MEPC 56/23

I:\MEPC\56\23.doc ANNEX 11

RESOLUTION MEPC.164(56)

Adopted on 13 July 2007

AMENDMENTS TO THE ANNEX OF TH E PROTOCOL OF 1978 RELATING TO

THE INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION FOR THE PREVENTION OF POLLUTION FROM SHIPS, 1973

(Reception facilities outs ide Special Areas and discharge of sewage)

THE MARINE ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION COMMITTEE,

RECALLING Article 38(a) of the Conventi on on the International Maritime Organization concerning the functions of the Marine Envi ronment Protection Committee (the Committee) conferred upon it by intern ational conventions for the preventi on and control of marine pollution,

NOTING Article 16 of the Inte rnational Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the “19 73 Convention”) and article VI of the Protocol of 1978 relating to the Internati onal Convention for the Preventi on of Pollution from Ships, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the “1978 Protocol”) which together specify the amendment procedure

of the 1978 Protocol and confer upon the appropriate body of th e Organization the function of considering and adopting amendments to the 1973 Convention, as modified by the 1978 Protocol (MARPOL 73/78),

HAVING CONSIDERED proposed amendments to regulation 38.2.5 of Annex I and regulation 11.1.1 of Annex IV to MARPOL 73/78,

1. ADOPTS, in accordance with Article 16(2 )(d) of the 1973 Convention, the amendments to Annex I and Annex IV of MARPOL 73/78, the texts of which are set out at Annex 1 and Annex 2 respectively to the present resolution;

2. DETERMINES, in accordance with Article 16 (2)(f)(iii) of the 1973 Convention, that the amendments shall be deemed to have been accep ted on 1 June 2008, unless prior to that date, not

less than one-third of the Parties or Parties the combined merchant fleets of which constitute not less than 50 per cent of the gross tonnage of the world’s merc hant fleet, have communicated to the Organization their obj ection to the amendments;

3. INVITES the Parties to note that, in accordance with Article 16(2)(g)(ii) of the 1973 Convention, the said amendments shall enter into force on 1 December 2008 upon their acceptance in accordance with paragraph 2 above;

4. REQUESTS the Secretary-General, in conformity with Ar ticle 16(2)(e) of the 1973 Convention, to transmit to all Parties to MARPOL 73/78 certified copies of the present resolution and the text of the amendments contained in the Annexes; and

5. REQUESTS FURTHER the Secretary-Genera l to transmit to the Members of the Organization which are not Parties to MARPOL 73/78 copies of the present resolution and

its Annexes.MEPC 56/23

ANNEX 11 Page 3

I:\MEPC\56\23.doc ANNEX 2

AMENDMENTS TO MARPOL ANNEX IV

(Discharge of sewage)

Regulation 11.1.1 is replaced by the following:

“.1 the ship is discharging comminuted and disinfected sewage using a system approved by the Administration in accord ance with regulatio n 9.1.2 of this Annex

at a distance of more than 3 nautical m iles from the nearest land, or sewage which is not comminuted or disinfected, at a di stance of more than 12 nautical miles from the nearest land, provided that, in any case, the sewage that has been stored in holding tanks, or sewage originating from spaces containing living animals, shall not be discharged instantaneously but at a moderate rate when the ship is en

route and proceeding at not less than 4 knots; the rate of discharge shall be approved by the Administration base d upon standards developed by the Organization 8 ; or”

***

8 Refer to the Recommendation on standards for the rate of discharge of untreated sewage from ships adopted by the Marine Environment Protection Committee of the Organization by resolution MEPC.157(55).