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Clean Up Marine Environmental Pollution

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Submitted By nguyetminh38
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Conventions to mitigate marine pollution
Oil pollution:
Oil tankers transport some 2,400 million tonnes of crude oil and oil products around the world by sea. Most of the time, oil is transported quietly and safely. Measures introduced by IMO have helped ensure that the majority of oil tankers are safely built and operated and are constructed to reduce the amount of oil spilled in the event of an accident. Operational pollution, such as from routine tank cleaning operations, has also been cut. The most important regulations for preventing pollution by oil from ships are contained in Annex I of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto (MARPOL), The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), 1974 also includes special requirements for tankers.
Chemical pollution: * Chemicals carried in bulk
Carriage of chemicals in bulk is covered by regulations in SOLAS Chapter VII - Carriage of dangerous goods and MARPOL Annex II - Regulations for the Control of Pollution by Noxious Liquid Substances in Bulk.
Both Conventions set out the international standards for the safe carriage, in bulk by sea, of dangerous chemicals and noxious liquid substances. The Code prescribes the design and a construction standard of ships involved in the transport of bulk liquid chemicals and identifies the equipment to be carried to minimize the risks to the ship, its crew and to the environment, with regard to the nature of the products carried. * Chemicals carried in packaged form are regulated by Part A of SOLAS Chapter VII - Carriage of dangerous goods, which includes provisions for the classification, packing, marking, labelling and placarding, documentation and stowage of dangerous goods.
Garbage
Regulations for the Prevention of pollution by garbage from ships are contained in Annex V of MARPOL.
Persuading people not to use the oceans as a rubbish tip is a matter of education - the old idea that the sea can cope with anything still prevails to some extent but it also involves much more vigorous enforcement of regulations such as Annex V.

The MARPOL Convention seeks to eliminate and reduce the amount of garbage being discharged into the sea from ships. Unless expressly provided otherwise, Annex V applies to all ships, which means all vessels of any type whatsoever operating in the marine environment, from merchant ships to fixed or floating platforms to non-commercial ships like pleasure crafts and yachts.
Sewage:
Annex IV of MARPOL contains a set of regulations regarding the discharge of sewage into the sea from ships, including regulations regarding the ships' equipment and systems for the control of sewage discharge, the provision of facilities at ports and terminals for the reception of sewage, and requirements for survey and certification. It also includes a model International Sewage Pollution Prevention Certificate to be issued by national shipping administrations to ships under their jurisdiction.
Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter
The "Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter 1972" (the "London Convention") was one of the first global conventions to protect the marine environment from human activities and has been in force since 1975. Its objective is to promote the effective control of all sources of marine pollution and to take all practicable steps to prevent pollution of the sea by dumping of wastes

Some other major international shipping conventions, adopted by the International Maritime Organization (and the International Labour Organization) concerning safety and pollution prevention are:

COLREG (Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972) lays down the basic "rules of the road", such as rights of way and actions to avoid collisions.
LOADLINE (International Convention on Loadlines, 1966) sets the minimum permissible free board, according to the season of the year and the ship's trading pattern.
ISPS (The International Ship and Port Facility Security Code, 2002) includes mandatory requirements to ensure ships and port facilities are secure at all stages during a voyage.

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