Gov’t to pass marine pollution bill soon

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Deputy Transport Minister Joyce Bawa Mogtari says government is concerned about the levels of marine pollution and that it is determined to pass the marine pollution bill to address the recent increase in damage to the country’s ocean and other water bodies as soon as the bill passes the parliamentary process.

DAddressing journalists on the sidelines of a joint workshop organized by the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in Accra, the Deputy Transport Minister said the bill, which was initially based on the Marine Pollution Convention (MARPOL), is currently being fine-tuned to include other necessary inputs at the request of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“We recognize the need that Ghana is a coastal state and that there is the need to protect our marine environment in order to derive the needed benefits. We are working vigorously to get the Marine Pollution Bill which is currently going through the parliamentary process done.

“All these are being done to ensure that the country has a concise document that will regulate and protect our marine environment.

“It is critical for us, as a country, to find a way to reduce greenhouse emission and to reduce the impact of vessel movements on the marine environment because the impact of pollution destroys the sea-bed and affects other sea related activities.

“It is expected that when the bill is enacted, Ghana will have a comprehensive marine pollution regulation to protect its marine environment from ships and related sources of pollution,” she said.

Concerns have been raised about the unavailability of regulations to curb the recent increase in both human and ship activities that pose threats to Ghana’s territorial and in-land waters, with the delayed passage of the bill linked to a tussle between the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) and EPA with regards to supervisory and enforcement rights.

The Marine Pollution Bill addresses regulations for the prevention of pollution by oil, noxious liquid substances in bulk, harmful substances carried by the sea, sewage, and garbage and air pollution from ships.
It also gives contracting parties the mandate to inspect ships including tankers and other supply vessels to ensure that their operations are safe and will not pollute the marine environment.

The three-day workshop brought together industry players drawn from ten African countries including Benin, Sierra Leone, South Africa, The Gambia, Liberia and Nigeria to be schooled on IMO’s MARPOL Annex-VI and ship energy efficiency and transfer.

Participants will be practically informed on the adoption, implementation and enforcement of the new regulations from the IMO regarding the issue of ship energy efficiency and transfer as well as address further capacity building and technology transfer needs and activities within member-states of the West and Central Africa region.

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