
Rules and guidelines
Here we review the work environment regulations for Swedish-flagged ships, limit values for air pollutants in the work environment on ships and recommended guideline values for air pollutants in general indoor environments.
The UN's maritime body The International Maritime Organisation (IMO), based in London, develops international rules and recommendations for shipping. These are then implemented through the national legislation of flag states. This means that health and safety rules may differ depending on where the ship is registered. Two ships of the same shipping company registered under different flags may therefore be subject to different health and safety rules.
Many ships are also subject to other types of guidelines and instructions from classification societies, cargo owners and industry organisations. These types of guidelines often place higher demands on the work environment and safety than the law prescribes. For tankers, for example, there is ISGOTT, the International Safety Guide for Oil Tankers and Terminals, a comprehensive international industry-wide recommendation for how ships and quayside facilities should be designed and how they should interact with regard to safety, health and the environment in connection with the handling of petroleum products.
Below you will find a more detailed description of the work environment regulations for Swedish-flagged ships, general guidelines and recommendations for indoor air quality, and tables summarising limit and guide values for gaseous substances, particles, temperature and relative humidity.