Annex V- Regulations for the Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Ships

Contents

Regulation 1 Definitions
Regulation 2 Application
Regulation 3 Disposal of garbage outside special areas
Regulation 4 Special requirements for disposal of garbage
Regulation 5 Disposal of garbage within special areas
Regulation 6 Exceptions
Regulation 7 Reception facilities
Regulation 8 Port State control on operational requirements
Placards, garbage management plans and garbage record-
Regulation 9
keeping
Appendix to Annex V
Appendix Form of Garbage Record Book

Regulation 1 - Definitions
For the purposes of this Annex:

(1) Garbage means all kinds of victual, domestic and operational waste excluding fresh fish and
parts thereof, generated during the normal operation of the ship and liable to be disposed of
continuously or periodically except those substances which are defined or listed in other
Annexes to the present Convention.

(2) Nearest land. The term "from the nearest land" means from the baseline from which the
territorial sea of the territory in question is established in accordance with international law,
except that, for the purposes of the present Convention, "from the nearest land" off the north-
eastern coast of Australia shall mean from a line drawn from a point on the coast of Australia in

latitude 11°00' S, longitude 142°08' E

to a point in latitude 10°35' S, longitude 141°55' E,
thence to a point latitude 10°00' S, longitude 142°00' E,
thence to a point latitude 09°10' S, longitude 143°52' E,
thence to a point latitude 09°00' S, longitude 144°30' E,
thence to a point latitude 10°41' S, longitude 145°00' E,
thence to a point latitude 13°00' S, longitude 145°00' E,
thence to a point latitude 15°00' S, longitude 146°00' E,
thence to a point latitude 17°30' S, longitude 147°00' E,
thence to a point latitude 21°00' S, longitude 152°55' E,
thence to a point latitude 24°30' S, longitude 154°00' E,
thence to a point on the coast of Australia in
 latitude 24°42' S, longitude 153°15' E.

(3) Special area means a sea area where for recognized technical reasons in relation to its
oceanographical and ecological condition and to the particular character of its traffic the
adoption of special mandatory methods for the prevention of sea pollution by garbage is
required. Special areas shall include those listed in regulation 5 of this Annex.

Regulation 2 - Application
Unless expressly provided otherwise, the provisions of this Annex shall apply to all ships.

Regulation 3 - Disposal of garbage outside special areas

(1) Subject to the provisions of regulations 4, 5 and 6 of this Annex:

the disposal into the sea of all plastics, including but not limited to synthetic ropes,
(a) synthetic fishing nets, plastic garbage bags and incinerator ashes from plastic products
which may contain toxic or heavy metal residues, is prohibited;
the disposal into the sea of the following garbage shall be made as far as practicable
(b) from the nearest land but in any case is prohibited if the distance from the nearest land is
less than:
(i) 25 nautical miles for dunnage, lining and packing materials which will float;
12 nautical miles for food wastes and all other garbage including paper
(ii)
products, rags, glass, metal, bottles, crockery and similar refuse;
disposal into the sea of garbage specified in subparagraph(b)(ii) of this regulation may
be permitted when it has passed through a comminuter or grinder and made as far as
(c) practicable from the nearest land but in any case is prohibited if the distance from the
nearest land is less than 3 nautical miles. Such comminuted or ground garbage shall be
capable of passing through a screen with openings no greater than 25 mm.

(2) When the garbage is mixed with other discharges having different disposal or discharge
requirements the more stringent requirements shall apply.

Regulation 4 - Special requirements for disposal of garbage

(1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2) of this regulation, the disposal of any materials
regulated by this Annex is prohibited from fixed or floating platforms engaged in the
exploration, exploitation and associated offshore processing of sea-bed mineral resources, and
from all other ships when alongside or within 500 m of such platforms.

(2) The disposal into the sea of food wastes may be permitted when they have been passed
through a comminuter or grinder from such fixed or floating platforms located more than 12
nautical miles from land and all other ships when alongside or within 500 m of such platforms.
Such comminuted or ground food wastes shall be capable of passing through a screen with
openings no greater than 25 mm.

