The Department of Transport (‘‘the Department’’) will introduce the Marine Oil Pollution (Preparedness, Response and Cooperation) Bill (‘‘the Bill’’). The intention of the Bill is to give effect to the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Cooperation, 1990 (‘‘the OPRC Convention’’). The OPRC Convention was adopted on 30 November 1990 and came into effect on 13 May 1995.
The OPRC Convention is an international convention establishing measures for dealing with marine oil pollution incidents. There is an obligation on state parties to the OPRC Convention to take necessary measures to and ensure that there are adequate responses to oil pollution incidents.
State parties are encouraged to cooperate in the following areas of spill preparedness:
- contingency plans;
- equipment stocks;
- initiatives in terms of research and development;
- programmes addressing training and exercise;
- procedures to notify the shipping industry of spills;
The purpose of the Bill is to incorporate into the law of South Africa the relevant provisions of the OPRC Convention.
The objects of the bill are as follows:
- to provide for the safe and efficient management and use of resources in response to and control of, spills of oil, or any other pollutant from ships or any other sources within South African waters or which pollute or threaten to pollute South African waters, aquatic resources, coastline or related interests;
- to provide for the effective cooperation with neighboring countries in matters pertaining to marine oil pollution preparedness, response and control;
- to reduce and control the pollution of the marine environment by oil from ships, offshore installations, seaports and oil-handling facilities.
Clause 5 of the Bill provides for risk assessments to be undertaken every 5 years at various levels, including offshore, these risk assessments are crucial to allow for adequate resources and contingency planning.
Clause 6(1) empowers the Minister to prescribe in the regulations, the procedures for development and approval of a National Oil Spill Contingency Plan and imposes obligations on industries to develop and have approved site-specific contingencies following the adoption of the national contingency plan.
The bill further provides for regular training and continuous exercises to be undertaken as well as a marine oil pollution response equipment inventory, containing a list of all equipment, whether publicly or privately owned. The South African Maritime Safety Authority (‘‘the Authority’’) is obligated to recover from polluters the costs for maintaining the equipment.
The Minister is to appoint the National Marine Oil Pollution Preparedness and Response Incident Management Organisation, which must be chaired by the Director-General: Transport. The Incident Management Organisation comprises of the head of the Department, the head of environmental affairs, the head of fisheries, the head of disaster management, the head of petroleum and energy and the head of any relevant government bodies as deemed necessary by the Authority.
The Bill also provides for the appointment of an Incident Commander to coordinate the response to a marine oil incident. Clause 15 empowers the Incident Commander and Incident Response Team to set up the necessary systems and authorises the Incident Commander to be free to act without recourse to higher authority and has overall responsibility for monitoring and managing a response to a marine oil pollution incident. This provision is specifically aimed at removing the unnecessary bureaucracy and red tape.
Clause 18 provides for cost recovery and compensation from the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds. Clause 19 provides for powers of intervention. South Africa is a party to the Protocol Relating to Intervention on the High Seas in Cases of Marine Pollution by Substance other than Oil, 1973, and is therefore obligated by that protocol to intervene on high seas.
Clause 19 provides that the Authority may take such measures in South African waters and on the high seas to prevent,
mitigate or eliminate grave and imminent danger to South African waters or its coastline or related interests, from
pollution or threat of pollution, following a marine casualty or acts related to such a casualty, from which harmful
consequences may result.
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