuring Operation of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Long-range Identification and Tracking (LRIT) System, Use and Circulation of Data

Issued pursuant to
Section 41.³, Paragraph three of the Maritime Administration and Marine Safety Law

I. General Provision

1. The Regulation prescribes:

1.1. the procedures for ensuring operation of the coastal communications network of the Automatic Identification System (AIS), and also for the use and circulation of the data of this system;

1.2. the procedures for ensuring operation of the Long-range Identification and Tracking (LRIT) System, including the obligations of the persons involved in the system.

II. Ensuring Operation of the Coastal Communications Network of AIS, Use and Circulation of Data

2. The operation of the coastal communications network of AIS shall be ensured by the Coast Guard Service of the Naval Forces of the National Armed Forces (hereinafter - the Coast Guard Service). The Coast Guard Service shall serve as the Latvian centre for the receipt, storage, exchange and distribution of AIS information.

3. When using any AIS data the Coast Guard Service shall comply with the requirements that are laid down in laws and regulations in the field of maritime transport and maritime communications, in Resolution A.851(20) General Principles for Ship Reporting Systems and Ship Reporting Requirements, Including Guidelines for Reporting Incidents Involving Dangerous Goods, Harmful Substances and/or Marine Pollutants, in Resolution A.917(22) Guidelines for the Onboard Operational Use of Shipborne Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) (with amendments), in Resolution A.949(23) Guidelines on Places of Refuge for Ships in Need of Assistance, in Resolution A.950(23) Maritime Assistance Services (MAS) of the International Maritime Organisation (hereinafter - the IMO), and also with the recommendations of the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities and the requirements of laws and regulations issued by the International Hydrographic Organization.

4. The Coast Guard Service shall ensure data exchange with AIS of other countries in conformity with laws and regulations in the field of maritime transport and maritime communications and taking into account international agreements.

5. The AIS information shall consist of online data and statistical data:

5.1. online data - AIS data of the Helsinki Commission established in 1992 for the implementation of the requirements laid down in the Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area (hereinafter - the Helsinki Commission) and Latvian AIS data in accordance with the laws and regulations referred to in Paragraph 3 of this Regulation. Latvian AIS data shall be data on vessel traffic within the reach of the Latvian AIS coastal network;

5.2. statistical data - record keeping, by vessel types, of the vessel traffic in the Baltic Sea in accordance with the Agreement of the member states of the Helsinki Commission on Access to AIS Information.

6. The Coast Guard Service shall use AIS online data according to the competence thereof and shall ensure that they are available for the following authorities:

6.1. the State Environmental Service;

6.2. valsts akciju sabiedrība "Latvijas Jūras administrācija" [the State joint-stock company Maritime Administration of Latvia] (hereinafter - the Maritime Administration of Latvia);

6.3. the service of the master of the port;

6.4. the State Border Guard;

6.5. customs authorities of the State Revenue Service;

6.6. the State Fire and Rescue Service;

6.7. the National Armed Forces;

6.8. international authorities (according to the agreements entered into);

6.9. the State Security Service;

6.10. the Transport Accident and Incident Investigation Bureau.

7. The authorities referred to in Paragraph 6 of this Regulation shall use AIS online data in conformity with their competence only. Dissemination of the abovementioned data to third parties is prohibited.

8. The authorities referred to in Paragraph 6 of this Regulation may send notifications to an individual ship, a group of ships or ships within a certain geographic area, by using the direct connection to AIS server.

9. The Coast Guard Service shall determine restricted access to AIS online data (data filtering) and shall permit the use of AIS data of the Helsinki Commission and Latvian AIS data to the following users:

9.1. a port authority - on vessels entering and leaving the respective port;

9.2. a ship operator, and also any person authorised to provide information on behalf of the ship operator (hereinafter - the agent) - on ships within the Baltic Sea area serviced by the respective ship operator or agent;

9.3. a shipowner - on the owner's ships within the reach of AIS coastal communications networks of the member states of the Helsinki Commission.

10. The users referred to in Paragraph 9 of this Regulation are prohibited from sending notifications to ships via AIS.

11. The Coast Guard Service shall carry out data exchange with the member states of the Helsinki Commission in accordance with the Agreement of the member states of the Helsinki Commission on Access to AIS Information.

12. When applying for the status of a user, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Economics, as well as their subordinate authorities may request from the Coast Guard Service monthly or weekly statistical AIS data.

III. Ensuring Operation of the LRIT System, Including the Obligations of the Persons Involved in the System

13. The Ministry of Transport shall ensure co-ordination among the participants of the LRIT System.

14. The Maritime Administration of Latvia shall:

14.1. ensure the LRIT data distribution plan with the necessary information and, if necessary, make amendments thereto;

14.2. perform, in co-operation with the State Security Service, any measures related to restriction of the dissemination of LRIT System information from ships flying the flag of Latvia to other countries;

14.3. ensure the European Union LRIT Data Centre with any information on ships flying the flag of Latvia;

14.4. provide information to the European Union LRIT Data Centre on the change of a ship's flag, suspension of service thereof or final decommissioning thereof;

14.5. provide information to the shipowners on the European Union LRIT Data Centre, application service provider of the LRIT System and testing service providers which assess the capacity of a ship to work with the LRIT System (hereinafter - the testing service providers);

