United States and abroad to encourage ratification of the 

 Annex and preparation for its entry into force. 



Entry into Force; Under terms of the Convention, Annex 

 V will enter into force 12 months after ratification by at least 

 15 nations, collectively representing at least 50 percent of 

 the world's registered commercial shipping tonnage. The 

 purpose of the 12 -month waiting period is to allow nations 

 time to put in place the domestic programs necessary to imple- 

 ment the Annex. 



As of early December 1987, 30 nations representing 45.2 

 percent of the world's registered commercial shipping tonnage 

 had ratified the Convention. Five percent of the world's 

 commercial ship tonnage is registered with the United States. 

 Therefore, when the United States deposited its instrument of 

 ratification on 30 December 1987, the percentage of registered 

 commercial ship tonnage represented by ratifying nations 

 passed the 50 percent level, thereby satisfying the remaining 

 requirement for entry into force. As a result, all nations 

 which have ratified Annex V will be obligated to begin imple- 

 menting the provisions of Annex V beginning 31 December 1988. 



23rd Session of the Marine Environment Protection Commit- 

 tee, 7-11 July 1986; To facilitate entry into force of the 

 Annex, the U.S. Government also assumed a leadership role on 

 the matter within the International Maritime Organization's 

 Marine Environment Protection Committee. The Organization 

 serves as the Secretariat for the Convention for the Prevention 

 of Pollution from Ships and the Committee has been assigned 

 responsibility for overseeing efforts to implement it. The 

 U.S. Coast Guard acts on behalf of the State Department as 

 the agency heading delegations representing the United States 

 at meetings of the Committee, which are held in London, England. 

 The Marine Mammal Commission and the National Oceanic and 

 Atmospheric Administration have assisted the Coast Guard in 

 this work. 



As described in its previous Annual Report, during 1986, 

 the Commission, in consultation with the National Oceanic and 

 Atmospheric Administration, drafted an information paper on 

 the nature of the problem created by marine debris and the 

 importance of Annex V as a responsive action. The Coast 

 Guard submitted the paper to the 23rd Session of the Committee 

 in July 1986. The paper was well received and, in response, 

 the U.S. delegation agreed to provide a paper for the 24th 

 Session of the Committee in February 1987, describing actions 

 appropriate to take to implement Annex V. 



24th Session of the Marine Environment Protection Commit- 

 tee, 16-2 February 1987; To assist the U.S. delegation in 

 meeting its commitment, the Marine Mammal Commission, in 



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