National Ports Act, 2005 (Act No. 12 of 2005)RulesPorts RulesChapter 4 : Protection of the Environment86. Deposit of harmful matter, including oil, in a port |
| (1) | No person may throw or deposit within port limits any harmful matter or substance of whatsoever nature, including effluent or polluted water or foreign organisms, without the permission of the Authority, and, in the case where it is to be thrown or deposited from a vessel, without the permission of the Harbour Master. The Authority or the Harbour Master, as the case may be, may impose conditions upon the permission to be granted. |
| (2) | No person may cause or allow pollutants, including paint, or cause or allow substances that can cause pollution or negatively impact on the environment, whether or not the substance or pollutant is of a mineral, animal or plant origin, to be dumped on the property of a port or to be discharged or to escape into waters within port limits. |
| (3) | No oil of any description or harmful matter or substances of whatever nature, including effluent, polluted water or foreign organisms, may be discharged or dumped from a — |
| (a) | Vessel, or be allowed to escape from a vessel's to any part of the port, or |
| (b) | terminal or any other source, or be allowed to escape into port waters from a terminal or any other source. |
| (4) | The master of a vessel that is berthed alongside a quay or jetty must cause all the discharge outlets of the vessel facing the quay or jetty to be closed or to be provided with adequate covers to prevent any inadvertent discharge of water or effluent or substances onto the quay or jetty surface, bollards, moorings, telephone cables, fenders or hose connections or into the environment. |
| (5) | The cleanup of pollutants, including oil, which is spilled within port limits, must be dealt with in accordance with the applicable Port Contingency Plan. |
| (6) | If the spill straddles the area within port limits and areas falling outside port limits, the spill must be dealt with in accordance with the applicable Port Contingency Plan, and in the case of oil pollution management, the National Contingency Plan and any applicable legislation. |
| (7) | A person who drops or deposits any article within port limits that might cause a danger, obstruction, pollution, a negative impact upon the environment or a nuisance, or any person who witnesses a person doing this, must report the matter to the Authority immediately. |
| (8) | The owner or master of a vessel, terminal operator, lessee or port user that contravenes this rule, causing an obstruction in the port must immediately cause the obstruction to be removed at their expense, failing which the Authority may remove the obstruction at their expense. If any damage arises from the obstruction, the person responsible for it is liable for the costs relating to the damage. |