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A new and more protective set of international rules governing the dumping of wastes at sea will take effect March 24. Based on the precautionary principle, the new rules also include the principle that the polluter must pay for damages. For the first time, a maritime treaty will govern storage of wastes in the seabed, as well as the abandonment, or toppling, of offshore installations.

The new rules are defined by the 1996 Protocol to the London Convention, formally known as the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter, 1972.

The 1996 Protocol takes effect 30 days after its ratification by Mexico, the 26th country to do so. The Ambassador of Mexico to the United Kingdom Juan José Bremer, deposited his country's instrument of ratification at International Maritime Organization (IMO) Headquarters in London on February 22.

While the United States is a Party to the London Convention, it has not ratified the 1996 Protocol. The United Kingdon is a Party to both agreements as are New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Norway, Spain and South Africa, among others.

The 1996 Protocol prohibits dumping at sea, except for materials on an approved list. This contrasts with the 1972 Convention which permitted dumping of wastes at sea, except for those materials on a banned list.

IMO Secretary-General Efthimios Mitropoulos welcomed Mexico's ratification by emphasizing that for the first time the precautionary principle will be applied to marine pollution.

The 1996 Protocol gradually will replace the 1972 Convention, to which 84 governments are currently Parties. This means, in practice, that both agreements will be in force in parallel for some time, but the momentum will shift to the Protocol as more and more Parties ratify it.

The 1996 Protocol is more restrictive. It states that the Parties "shall prohibit the dumping of any wastes or other matter with the exception of those listed."

Under the protocol, the only materials that may be dumped are:

• Dredged material
• Sewage sludge
• Fish waste, or material resulting from industrial fish processing operations
• Vessels and platforms or other man-made structures at sea
• Inert, inorganic geological material
• Organic material of natural origin
• Bulky items primarily comprising iron, steel, concrete and similar harmless materials, for which the concern is physical impact, and limited to those circumstances where such wastes are generated at locations, such as small islands with isolated communities, having no practicable access to disposal options other than dumping.

London Convention website: http://www.londonconvention.org/
The text of the 1972 Convention and the 1996 Protocol can be downloaded from the London Convention website at: http://www.londonconvention.org/Documents.htm#Texts_of_the_London_Convention
People who observe a dumping incident at sea are encouraged to report it. Find out how at: http://www.londonconvention.org/Documents.htm#Texts_of_the_London_Convention

全文及圖片詳見 http://ens-newswire.com/ens/mar2006/2006-03-10-02.asp