MEPC 55/23

I:\MEPC\55\23.doc ANNEX 4

RESOLUTION MEPC.152(55)

Adopted on 13 October 2006

GUIDELINES FOR SEDIMENT RE CEPTION FACILITIES (G1)

THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION COMMITTEE,

RECALLING Article 38(a) of the Conve ntion on the International Maritime Organization concerning the functions of the Marine Environment Protection Committee conferred upon it by the international conventions for the prevention and control of marine pollution,

RECALLING ALSO that the International C onference on Ballast Water Management for Ships held in February 2004 adopted the In ternational Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sedi ments, 2004 (the Ballast Water Management Convention) together with four Conference resolutions,

NOTING that Regulation A-2 of the Ballast Water Management Convention requires that discharge of ballast water shall only be conducted through Ballast Water Management in accordance with the provisions of the Annex to the Convention,

NOTING FURTHER that Article 5 of the Ballast Water Management Convention provides that, each Party undertakes to ensure th at, in ports and terminals designated by that Party where cleaning or repair of ballast tanks occurs, adequate facilities are provided for the reception of sediments, taking into account the Guidelines developed by the Organization,

NOTING ALSO that resolution 1 adopted by the International Conference on Ballast Water Management for Ships invite d the Organization to develop these Guidelines as a matter of

urgency,

HAVING CONSIDERED, at its fifty-fifth sess ion, the draft Guidelines for sediment reception facilities (G1) developed by the Ballast Water Working Group, and the recommendation made by the Sub-Committee on Flag State Implementation at its fourteenth session,

1. ADOPTS the Guidelines for sediment reception facilities (G1) as se t out in the Annex to this resolution;

2. INVITES Governments to apply these Guidelines as soon as possible, or when the Convention becomes applicable to them; and

3. AGREES to keep these Guidelines under review.MEPC 55/23

ANNEX 4 Page 2

I:\MEPC\55\23.doc ANNEX

GUIDELINES FOR SEDIMENT RE CEPTION FACILITIES (G1)

1 INTRODUCTION

Purpose

1.1 The purpose of these guidelines is to provide guidance for the provision of facilities for the reception of sediments that are provided in accordance with Article 5 of the Convention. The guidance is also intended to encourage a worldw ide uniform interface betwee n such facilities and the ships without prescribing dedicated shoreside reception plants.

Application

1.2 These guidelines apply to sediment reception facilities referred to in the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (the Convention), Article 5 and Regulation B-5.

1.3 These guidelines do not apply to sediment from tanks other than ballast water tanks.

1.4 It is recognized that some countries, areas or ports have require ments or regulations relating to the disposal of waste materials including waste material from ships which may include sediment from ships ball ast water tanks. These guidelines are not intended in any way to replace or adversely impact a ny local or national requirements or regulations concerning the disposal and/or treatment of sedime nt from ships ballast water tanks.

2 DEFINITIONS

2.1 For the purposes of these guidelines, th e definitions in the Convention apply and:

.1 “Ballast Water Tank” means any tank, hold or space used for the carriage of

ballast water as defined in Article 1 of the Convention.

3 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR RECEPTION FACILITIES

3.1 Article 5 of the Convention requires that: “reception facilities sh all operate without causing undue delay to ships and shall provide for the safe disposal of such sediments that does not impair or damage their environment, huma n health, property or re sources or those of

other States.”

3.2 A facility should provide the resources to enable, as far as practicable, their use by all ships wishing to discharge sedi ment from ballast water tanks.

3.3 Each Party shall report to the Organizati on and, where appropriate, make available to other Parties, information on the availability and location of any reception facilities for the environmentally safe disposal of sediments.MEPC 55/23

ANNEX 4 Page 3

I:\MEPC\55\23.doc 4 PROVISION OF SEDIMENT RECEPTION FACILITIES

4.1 When considering the requirements of these fa cilities many factors will have to be taken into account, these should in clude but not be limited to:

.1 regional, national and local le gislation which will affect the facility and related to the items below; .2 site selection; .3 collection, handling and transport of sediment; .4 sampling, testing and analysis of sediment; .5 storage of sediment and storage conditions; .6 estimated required capacity (volume/we ight) including moistu re content of the sediment the facility will handle; .7 environmental benefits and costs; .8 proximity of available sites to local ba llast tank cleaning and repair facilities;

.9 effect on the environment in constr uction and operation of the facility; .10 training of facility staff; .11 equipment required to off load sediment from ships, such as cranes; .12 human health; .13 safety; .14 maintenance; .15 operational limitations; and .16 waterway access, approaches and traffic management.

5 TREATMENT, HANDLING AND DISP OSAL OF RECEIVED SEDIMENT

5.1 Disposal, handling and treatment measures ap plied to the sediment shall avoid unwanted side effects that may create a risk to or dama ge to the Party’s environment, human health, property or resources or those of other States.

5.2 Personnel involved in the handling of sediment should be aware of the possible risk to

human health associated with sediment from ships ballast water tanks . Personnel should be adequately trained and be provided with suitab le personal protective clothing and equipment.

6 CAPABILITIES OF A RECEPTION FACILITY

6.1 Reception facilities should be designed, taki ng into account the ship types that may be anticipated to use them and consideration should be given to the requirem ents for ballast tank cleaning that may take place and of repair faciliti es in the area(s) the r eception facility serves.

6.2 Details of the capabil ities and any capacity limitations of reception proc ess (facilities and equipments) should be made available to ships wi shing to use the facility. The details made available to ships should incl ude but not be limited to:

.1 maximum capacity (volume or weight) of sediment; .2 maximum volume or weight that can be handled at any one time; .3 packaging and labelling requirements; .4 hours of operation; .5 ports, berths, areas where access to the facility is available;MEPC 55/23

ANNEX 4 Page 4

I:\MEPC\55\23.doc .6 ship-to-shore transfer details; .7 if ship or shore crew are required for the transfer; .8 contact details for the facility; .9 how to request use of the facility including any notice period and what information is required from the ship; .10 all applicable fees; and

.11 other relevant information.

7 TRAINING

7.1 Personnel in charge of and those employed in the provision of a sediment reception facility including the treatment and disposal of sediment, should have received adequate instruction. Frequent tr aining should include bu t not be limited to:

.1 the purpose and principles of the Convention; .2 the risks to the environment and human health; .3 risk associated with the handling of se diment including both general safety and human health risks; .4 safety; .5 adequate knowledge of the equipment involved; .6 a sufficient understanding of ships using the facility, and any operational constraints; .7 the ship/port communi cation interface; and .8 an understanding of local disposal controls.

7.2 The training should be organized by the mana ger or the operator of the reception facility and delivered by suitably qualified professionals.

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