Carriage of dangerous goods at sea

Recommendation 687 (1972)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate on 24 October 1972 (17th Sitting) (see Doc. 3191, report of the Legal Affairs Committee). Text adopted by the Assembly on 24 October 1972 (17th Sitting).

The Assembly,

1. Referring to recent accidents at sea in which ships carrying highly dangerous cargoes were involved ;

2. Concerned about the great harm which may be done to the environment when dangerous materials enter into the sea ;

3. Considering that the manifests of all ships carrying dangerous cargoes should be sent to those authorities in the consigning countries that are responsible for safety at sea, so that they may check whether lading and packing are carried out in accordance with the safety rules ;

4. considering that full information should be available to the authorities concerned as soon as accidents on the high seas involving dangerous cargoes take place ;

5. Considering it essential that packages such as casks, canisters, drums etc., containing dangerous materials, when transported by ship or aircraft, contain clearly embossed, waterproof identification of the contents and the name of the firm of origin ;

6. Welcoming the action which was taken by governments and by the Intergovernmental Maritime Consultative Organisation (IMCO) in the field of marine pollution ;

7. Expressing the hope that the Committee of Ministers will soon give a full reply to its Recommendation 626 (1971) on the legal aspects of marine pollution,

8. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers invite governments of member States :

8.1 to implement, as soon as possible, the resolution on reports on incidents involving dangerous goods, adopted by the IMCO Maritime Safety Committee on 24 March 1972 ;

8.2 to support fully the action related to the carriage of dangerous goods at sea being taken by IMCO, and to deal with this problem at the International Conference on Marine Pollution to be convened in 1973.