Regulation 5
Disposal of garbage within special areas

1. For the purposes of this Annex the special areas are the Mediterranean Sea area, the Baltic Sea
area, the
Black Sea area, the Red Sea area and the "Gulfs area" which are defined as follows:
(a) The Mediterranean Sea area means the Mediterranean Sea proper including the gulfs and seas
therein with
the boundary between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea constituted by the 41
o
N parallel and bounded to
the west by the Straits of Gibraltar at the meridian of 5
o
36'W.
(b) The Baltic Sea area means the Baltic Sea proper with the Gulf of Bothnia and the Gulf of
Finland and the
entrance to the Baltic Sea bounded by the parallel of the Skaw in the Skagerrak at 57
o
44.8'N.
(c) The Black Sea area means the Black Sea proper with the boundary between the
Mediterranean and the
Black Sea constituted by the parallel 41
o
N.
(d) The Red Sea area means the Red Sea proper including the Gulfs of Suez and Aqaba bounded
at the south
by the rhumb line between Ras si Ane (12
o
8.5'N, 43
o
19.6'E) and Husn Murad (12
o
40.4'N, 43
o
30.2'E).
(e) The "Gulfs area" means the sea area located north west of the rhumb line between Ras al
Hadd (22
o
30'N,
59
o
48'E) and Ras al Fasteh (25
o
04'N, 61
o
25'E).
2. Subject to the provisions of Regulation 6 of this Annex:
(a) disposal into the sea of the following is prohibited:
(i) all plastics, including but not limited to synthetic ropes, synthetic fishing nets and plastic
garbage bags; and
(ii) all other garbage, including paper products, rags, glass, metal, bottles, crockery, dunnage,
lining and
packing materials;
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(b) disposal into the sea of food wastes shall be made as far as practicable from land, but in any
case not less
than 12 nautical miles from the nearest land.
3. When the garbage is mixed with other discharges having different disposal or discharge
requirements the
more stringent requirements shall apply.
4. Reception facilities within special areas:
(a) The Government of each Party to the Convention, the coastline of which borders a special
area
undertakes to ensure that as soon as possible in all ports within a special area, adequate reception
fac
ilities are
provided in accordance with Regulation 7 of this Annex, taking into account the special needs of
ships
operating in these areas.
(b) The Government of each Party concerned shall notify the Organization of the measures taken
pursuant to
sub-paragraph (a) of this Regulation. Upon receipt of sufficient notifications the Organization
shall establish a
date from which the requirements of this Regulation in respect of the area in question shall take
effect. The
Organization shall notify all Parties of the date so established no less than twelve months in
advance of that
date.
(c) After the date so established, ships calling also at ports in these special areas where such
facilities are not
yet available, shall fully comply with the requirements of this Regulation.
Regulation 6 - Exceptions
Regulations 3, 4 and 5 of this Annex shall not apply to:

the disposal of garbage from a ship necessary for the purpose of securing the
(a)
safety of a ship and those on board or saving life at sea; or
the escape of garbage resulting from damage to a ship or its equipment
provided all reasonable precautions have been taken before and after the
(b)
occurrence of the damage, for the purpose of preventing or minimizing the
escape; or
the accidental loss of synthetic fishing nets, provided that all reasonable
(c)
precautions have been taken to prevent such loss.

Regulation 7 - Reception facilities

(1) The Government of each Party to the Convention undertakes to ensure the provision of
facilities at ports and terminals for the reception of garbage, without causing undue delay to
ships, and according to the needs of the ships using them.

(2) The Government of each Party shall notify the Organization for transmission to the Parties
concerned of all cases where the facilities provided under this regulation are alleged to be
inadequate.

Regulation 8 - Port State control on operational requirements*

(1) A ship when in a port of another Party is subject to inspection by officers duly authorized by
such Party concerning operational requirements under this Annex, where there are clear grounds
for believing that the master or crew are not familiar with essential shipboard procedures relating
to the prevention of pollution by garbage.

(2) In the circumstances given in paragraph (1) of this regulation, the Party shall take such steps
as will ensure that the ship shall not sail until the situation has been brought to order in
accordance with the requirements of this Annex.

