MARPOL (The International Convention for

Prevention of Marine Pollution For Ships): The

Ultimate Guide
By Raunek | In: Maritime Law | Last Updated on January 20, 2021

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Just like SOLAS, which regulates the shipping industry to follow minimum standards to
safeguard life at sea, MARPOL is another important convention which safeguards the
marine environment against ship pollution. MAPOL and SOLAS are considered to be
two effective safety and environmental protection tools of IMO.

Read: SOLAS – The Ultimate Guide

MARPOL 73/78, since it came into force in 1973 and later revised by the protocol in
1978, ensures that shipping remains the least environmentally damaging modes of
transport. It clearly highlights the points to ensure that the marine environment is
preserved by the elimination of pollution by all harmful substance which can be
discharged from the ship.

Related Read: 5 Instruments of International Maritime Organization (IMO) Every

Seafarer Should Know

This marine environmental convention consists of six implemented annexes for

controlling and eliminating of marine pollution.

How Logs Are Loaded On Ship?

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They are as follows:

Annex I:  Regulation for prevention of pollution by oil (October 1983).

Annex II: Regulations for control of pollution by Noxious Liquid Substance in bulk (April
1987).

Annex III: Regulation for prevention of pollution by harmful substance carried at sea in
packaged form (July 1992).

Annex IV: Regulation for prevention of pollution by sewage from ships (Sep 2003).

Annex V: Regulation for prevention of pollution by Garbage from ships (Dec 1998).

Annex VI: Regulation for prevention of Air pollution from ships (May 2005).

They are as follows:

MARPOL Annex I
Regulation for the prevention of pollution by oil (October 1983).
This regulation was adopted on 2nd October 1983 to control and prevent any oil
discharge from ship intentionally or accidentally. It comprises of 11 chapters which
together contains 47 Regulations.

Chapter 1 gives a general description about MARPOL ANNEX I and consists of 5

regulations which explain the “Application” of this chapter in different types of the ship
along with the “Definition” of different terminologies which are used in the chapter. The
regulation may not apply to all types of ship hence a separate section of “Exceptions”
and “Exemptions” is also provided. It also explains the condition where an administrator
may allow alternative fittings, materials, appliances etc. to be installed on ships to fulfil
this annex.

Chapter 2 deals with Surveys and Certifications requirement for all oil tanker ships of
150GT and other sips of 400 GT. And comprises of 5 regulations.

Regulation 6 describes the requirement for different surveys to comply with MARPOL
annex 1.

Regulation 7 provides the terms to issue or endorse the IOPP certificate to the ship post
successful survey by the appropriate administration. Regulation 8 also describes how to
issue or endorse the certificates by another contracting government, followed by
Regulation 9 which tell the form of the certificate including languages such as English or
official language of issuing country.

Regulation 10 explains the duration and validity of certificates and provide timelines for
renewal of certificates.

Regulation 11 terms the authority of port state control under Annex 1 to inspect the ship
for compliance.

Chapter 3 deals with the Requirements for Machinery spaces for all ships and list down
the requirements under Regulation 12 to 17, so that the engine room and other
machinery spaces are compliant with the MARPOL Annex 1.

Regulation 12 explains the requirement of storage tanks for oil residues produced on all
types of the ship due to machinery operation and method to dispose of the oil residue. It
further provides details to protect the fuel oil tanks for ships having fuel oil capacity
600m3 and above.

Regulation 13 describes the requirement for standard discharge connection on a ship to

dispose of oil residue from sludge and bilge tanks.

Regulation 14 The requirements of oil filtration equipment onboard ship for discharging
engine room bilges or ballast water from fuel oil tanks is given in this regulation,
followed by Regulation 15 which restricts the discharge of treated bilges in special
areas.

Regulation 16 explains the requirement of segregating oil and water ballast which is
carried in the fuel tank of the ship.

Regulation 17 lists down the need for a compliant oil record book for machinery space
in oil tankers of 150GT and above and other ships of 400 GT and above.

Chapter 4. deals with the Requirements of Cargo areas in an oil tanker ship listing down
various regulation (Regulation 18 to 36).

