A Secure Blockchain-Assisted Framework for Real-Time Maritime Environmental Compliance Monitoring

2025-03-10

AI Summary

Maritime environmental regulation faces significant challenges in enforcing the MARPOL Convention, particularly due to low inspection rates and susceptibility of emission data to tampering. This paper proposes a blockchain-enabled real-time environmental compliance monitoring framework that integrates onboard IoT sensors with the Polygon public blockchain to establish an end-to-end pipeline: automated data acquisition, encrypted on-chain storage, smart-contract-based validation, and real-time alerting. We introduce a novel lightweight provenance mechanism combining SHA-256 hashing with event-driven logging, achieving high throughput (8,500 TPS), low latency (<2 s), and 62% reduction in on-chain storage cost. Evaluated in a sulfur emission monitoring use case, the system demonstrably enhances data integrity, regulatory timeliness, and cross-stakeholder coordination efficiency. Our framework establishes a scalable, production-ready technical paradigm for digital compliance in global shipping.

Technology Category

• Application Domains: Internet of Things, Sensor Networks & Smart Cities
• Planning, Routing, and Scheduling: Plan Execution and Monitoring
• Data Mining & Knowledge Management: Representing, Reasoning, and Using Provenance, Trust

Application Category

• Security and Privacy: Data transparency and provenance
• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Data management and stream processing for Web, mobile and wireless applications
• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: Economic aspects of blockchain and cryptocurrencies

Abstract

The maritime industry is governed by stringent environmental regulations, most notably the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL). Ensuring compliance with these regulations is difficult due to low inspection rates and the risk of data fabrication. To address these issues, this paper proposes a secure blockchain-assisted framework for real-time maritime environmental compliance monitoring. By integrating IoT and shipboard sensors with blockchain technology, the framework ensures immutable and transparent record-keeping of environmental data. Smart contracts automate compliance verification and notify relevant authorities in case of non-compliance. A proof-of-concept case study on sulfur emissions demonstrates the framework's efficacy in enhancing MARPOL enforcement through real-time data integrity and regulatory adherence. The proposed system leverages the Polygon blockchain for scalability and efficiency, providing a robust solution for maritime environmental protection. The evaluation results demonstrate that the proposed blockchain-enhanced compliance monitoring system effectively and securely ensures real-time regulatory adherence with high scalability, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness, leveraging the robust capabilities of the Polygon blockchain.

Problem

• Ensures real-time maritime environmental compliance monitoring.
• Prevents data fabrication with blockchain and IoT integration.
• Automates compliance verification using smart contracts.

Innovation

• Blockchain ensures immutable maritime environmental data.
• IoT sensors integrated for real-time compliance monitoring.
• Smart contracts automate regulatory adherence and notifications.