(3) Procedures relating to the port State control prescribed in article 5 of the present Convention
shall apply to this regulation.

(4) Nothing in this regulation shall be construed to limit the rights and obligations of a Party
carrying out control over operational requirements specifically provided for in the present
Convention.
Regulation 9 - Placards, garbage management plans and garbage record-keeping
(a) Every ship of 12 m or more in length overall shall display placards which notify the
1 crew and passengers of the disposal requirements of regulations 3 and 5 of this Annex,
as applicable.
(b) The placards shall be written in the working language of the ship's personnel and,
for ships engaged in voyages to ports or offshore terminals under the jurisdiction of
other Parties to the Convention, shall also be in English, French or Spanish.

(2) Every ship of 400 gross tonnage and above, and every ship which is certified to carry 15
persons or more, shall carry a garbage management plan which the crew shall follow. This plan
shall provide written procedures for collecting, storing, processing and disposing of garbage,
including the use of the equipment on board. It shall also designate the person in charge of
carrying out the plan. Such a plan shall be in accordance with the guidelines developed by the
Organization* and written in the working language of the crew.

(3) Every ship of 400 gross tonnage and above and every ship which is certified to carry 15
persons or more engaged in voyages to ports or offshore terminals under the jurisdiction of other
Parties to the Convention and every fixed and floating platform engaged in exploration and
exploitation of the sea-bed shall be provided with a Garbage Record Book. The Garbage Record
Book, whether as a part of the ship's official log-book or otherwise, shall be in the form specified
in the appendix to this Annex;

each discharge operation, or completed incineration, shall be recorded in the

Garbage Record Book and signed for on the date of the incineration or
discharge by the officer in charge. Each completed page of the Garbage Record
(a) Book shall be signed by the master of the ship. The entries in the Garbage
Record Book shall be at least in English, French or Spanish. Where the entries
are also made in an official language of the State whose flag the ship is entitled
to fly, these entries shall prevail in case of a dispute or discrepancy;
the entry for each incineration or discharge shall include date and time, position
(b) of the ship, description of the garbage and the estimated amount incinerated or
discharged;
the Garbage Record Book shall be kept on board the ship and in such a place as
(c) to be available for inspection in a reasonable time. This document shall be
preserved for a period of two years after the last entry is made on the record;
in the event of discharge, escape or accidental loss referred to in regulation 6 of
(d) this Annex an entry shall be made in the Garbage Record Book of the
circumstances of, and the reasons for, the loss.

(4) The Administration may waive the requirements for Garbage Record Books for:

any ship engaged on voyages of 1 hour or less in duration which is certified to

(a)
carry 15 persons or more; or
(b) fixed or floating platforms while engaged in exploration and exploitation of the
 sea-bed.

(5) The competent authority of the Government of a Party to the Convention may inspect the
Garbage Record Book on board any ship to which this regulation applies while the ship is in its
ports or offshore terminals and may make a copy of any entry in that book, and may require the
master of the ship to certify that the copy is a true copy of such an entry. Any copy so made,
which has been certified by the master of the ship as a true copy of an entry in the ship's Garbage
Record Book, shall be admissible in any judicial proceedings as evidence of the facts stated in
the entry. The inspection of a Garbage Record Book and the taking of a certified copy by the
competent authority under this paragraph shall be performed as expeditiously as possible without
causing the ship to be unduly delayed.

(6) In the case of ships built before 1 July 1997, this regulation shall apply as from 1 July 1998.

Appendix to Annex V - Form of Garbage Record Book

Name of ship: _______________________

Distinctive number or letters: _______________________

IMO No.: _______________________

Period:_____________ From: _____________ To: _____________

1Introduction

In accordance with regulation 9 of Annex V of the International Convention for the Prevention
of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 (MARPOL 73/78), a record
is to be kept of each discharge operation or completed incineration. This includes discharges at
sea, to reception facilities, or to other ships.

2 Garbage and garbage management

Garbage includes all kinds of food, domestic and operational waste excluding fresh fish and parts
thereof, generated during the normal operation of the vessel and liable to be disposed of
continuously or periodically except those substances which are defined or listed in other annexes
to MARPOL 73/78 (such as oil, sewage or noxious liquid substances).