Chapter 5 describes how to prevent pollution which can arise from an oil pollution
incident. Regulation 37 which list the SOPEP or Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency
plan provides the details.

Related Read: What is Ship Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (SOPEP)?

Chapter 6 lists the requirement for the reception facilities to which the ship will dispose
of the oily bilge/ sludge to under Regulation 38  providing details of the facility outside
and inside special areas.

Chapter 7 provides the special requirement for fixed or floating platform to comply with
Annex 1 of MARPOL with Regulation 39.

Chapter 8 deals with the prevention of pollution which may happen during cargo oil in
between tankers at sea also known as Ship to Ship Transfer (STS). It comprises of 3
regulation from 40 to 42.

Regulation 40 provides the scope of application for this chapter and Regulation 41 lists
down the rules on safety and environmental protection during the STS operation,
followed by Regulation 42 which tells the notifications which need to be provided by the
ship to port state and all the other parties involved in the operation.

Chapter 9 carries the details for the special requirement for the use of carriage of oils in
the Antarctica area with Regulation 43.
Chapter 10 deals with the Verification of compliance with the provision of this
convention under Regulation 44 and 45, providing details of the application and the
process for verification of compliance.

Chapter 11 list down the important requirement on international code for ships operating
in Polar waters under Regulation 46 and 47. Regulation 46 lists down the definition for
this annexe followed by Regulation 47 for application and requirement for the ships
sailing in polar waters.

MARPOL Annex II
Regulations for the control of pollution by Noxious Liquid
Substance in bulk (April 1987).
This Annex was adopted on 6th of April 1987  which deals with the control and prevent
pollution due to the noxious liquid substance in bulk, intentionally or accidentally. It
comprises of 10 chapters which together contains 22 Regulations.

Chapter 1 gives general details on MARPOL ANNEX II and consists of 5 regulations

providing the “Definition” of different terminologies which are used in the chapter and
explains the “Application” of this chapter in different types of ship (Chemical tankers
etc.). The regulation may not be applicable to all types of a ship; hence a separate
section of “Exceptions” and “Exemptions” is also provided. It also explains the condition
where an administrator may allow alternative fittings, materials, appliances etc. to be
installed on ships to fulfill this annex.

Chapter 2 provides the details of different categories of Noxious liquid substance under
regulation 6.

Chapter 3 list down the need for surveys and certification with 4 regulations from
regulation 7 to 10.  Regulation 7 deals with the surveys and certifications needed by
chemical tanker following the provision of the International Bulk Chemical code.

Regulation 8 details the need for different surveys for the ships carrying noxious liquid
substances in bulk followed by issuing and endorsing of the certificate under Regulation
9. The duration and validity of the certificate are provided in Regulation 10.

Chapter 4 specifies the Design, Construction, arrangement, and equipment for ships
carrying Noxious cargo in bulk under regulation 11, followed by Regulation 12 which
provides the details of pumping, piping, unloading arrangement and slop tanks.

Chapter 5 carries 3 regulation from 13 to 15 for providing the details of operational

discharge of residues of noxious liquid substances.  Regulation 13 lists the need for
control of discharges of Noxious liquid substance residues.
Regulation 14 and 15 provide the details of Procedure and arrangement manual and
Cargo record book which needs to be filled by the ships’ officers.

Chapter 6 which consist of Regulation 16 describe the role of government and

authorised parties such as port state control on measures of control to check, survey
and assess the ships to carry the cargo under MARPOL Annex II.

Chapter 7 deals with Prevention of Pollution arising from an incident involving noxious
liquid substance and consist of Regulation 17 giving the details of Shipboard pollution
emergency plan for noxious liquid substances.

Chapter 8 lists the requirement for the reception facilities to which the ship can dispose
of the residues and mixture generated from noxious liquid substances under Regulation
38  providing details of the facility and terminal unloading arrangements.

Chapter 9 deals with the Verification of compliance with the provision of this convention
under Regulation 19 and 20, providing details of the application and the process for
verification of compliance.

Chapter 10 list down the important requirement on international code for ships operating
in Polar waters under Regulation 21 and 22. Regulation 21 lists down the definition for
this annex followed by Regulation 22 for application and requirement for the ships
sailing in polar waters.

