ARTICLES

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• design;
• materials selection;
• manufacturing methods;
• inspection and testing;
• assembly techniques;
• worker training; and
• safety operations, among others.

• terminal location and design;
• port handling elements (e.g. tugboats and firefighting equipment);
• communications systems; and
• emergency response capabilities.

It is important to realise that a decision involving large capital expense (e.g. LNG terminal site selection) can have long-lasting effects. It is therefore imperative to carefully consider all risk management decisions so that residual or future risks can be managed to an acceptable level. In general, risk can be managed by prevention or mitigation. Prevention seeks to avoid an accident or attack; mitigation reduces the effects of an accident or attack. Table 4 provides some general strategies for prevention and mitigation. Combinations of these types of strategy can improve both safety and security, involving either accidental or intentional incidents. While the prevention and mitigation strategies identified in Table 4 are possible, many might not be costeffective or even practical in certain locations or applications. Risk management should be based on developed or combined approaches that can be effectively and efficiently implemented to reduce hazards to acceptable levels in a cost-effective manner. This type of approach is used by the LNG industry, the coast guard and public safety organisations to ensure the safety of the transportation of LNG. These efforts include a number of design, construction, safety equipment and operational efforts to reduce the potential for an LNG spill.¹

Table 4: Prevention and Mitigation Strategies

All LNG vessels that enter the US must meet both domestic and international regulations. US domestic regulations for LNG vessels were developed in the 1970s under the authority of the various vessel inspection statutes now codified under Title 46 of the United States Code (USC), which specifies requirements for a vessel’s design, construction, equipment and operation. These regulations closely parallel international LNG requirements, but are more stringent in the following areas:

• the requirements for enhanced grades of steel for crack-arresting purposes in certain areas of the hull;
• the specification of higher allowable stress factors for certain independent type tanks; and
• the prohibition of cargo venting as a means of regulating cargo temperature or pressure.

All LNG vessels in international service must comply with the major maritime treaties agreed to by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), such as the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) and the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL). In addition, LNG vessels must comply with the International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Liquefied Gases in Bulk (IGC).

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