254 



INTER-GOVERNMENTAL MARITIME CONSULTATIVE ORGANIZATION, 



MARCH 7, 1973 



Prepakatory Meeting for the International Conference on Marine 

 Pollution, 1973 — February 12-IMARcn 2, 1973 — Agenda Item 8 



report of the preparatory meeting to the maritime safety committee 



Attached hereto is the Final Draft text of an International Cont'fention for 

 the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, prepared by the Preparatory 

 Meeting. 



Subject to approval by the Maritime Safety Committee, this Draft will be is- 

 sued as a working document under Agenda item 6 of the Conference. 



Draft Text of an International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution 



From Ships, 1973' 

 The contracting States, 



Being conscious of the need to preserve the human environment in general and 

 the marine environment in particular. 



Recognizing that deliberate, negligent or accidental release of oil and other 

 harmful substances from ships constitutes a serious source of pollution," 



Desiring to achieve the complete elimination of international pollution by oil 

 and other harmful substances and the minimization of accidental discharge of 

 such substances, 



Considering that this end ma.v best be achieved by the conclusion of a com- 

 prehensive convention not limitefl to oil pollution to sui>ersede '^ the International 

 Convention for Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil, 1954, as amendetl as 

 between Parties thereto. 



Have agreed as follows : 



article 1. GENERAL OBLIGATION UNDER THE CONVENTION 



(1) The Contracting States undertake to give effect to the provisions of the 

 present Convention and those Annexes thereto by which they are bound in accord- 

 ance with the provisions of Articles 13 and 17 of the present Convention. 



(2) Unless expressly provided otherwise, a reference to the present Convention 

 constitutes at the same time a reference to the Annexes. 



ARTICLE 2. DEFINITIONS 



For the purpose of the present Convention, unless expressly provided otherwise : 



(1) "Regulations" means the Regulations annexed to the present Convention. 



(2) "Administration" means the Government of the State whose flag the ship 

 is entitled to fly or imder whose [authority] * the ship is operating in accoi-dance 

 with Article 3(1) (1)). 



(3) "Hai-mful substance" means any substance which, if introduced into the 

 sea, is liable to create hazards to human health, to harm living resources and 

 marine life, to damage amenities or to interfere with other legitimate uses of the 

 sea, including any substance subject to control by any Annex to the present 

 Convention. 



1 One cielpRation was of the opinion thnt two new Conventions shoiilfl be formulated, 

 one dealing with oil pollution and the other dealinc: with pollution by noxious substances 

 other than oil, sewajie and jrarbajre. Another delesation proposed that the provisions 

 relatinsr to oil pollution should be denlt with in the form of amendments to tlie 10.54 



Oil Pollution Convention and the provisions relating to all harmful substances other than 

 oil sliould be included in a new composite Convention. 



- Some delejrations proposed the insertion after this paraprraph of an additional para- 

 frraph by which the Conference would recognize the Oil Pollution Convention. 19.")4. as the 

 first international instrument directly aimed at jirotectinfr the environment and tlie 

 sisrnificant contril)ution which tliat Convention has made in protecting the sea and coastal 

 areas from pollution. Other deleirations considered that such a statement would more 

 appropriately be included in a Conference Resolution (see draft Resolution 1). 



^ Some delecrations suirjrested that the words "as between the Parties to both Conventions"' 

 should be inserted after "sin>ersede". 



* (i) Some deleirations felt that it woTild be necessary to clarify this phase in view of 

 the possibility that a fixed or floatin? platform may be owned or operated liy Nationals 

 of one Contractinsr State, thus fallins under the autliority of that State, but be operated in 

 an area under the jurisdiction of another Contracting Ooveninient. 



(ii) Some delefrations were of the view that as the coastal State had sovereign rights 

 over the resources of its continental slielf platforms engaged in exploration or exploitation 

 of its continental sheld would always be under its autlioritv. 