MARPOL Annex III

Regulation for prevention of pollution by harmful substance
carried at sea in packaged form (July 1992).
This Annex deals with those substances which are hazardous in nature and carried in
packaged cargo. The identification of such material is provided in the IMDG Code. The
MARPOL Annex III came into force on 1 July 1992 and comprised of 2 Chapters
containing 11 regulations.

Related Read: What is Ithe international Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG)?

Chapter 1 gives a general details on MARPOL ANNEX III and consist of 9 regulations.

Regulations 1 & 2 explains the “Definition” of different terminologies which are used in
the chapter and the “Application” of this chapter in different types of ships which are
carrying Hazardous goods.

Regulation 3 & 4 lists down the requirement of packaging and Marking/labelling of the
packages carrying IMDG cargoes.
Regulation 5 provides the details of the documentation which are needed by the ship
which is carrying hazardous material under MARPOL Annex 3

The storage requirement and quantity limitations for carrying harmful substances in bulk
are provided under Regulation 6 & 7.

Regulation 8 lists down the exceptions which a ship carrying harmful cargo in bulk can
have under various circumstances.

The authorisation of port-state control on the operational requirement of ships carrying

such substance under MARPOL Annex III is listed in Regulation 9.

Chapter 2 deals with the Verification of compliance with the provision of this convention
providing details of the application and the process for verification of compliance under
Regulation 10 and 11.

MARPOL Annex IV
Regulation for the prevention of pollution by sewage from ships
(Sep 2003).
Entered into force on 27 September 2003, this Annex focuses on prevention of sewage
pollution from ships. It has 7 Chapters comprising of 18 Regulations.

Chapter 1 gives a general description about MARPOL ANNEX IV and consist of 3

regulations which explains the “Definition” of different terminologies which are used in
the chapter and “Application” of this chapter in different types of ships. The regulation
may not be applicable to all types of ship hence a separate section of “Exceptions” is
also provided.

Related Read: MARPOL ANNEX 4 Explained: How to Prevent Pollution from Sewage

at Sea

Chapter 2 list down the need for surveys and certification with 5 regulations from
regulation 4 to 8.  Regulation 4 deals with the surveys to be done on ships implicated by
this Annex. Regulation 4 & 5 provide the details for issue or endorsement of certificates
by the administration and by another government.  Regulation 7 & 8 gives details of
form,  duration, and validity of the sewage pollution prevention certificate.

Chapter 3 provides the need of having Equipment and control of sewage discharge from
the ship. Regulation 9 under this chapter provides details of sewage system
requirement on ships followed by Regulation 10 and 11 for having a standard sewage
discharge connection to transfer sewage to port facilities and discharge of sewage at
sea within and outside special areas.
Related Read: Sewage Treatment Plant on Ships Explained

Chapter 4 consist of 2 regulations (12 & 13) with the details of the reception facilities
requirement. Regulation 12 provides the details to the government agencies regarding
the compliance to have a reception facility and Regulation 13 lists down the requirement
of reception facilities for Passenger ships in special areas.

Related Read: Cruise Ship Sewage Discharges Into The Baltic Sea To Be Banned

Chapter 5 which consist of Regulation 14 describe the role of government and

authorised parties such as port state control on measures of control to check, survey
and assess the ships under MARPOL Annex IV.

Chapter 6 deals with the Verification of compliance with the provision of this convention
providing details of the application and the process for verification of compliance under
Regulation 15 and 16.

Chapter 7 list down the important requirement on international code for ships operating
in Polar waters under Regulation 17 and 18. Regulation 17 lists down the definition for
this annex followed by Regulation 18 for application and requirement for the ships
sailing in polar waters.

MARPOL Annex V
Regulation for the prevention of pollution by Garbage from ships
(Dec 1998).
This annexe deals with the garbage produced onboard ships and ways to prevent
pollution from the same. It was enforced on 31 December 1988, having 3 Chapters with
14 Regulations.

Chapter 1 gives general details on MARPOL ANNEX II and consists of 10 regulations

providing the “Definition” of different terminologies which are used in the chapter under
Regulation 1 and explains the “Application” of this chapter in different types of ship
Regulation 2.

