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Arctic Shipping Safety and Pollution Prevention Regulations (SOR/2017-286)

Regulations are current to 2024-03-06 and last amended on 2023-06-07. Previous Versions

PART 2Pollution Prevention Measures (continued)

Application

Marginal note:Application

 Except as otherwise provided, this Part applies in respect of Canadian vessels navigating in polar waters and foreign vessels navigating in a shipping safety control zone.

Conditions of Waste Deposits

Marginal note:Conditions

 For the purposes of subsection 4(1) of the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, waste may be deposited if

  • (a) the deposit is necessary for the purpose of saving a life, securing the safety of a vessel or preventing the immediate loss of a vessel;

  • (b) the deposit occurs as a result of an accident of navigation in which a vessel or its equipment is damaged, unless the accident occurs as a result of an action that is outside the ordinary practice of seafarers;

  • (c) in the case of oil, the deposit is a minimal and unavoidable leakage that occurs as a result of the operation of an underwater machinery component;

  • (d) in the case of fishing gear, the deposit is an accidental loss and all reasonable precautions were taken to prevent such a loss;

  • (e) in the case of fishing gear, the deposit is for the protection of the marine environment or for the safety of that vessel or its crew; or

  • (f) in the case of garbage, the deposit is the result of damage to a vessel or its equipment, when all reasonable precautions were taken before the occurrence to prevent and minimize the deposit, and after the occurrence to minimize it.

Prevention of Pollution by Oil

Marginal note:Operations in polar waters

 Operations in polar waters must be taken into account in the Oil Records Books, the manuals, the shipboard oil pollution emergency plan, and the shipboard marine pollution emergency plan when they are required to be carried by a vessel under the Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations.

Marginal note:Oil fuel tank

  •  (1) Oil fuel tanks on Category A and B vessels that were constructed on or after January 1, 2017 and have an aggregate oil fuel capacity of less than 600 m3, other than oil fuel tanks with a maximum individual capacity of 30 m3 or less, must be separated from the outer shell of the vessel by a distance of at least 0.76 m.

  • Marginal note:Cargo tank — vessels other than oil tankers

    (2) Cargo tanks used to carry oil on Category A and B vessels constructed on or after January 1, 2017, other than oil tankers, must be separated from the outer shell of the vessel by a distance of at least 0.76 m.

  • Marginal note:Cargo tank — oil tankers

    (3) Subject to subsection (4), cargo tanks on Category A and B oil tankers constructed on or after January 1, 2017, that are of less than 5 000 metric tonnes deadweight, must be protected the length of the tank with

    • (a) double bottom tanks or double bottom spaces in accordance with the applicable requirements of regulation 19.6.1 of Annex I to MARPOL; and

    • (b) wing tanks or wing spaces arranged in accordance with the applicable requirements of regulation 19.3.1 of Annex I to MARPOL and complying with the applicable distance requirements in accordance with regulation 19.6.2 of Annex I to MARPOL.

  • Marginal note:Exception

    (4) An oil tanker that is a Canadian vessel of less than 5 000 metric tonnes deadweight that does not have mechanical means of propulsion and engages only on voyages in waters under Canadian jurisdiction within 40 nautical miles from the nearest land is not required to comply with paragraph (3)(a) if the height of its double bottom is, in no location, less than the width calculated for its wing tanks in accordance with the formula in regulation 19.6.2 of Annex I to MARPOL.

  • Marginal note:Oil residue tanks and oily bilge water holding tanks

    (5) Oil residue tanks and oily bilge water holding tanks on Category A and B vessels constructed on or after January 1, 2017, other than oil fuel tanks with a maximum individual capacity of 30 m3 or less, must be separated from the outer shell of the vessel by a distance of at least 0.76 m.

  • Marginal note:Non-application

    (6) Subsections (1) to (3) and (5) do not apply to vessels referred to in paragraph 46(2)(b) of the Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations.

Control of Pollution by Noxious Liquid Substances in Bulk

Marginal note:Operations in polar waters

 Operations in polar waters must be taken into account in the Cargo Record Book, the procedures and arrangements manual, the shipboard marine pollution emergency plan for noxious liquid substances and the shipboard marine pollution emergency plan, when they are required to be carried by the Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations.

Marginal note:Prohibition

 It is prohibited to carry the following noxious liquid substances in a cargo tank on a Category A or B vessel that is constructed on or after January 1, 2017, unless the cargo tank is separated from the outer shell of the vessel by a distance of at least 0.76 m:

  • (a) a substance listed in the table to Chapter 17 of the IBC Code, if the vessel specified in column “e” of the table is of type 3; and

  • (b) a substance listed in Chapter 18 of the IBC Code.

Prevention of Pollution by Sewage from Vessels

Marginal note:Prohibition to discharge — sewage

 A Canadian vessel of a gross tonnage of 400 or more or a Canadian vessel that is certified to carry more than 15 persons — or a person on board such a vessel — must not discharge sewage in polar waters other than arctic waters, unless the discharge is made in accordance with the conditions set out in subsections 20(1) to (3) or in the applicable circumstances set out in section 14.