14.6. receive any LRIT System information from the European Union LRIT Data Centre;

14.7. approve the testing service providers in accordance with the IMO Resolution MSC.263(84) Revised Performance Standards and Functional Requirements for the Long-range Identification and Tracking of Ships and IMO circular MSC.1/Circ. 1307 Guidance on the Survey and Certification of Compliance of Ships with the Requirement to Transmit LRIT Information (with last amendments);

14.8. publish the updated versions of the IMO Resolution MSC.263(84) Revised Performance Standards and Functional Requirements for the Long-range Identification and Tracking of Ships and IMO circular MSC.1/Circ. 1307 Guidance on the Survey and Certification of Compliance of Ships with the Requirement to Transmit LRIT Information in the Latvian language on their website (www.lja.lv).

15. The First Regional Provision Centre of the Logistics Command of the National Armed Forces shall carry out financial settlements with the European Union LRIT Data Centre, as well as issue invoices due for payment to the requesters of urgent information for the receipt of the LRIT System data.

16. The Coast Guard Service shall:

16.1. perform the functions of the national contact point within the framework of the LRIT System;

16.2. establish and maintain infrastructure for the receipt of the LRIT System data;

16.3. submit the information necessary for the inclusion in the LRIT data distribution plan to the Maritime Administration of Latvia;

16.4. if necessary, request from the European Union LRIT Data Centre the LRIT System information used for the search and rescue of persons at sea (hereinafter - the SAR information) by indicating the criteria of receipt - geographic area and frequency of receipt;

16.5. determine, upon co-ordination with the Maritime Administration of Latvia, the users of the LRIT System information and rights thereof, as well as the procedures for information requests;

16.6. provide the Ministry of Transport and the Maritime Administration of Latvia with access to the LRIT System information;

16.7. ensure the registration of the requested LRIT System information by indicating the type of the information requested, time of receipt, and the party requesting such information;

16.8. store the registered requests for LRIT System information for 18 months, until the audit report by the LRIT System coordinator has been approved;

16.9. receive the SAR information free of charge.

17. A shipowner or operator shall:

17.1. ensure that the ship's equipment meets the requirements of the LRIT System;

17.2. on the basis of information provided by the Maritime Administration of Latvia, enter into an agreement with the testing service provider on the examination of the conformity of the ship's equipment;

17.3. submit a copy of the report on the examination of the conformity of the equipment issued by the testing service provider to the Maritime Administration of Latvia;

17.4. in case of a change of the ship's flag or termination of ship's service, provide the Maritime Administration of Latvia with the following information:

17.4.1. when registering the ship with the Latvian Ship Register:

17.4.1.1. the name of the ship;

17.4.1.2. the IMO number;

17.4.1.3. the call sign;

17.4.1.4. the date and time of the change of flag (using the coordinated universal time (UTC));

17.4.1.5. the previous flag of the ship;

17.4.2. when excluding the ship from the Latvian Ship Register:

17.4.2.1. the name of the ship;

17.4.2.2. the IMO number;

17.4.2.3. the date and time of the change of flag (using the coordinated universal time (UTC));

17.4.2.4. the ship's new flag;

17.4.3. if the ship's service is terminated:

17.4.3.1. the name of the ship;

17.4.3.2. the IMO number;

17.4.3.3. date and time of the service termination (using the coordinated universal time (UTC));

17.5. in the case of a ship's flag change, perform measures (including conformity examination, if necessary) in order for the LRIT System equipment to resume operation under the new flag.

18. The master of the ship shall:

18.1. ensure ongoing operation of the LRIT System equipment;

18.2. notify, without delay, the Coast Guard Service if the ship's LRIT System equipment is switched off or transmission of the LRIT System data is suspended in the following cases:

18.2.1. if international agreements provide for the protection of navigational information;

18.2.2. in exceptional circumstances if the equipment is temporarily switched off with the decision of the master of the ship because the transmission of the LRIT System data may undermine the ship's safety;

18.2.3. if the ship is undergoing repair or reconstruction in docs or at a harbour, or if the ship is put out of service for a longer period of time or ship's service is terminated;

18.3. notify those national authorities of suspension of the LRIT System data transmission which are carrying out the activities referred to in Sub-paragraph 18.2.3 of this Regulation;

18.4. make entries on the events referred to in Sub-paragraphs 18.2.1, 18.2.2, and 18.2.3 of this Regulation in the ship's logbook by specifying the dates and time when the transmission of the LRIT System data was suspended and resumed.

19. The participants involved in the LRIT System shall ensure the confidentiality of the information received and shall protect it from unauthorised access by applying authorisation and authentication methods.

IV. Closing Provision

20. This Regulation shall come into force on 1 January 2019.

Informative Reference to the European Union Directives

This Regulation contains legal norms arising from:

1) Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2002 establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system and repealing Council Directive 93/75/EEC;

2) Directive 2009/17/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 amending Directive 2002/59/EC establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system;

3) Commission Directive 2014/100/EU of 28 October 2014 amending Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Community vessel traffic monitoring and information system.

Prime Minister Māris Kučinskis

Minister for Transport Uldis Augulis

 

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Translation © 2019 Valsts valodas centrs (State Language Centre)