The Guidelines for the Implementation of Annex V of MARPOL 73/78* should also be referred
to for relevant information.

3 Description of the garbage

The garbage is to be grouped into categories for the purposes of this record book as follows:
 1 Plastics
2 Floating dunnage, lining, or packing material
3 Ground-down paper products, rags, glass, metal, bottles, crockery, etc.
4 Cargo residues, paper products, rags, glass, metal, bottles, crockery, etc.
5 Food waste
6 Incinerator ash.

4 Entries in the Garbage Record Book

4.1 Entries in the Garbage Record Book shall be made on each of the following occasions:

(a) When garbage is discharged into the sea:

(i) Date and time of discharge
Position of the ship (latitude and longitude). Note: for cargo residue
(ii)
discharges, include discharge start and stop positions.
(iii) Category of garbage discharged
(iv) Estimated amount discharged for each category in cubic metres
(v) Signature of the officer in charge of the operation.
(b) When garbage is discharged to reception facilities ashore or to other ships:
(i) Date and time of discharge
(ii) Port or facility, or name of ship
(iii) Category of garbage discharged
(iv) Estimated amount discharged for each category in cubic metres
(v) Signature of officer in charge of the operation.
(c) When garbage is incinerated:
(i) Date and time of start and stop of incineration
(ii) Position of the ship (latitude and longitude)
(iii) Estimated amount incinerated in cubic metres
(iv) Signature of the officer in charge of the operation.
(d) Accidental or other exceptional discharges of garbage
(i) Time of occurrence
(ii) Port or position of the ship at time of occurrence
(iii) Estimated amount and category of garbage
Circumstances of disposal, escape or loss, the reason therefor and general
(iv)
remarks.

4.2 Receipts

The master should obtain from the operator of port reception facilities, or from the master of the
ship receiving the garbage, a receipt or certificate specifying the estimated amount of garbage
transferred. The receipts or certificates must be kept on board the ship with the Garbage Record
Book for two years.

4.3 Amount of garbage

The amount of garbage on board should be estimated in cubic metres, if possible separately
according to category. The Garbage Record Book contains many references to estimated amount
of garbage. It is recognized that the accuracy of estimating amounts of garbage is left to
interpretation. Volume estimates will differ before and after processing. Some processing
procedures may not allow for a usable estimate of volume, e.g. the continuous processing of food
waste. Such factors should be taken into consideration when making and interpreting entries
made in a record.

RECORD OF GARBAGE DISCHARGES

Ship's name: _______________________

Distinctive No., or letters: _______________________

IMO No.: ____________

Garbage categories:

.1 Plastic.
.2 Floating dunnage, lining, or packing materials.
.3 Ground paper products, rags, glass, metal, bottles, crockery, etc.
.4 Cargo residues, paper products, rags, glass, metal, bottles, crockery, etc.
.5 Food waste.
.6 Incinerator ash except from plastic products which may contain toxic or heavy metal residues.

NOTE: THE DISCHARGE OF ANY GARBAGE OTHER THAN FOOD WASTE IS

PROHIBITED IN SPECIAL AREAS. ONLY GARBAGE DISCHARGED INTO THE SEA
MUST BE CATEGORIZED. GARBAGE OTHER THAN CATEGORY 1 DISCHARGED TO
RECEPTION FACILITIES NEED ONLY BE LISTED AS A TOTAL ESTIMATED
AMOUNT. DISCHARGES OF CARGO RESIDUES REQUIRE START AND STOP
POSITIONS TO BE RECORDED.

Estimated
amount
Estimated
Position Estimated amount discharged discharged to
3 amount Certification/
Date/time of the into sea (m ) reception
incinerated Signature
ship facilities or to
(m3)
other ship (m3)
Cat. 2 Cat. 3 Cat. 4 Cat. 5 Cat. 6 Cat. 1 Other
* Refer to the Guidelines for the Implementation of Annex V of MARPOL 73/78, as amended by
resolutions MEPC.59(33) and MEPC.92(45).