International Convention for Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) Annex V: Garbage discharges from Navy ships in special areas,

[Federal Register: November 20, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 224)]

[Notices]

[Page 64466-64467]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr20no98-33]

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy

Garbage Discharges for Navy Ships Into the International Maritime Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships (MARPOL) Annex V Special Areas

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Secretary of Defense must report annually on the amount and nature of garbage discharges from Navy ships operating in special areas, when such discharges are not otherwise authorized under the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), 33 U.S.C. 1901, et seq. This notice is the fifth annual report.

[[Page 64467]]

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Louis Maiuri, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations Environmental Protection, Safety and Occupational Health Division, Crystal Plaza #5, Room 654, 2211 South Clark Place, Arlington, Virginia, 22244-5108; 703-602-2602.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The International Maritime Convention on the Prevention of Pollution from ships (MARPOL) as amended by the MARPOL Protocol of 1978, protects the ocean environment by prohibiting some discharges altogether, restricting other discharges to particular distances from land, and establishing ``special areas'' within which additional discharge limitations apply. Special areas are particular bodies of water, which, because of their oceanographic characteristics and ecological significance, require protective measures more strict than other areas of the ocean. Within special areas that are in effect internationally, except under emergency circumstances, the only authorized garbage discharge from vessels is food waste. At present, three special areas are in effect: the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the Antarctic Region.

The Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships established deadlines for compliance by U.S. Navy ships with the Annex V special area requirements. Surface ships must comply with the special area requirements by December 31, 2000. Submarines must comply with the special area requirements by December 31, 2008. APPS further requires the Secretary of Defense to report in the Federal Register the amount and nature of Navy ship discharges in special areas, not otherwise authorized under MARPOL Annex V.

This Federal Register notice is the fifth of the required annual reports. This report covers the period between August 1, 1997, and September 30, 1998. During the period August 1, 1997, through September 30, 1998, there were no garbage discharges from Navy ships into MARPOL Annex V special areas that were not authorized under MARPOL Annex V.

Dated: November 9, 1998. Ralph W. Corey, Commander, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy, Federal Register Liaison Officer.

[FR Doc. 98-31055Filed11-19-98; 8:45 am]

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