Marginal note:Deposit of sewage

  •  (1) For the purposes of subsection 4(1) of the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, subject to subsections (2) and (3) of this section, a vessel of a gross tonnage of 400 or more or a vessel that is certified to carry more than 15 persons — or a person on board such a vessel — may deposit sewage if,

    • (a) when the sewage is comminuted and disinfected, the deposit is made in accordance with regulation 11.1.1 of Annex IV to MARPOL and the vessel is located at a distance of at least three nautical miles from an ice-shelf or fast ice, and is as far as practicable from areas of ice concentrations exceeding 1/10;

    • (b) when the sewage is not comminuted or disinfected, the deposit is made in accordance with regulation 11.1.1 of Annex IV to MARPOL and the vessel is located at a distance of at least 12 nautical miles from an ice-shelf or fast ice, and is as far as practicable from areas of ice concentration exceeding 1/10; or

    • (c) when the vessel operates a sewage treatment plant of an approved type, the deposit is made in accordance with regulation 11.1.2 of Annex IV to MARPOL and the vessel is as far as practicable from the nearest land, ice-shelf, fast ice or areas of ice concentration exceeding 1/10.

  • Marginal note:Non-application

    (2) Paragraphs (1)(a) and (b) do not apply to Category A and B vessels constructed on or after January 1, 2017, and all passenger vessels constructed on or after January 1, 2017.

  • Marginal note:Exception

    (3) If a Category A or B vessel is operating in an area of ice conditions exceeding 1/10 for an extended period of time, the vessel — or a person on board such a vessel — may deposit sewage that has been treated using a sewage treatment plant of an approved type.

  • Marginal note:Approval

    (4) For the purposes of this section, a sewage treatment plant is of an approved type if the type is approved

    • (a) in the case of a Canadian vessel, by the Minister as meeting the recommendations and guidelines referred to in regulation 9.1.1 or 9.2.1 of Annex IV to MARPOL;

    • (b) in the case of a foreign vessel, by the competent authority as meeting the recommendations and guidelines referred to in regulation 9.1.1 or 9.2.1 of Annex IV to MARPOL.

Marginal note:Deposit of sewage

 For the purposes of subsection 4(1) of the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, a vessel of a gross tonnage of more than 15 and less than 400 and that is not certified to carry more than 15 persons — or a person on board such a vessel — may deposit sewage if

  • (a) the sewage is comminuted and disinfected using an marine sanitation device that meets the requirements of section 90 of the Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations and the deposit is made at a distance of at least one nautical mile from shore, an ice-shelf or fast ice, and is as far as practicable from areas of ice concentrations exceeding 1/10;

  • (b) the deposit is made while the vessel is en route at the fastest feasible speed, at a distance of at least three nautical miles from shore, an ice-shelf or fast ice, and is as far as practicable from areas of ice concentration exceeding 1/10; or

  • (c) the requirements of paragraph (b) cannot be met because the distance between any shore, ice-shelf or fast ice is less than six nautical miles, and the deposit is made while the vessel is en route at a speed of at least four knots, or if the deposit is not feasible at this speed, the deposit is made

    • (i) during an ebb tide, while the vessel is en route, at the fastest feasible speed into the deepest waters that are located the farthest from shore, or

    • (ii) while the vessel is en route at the fastest feasible speed and into the deepest and fastest moving waters that are located the farthest from shore.

Marginal note:Sewage generated on board

 For the purposes of subsection 4(1) of the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, a vessel of 15 gross tonnage or less that is carrying not more than 15 persons — or a person on board such a vessel — may deposit sewage generated on board the vessel.

Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Vessels

Marginal note:Operations in polar waters

 Operations in polar waters must be taken into account in the Garbage Record Book, the garbage management plan, and the placards as required by the Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations.

Marginal note:Prohibition to discharge — food waste

  •  (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), a Canadian vessel — or a person on board such a vessel — must not discharge food waste in polar waters other than arctic waters, unless the discharge is done in accordance with the conditions set out in paragraphs 25(1)(a) to (c) or in the applicable circumstances set out in section 14.

  • Marginal note:Imminent health risk

    (2) Subsection (1) does not apply if retention of the food waste on board the vessel would present an imminent health risk to the people on board the vessel.

  • Marginal note:Discharge on ice

    (3) Subsection (1) must not be read as allowing the discharge of food waste on ice.

Marginal note:Deposit of food waste

  •  (1) For the purposes of subsection 4(1) of the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, subject to subsections (2) and (3) of this section, a vessel – or a person on board a vessel — may deposit food waste, while en route, if

    • (a) the vessel is as far as practicable from the areas of ice concentration exceeding 1/10, and is at least 12 nautical miles from the nearest land, ice-shelf or fast ice;

    • (b) the food waste is comminuted or ground so that it can pass through a screen with openings no greater than 25 mm; and

    • (c) the food waste is not contaminated with any other garbage type.

  • Marginal note:Imminent health risk

    (2) Subsection (1) does not apply if retention of the waste on board the vessel would present an imminent health risk to the people on board the vessel.

  • Marginal note:Deposit on ice

    (3) Subsection (1) must not be read as allowing the deposit of food waste on ice.

Marginal note:Prohibition to discharge — cargo residues

 A Canadian vessel — or a person on board such a vessel — must not discharge cargo residues in polar waters other than arctic waters, unless the discharge is made in accordance with the conditions set out in paragraph 5.2.1.5 of Part II-A of the Polar Code or in the applicable circumstances set out in section 14.

PART 3Consequential Amendments, Repeal And Coming Into Force

Consequential Amendments

Ship Station (Radio) Regulations, 1999

 [Amendment]

 [Amendment]

Navigation Safety Regulations

 [Amendment]

 [Amendment]

Vessel Pollution and Dangerous Chemicals Regulations

 [Amendments]

 [Amendment]

 [Amendment]

Repeal

 The Arctic Shipping Pollution Prevention RegulationsFootnote 4 are repealed.

Coming into Force

 These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

 

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