During the 28th session of the Marine Environment Protection 

 Committee, representatives of the delegations from the United 

 States and Mexico met informally and discussed the proposed 

 designation of the Gulf of Mexico as a Special Area under Annex 

 V. Based on those discussions, it was the understanding of the 

 U.S. delegation to the meeting that the Government of Mexico will 

 support the designation and that, as a first step, it was 

 considering the feasibility of ratifying the MARPOL Convention. 



On 1 December 1989, the Gulf of Mexico Program Office of the 

 Environmental Protection Agency distributed a report summarizing 

 technical information supporting the designation of the Gulf of 

 Mexico as a Special Area under Annex V. The document noted the 

 high volume of ship traffic in the area, the large amounts of 

 garbage associated with those ships, and physical oceanographic 

 conditions which tend to concentrate marine debris in certain 

 areas of the Gulf. The report further noted that, together, 

 those factors placed many valuable living resources, including 

 seabirds, endangered sea turtles, and commercially valuable 

 species, at risk. 



Based on comments received, the document will be modified as 

 necessary and submitted as a background document to the next 

 meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee for its 

 consideration with respect to designating the Gulf of Mexico as a 

 Special Area. 



Port Reception Facility Guidelines -- For the 24th Session 

 of the Marine Environment Protection Committee in February 1987, 

 the Commission, in consultation with the National Oceanic and 

 Atmospheric Administration and the Coast Guard, drafted a paper 

 that was submitted on behalf of the United States recommending 

 that Guidelines be developed to provide advice on steps to 

 implement Annex V. The paper was well-received and the Committee 

 adopted the recommendation. After the meeting, the Commission 

 helped the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and 

 the Coast Guard draft a set of recommended guidelines, which were 

 put forward for consideration at the 25th Session of the 

 Committee. The draft Guidelines were well-received and, with 

 some modifications, they were adopted during the Committee's 26th 

 session in September 1988. 



The "Guidelines for the Implementation of Annex V, 

 Regulation for the Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Ships" 

 adopted by the Committee provide vessel owners and operators, 

 port operators, and responsible government officials with 

 practical advice on procedures, eguipment, and matters related to 

 compliance with the requirements of the Annex. However, because 

 little information was available on port reception facilities for 

 garbage when the guidelines were developed, advice on that matter 

 was less extensive than might have been desired. 



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