Editorial note

The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships, adopted under the auspices of the IMCO (now the IMO), covers all technical aspects of pollution from ships save for waste disposal by dumping at sea. The Convention attempts to control discharges of harmful substances into the sea from vessels by establishing a certification system for ships and by requiring comprehensive enforcement of its obligations. Certificates are to be granted by each Party's national authorities in accordance with the ‘Regulations’ set out in the Convention's five Annexes, which address, respectively, oil pollution (entered into force on 2 October 1983), pollution by noxious liquid substances (entered into force on 6 April 1987), pollution by harmful substances in packaged form (entered into force on 1 July 1992), pollution by sewage from ships (entered into force on 27 September 2003), pollution by garbage from ships (entered into force on 31 December 1988). Annexes I and II are binding upon the Convention's entry into force for a Party, while Annexes III, IV, and V are binding at the option of each Party (Article 14(1)). Annex VI (not yet in force) was adopted in 1997 with the aim of preventing air pollution from ships. The Convention applies to ships flying the flag of a Party or operating within a Party's jurisdiction, but sovereign immunity applies to warships or ships in non-commercial governmental service (Article 3).