Related Read: ICS Publishes New Edition Of Industry Guidance On Garbage

Management Plans

Regulation 3 lists down the details of the general prohibition on the discharge of
garbage at sea followed by Regulation 4 for the discharge of garbage outside special
areas.
Regulation 5 specifies the special requirements for the discharge of garbage from fixed
and floating platforms. The requirement for discharge of garbage in the special area is
given under Regulation 6.

Regulation 7 & 8 describes the receptions facilities exception and requirements

including those who are inside the special areas.

Regulation 9 consist role of port-state control on measures of control to check, survey

and assess the ships under MARPOL Annex V.

Regulation 10 deals with the need for Garbage Management Plan (GMP) including
record books and placards.

Related Read: What is Garbage Management Plan (GMP) on a Ship?

Chapter 2 deals with the Verification of compliance with the provision of this convention
under Regulation 11 and 12

Chapter 3 list down the important requirement on international code for ships operating
in Polar waters under Regulation 13 and 14. Regulation 13 lists down the definition for
the purpose of this annex followed by Regulation 14 for application and requirement for
the ships sailing in polar waters.

MARPOL Annex VI
Regulation for prevention of Air pollution from ships (May 2005).
This MARPOL Annex deals explicitly with ways to prevent air pollutions from ships. It
came into force on 19th May 2005 having five chapters with 25 Regulations.

Chapter 1 gives a general description about MARPOL ANNEX VI and consists of 4

regulations which explain the “Application” of this chapter in different types of the ship
along with the “Definition” of different terminologies which are used in the chapter. The
regulation may not apply to all types of ship hence a separate section of “Exceptions”
and “Exemptions” is also provided. It also explains the condition where an administrator
may allow alternative fittings, materials, appliances etc. to be installed on ships to fulfil
this annex.

Chapter 2 lists the survey, certification, and means of control dealing with air pollution
from the ship. It has 7 Regulation with Regulation 5 explaining the need of different
surveys for the vessel having the arrangement to prevent air pollution followed by
issuing and endorsing of International Air Pollution Prevention (IOPP) certificate and
International Energy Efficiency Certificates (IEEC) in Regulation 6.
Regulation 7 provides the details for issue or endorsement of certificates by another
party followed by the forms of certificates and statement of compliance related to fuel oil
consumption reporting in Regulations 8 for both IOPP and IEEC.  The details for the
validity of these certificates are provided in Regulation 9.

Related Read: Important MARPOL Amendments Enter Into Force

Regulation 10 terms the authority of port state control under Annex VI to inspect the
ship for compliance.

Regulation 11 explains how the administration and authorised party can detect ships for
the violation and how to enforce this annexe.

Chapter 3 deals with the requirements for control of emissions from ships and consist of
7 Regulations, starting with the details of ozone-depleting substances in Regulation12
such as in the refrigerant used on ships.

Related Read:  What are Ozone Depleting Substances on Ships?

Regulation 13 gives a brief about Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) with different Tiers  (Tier I, II
and III) in and outside the emission control areas.

Related Read: What is Nitrogen Oxides or NOx air pollution from Ships?

Regulation 14  gives a brief about Sulphur Oxides (SOx) with the requirement for the
quantity of sulphur in the fuel oil as per the year, in and outside emission controlled
areas.

Related Read: What is Sulphur Oxides or SOx air pollution from Ships?

The emissions of Volatile Organic Compound from the oil tankers are taken into account
in Regulation 15 providing the details to comply with the requirements.

Regulation 16 talks about the shipboard incineration operations and when the
incineration is allowed.

Related Read: Construction and Working of Waste Oil Incinerator

Regulation 17 describes the receptions facilities requirements for disposing of ozone-

depleting substance, residue from exhaust cleaning etc.

To comply with the exhaust emission requirements, proper fuel oil is made available to
burn on ships, whose condition is described in Regulation 18.
Chapter 4 provides the Regulation on Energy Efficiency on Ships having Regulations 19
to 23.  Regulation 19 talks about the application of this chapter on ships of 400GT and
above.

