Internationally recognised standards on protection of marine environment and the corresponding legislation adopted by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2013 'vessel general permit' (VGP) limit the application of traditional mineral based oils for vessels entering the US waters and establish instead the necessity of use of environmentally acceptable lubricants for machinery parts below the waterline (such as stern tube bearings, thruster gearboxes and horizontal stabilisers).

The main reason of change is the adverse impacts of the conventional lubricants on aquatic life due to continuous low-level oil pollution, i.e. the so-called operational discharges in ports (such as stern tubes oil leakages).

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