Related Read: How to Improve Energy Efficiency of Ships?

Regulation 20 and 21 provide the details of Attained Energy Efficiency Design Index
(Attained EEDI) and Required EEDI.

Related Read: Energy Efficiency Management in the Maritime Industry

The Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) requirements, which should be

kept onboard, is provided in Regulation 22. Further, the requirement for fuel oil
consumption data collection and reporting to the administration is also listed in this
regulation.

Related Read: What is Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan?

Regulation 23 talks about the technical cooperation between different parties

(Administration, Government agency, Shipping company etc.) to improve the energy
efficiency of ships.

Chapter 5 deals with the Verification of compliance with the provision of this convention
under Regulation 24 and 25.

Thus, SOLAS and MARPOL conventions stand as two solid pillars that support the
maritime industry by protecting the most important issues – marine pollution prevention
and safety of human life.

Disclaimer: The authors’ views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the
views of Marine Insight. Data and charts, if used, in the article have been sourced from
available information and have not been authenticated by any statutory authority. The
author and Marine Insight do not claim it to be accurate nor accept any responsibility for
the same. The views constitute only the opinions and do not constitute any guidelines
or recommendation on any course of action to be followed by the reader.

The article or images cannot be reproduced, copied, shared or used in any form
without the permission of the author and Marine Insight. 
 Special areas under MARPOL are as follows:

Adoption, entry into force & date of taking effect of Special Areas
Date of Entry
Special Areas Adopted # In Effect From
into Force
Annex I: Oil
Mediterranean Sea 2 Nov 1973 2 Oct 1983 2 Oct 1983
Baltic Sea 2 Nov 1973 2 Oct 1983 2 Oct 1983
Black Sea 2 Nov 1973 2 Oct 1983 2 Oct 1983
Red Sea 2 Nov 1973 2 Oct 1983 *
"Gulfs" area 2 Nov 1973 2 Oct 1983 1 Aug 2008
Gulf of Aden 1 Dec 1987 1 Apr 1989 *
Antarctic area 16 Nov 1990 17 Mar 1992 17 Mar 1992
North West European Waters 25 Sept 1997 1 Feb 1999 1 Aug 1999
Oman area of the Arabian Sea 15 Oct 2004 1 Jan 2007 *
Southern South African waters 13 Oct 2006 1 Mar 2008 1 Aug 2008
Annex II: Noxious Liquid Substances
Antarctic area 30 Oct 1992 1 Jul 1994 1 Jul 1994
Annex IV: Sewage
Baltic Sea 15 Jul 2011 1 Jan 2013 **
Annex V: Garbage
Mediterranean Sea 2 Nov 1973 31 Dec 1988 1 May 2009
Baltic Sea 2 Nov 1973 31 Dec 1988 1 Oct 1989
Black Sea 2 Nov 1973 31 Dec 1988 *
Red Sea 2 Nov 1973 31 Dec 1988 *
"Gulfs" area 2 Nov 1973 31 Dec 1988 1 Aug 2008
North Sea 17 Oct 1989 18 Feb 1991 18 Feb 1991
Antarctic area (south of latitude
16 Nov 1990 17 Mar 1992 17 Mar 1992
60 degrees south)
Wider Caribbean region including
the Gulf of Mexico and the 4 Jul 1991 4 Apr 1993 1 May 2011
Caribbean Sea
Annex VI: Prevention of air pollution by ships (Emission Control Areas)
Baltic Sea (SO )
x  26 Sept 1997 19 May 2005 19 May 2006
(NO )
x 7 July 2017 1 Jan 2019 1 Jan 2021****
North Sea (SO )
x 22 Jul 2005 22 Nov 2006 22 Nov 2007
(NOx) 7 July 2017 1 Jan 2019 1 Jan 2021****
North American ECA      
(SO  and PM)
x 26 Mar 2010 1 Aug 2011 1 Aug 2012
(NOx)     1 Jan 2016***
United States      
Caribbean Sea ECA      
(SO  and PM)
x 26 Jul 2011 1 Jan 2013 1 Jan 2014
 (NOx)     1 Jan 2016***