In force2020 Revised Edition

Contents

Merchant Shipping (Wreck Removal) Act 2017 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 3 · Locating, Marking and Removal of Wrecks

7. Measures to facilitate wreck removal

(1)

Where a wreck has been determined by the Director to constitute a hazard, the Director must take all reasonable steps to give a notice requiring the registered owner of the ship involved in the maritime casualty resulting in the wreck to —

(a)

remove the wreck; and

(b)

provide evidence of insurance or other financial security as required by any regulations made under this Act.

(2)

The notice must be in writing and must —

(a)

specify a reasonable deadline within which the registered owner must remove the wreck, taking into account the nature of the hazard as determined by the Director;

(b)

specify that if the registered owner does not remove the wreck within that deadline, the Director may remove the wreck at the registered owner’s expense; and

(c)

state the Director’s intention to intervene immediately in circumstances where the hazard becomes particularly severe.

(3)

The notice may specify conditions as to the removal of the wreck to the extent necessary to ensure that the removal proceeds in a manner that is consistent with considerations of safety and protection of the marine environment.

Terms defined in s 2

Director
Defined · s 2
“Director” means the Director of Marine appointed under section 4 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 and includes the Deputy Director of Marine appointed under that section;
Open s 2
hazard
Defined · s 2
“hazard” means any condition or threat that —(a)poses a danger or impediment to navigation; or(b)may reasonably be expected to result in major harmful consequences to the marine environment, or damage to the coastline or related interests of one or more States;
Open s 2
maritime casualty
Defined · s 2
“maritime casualty” means a collision of ships, stranding or other incident of navigation, or other occurrence on board a ship or external to it, resulting in material damage or imminent threat of material damage to a ship or its cargo;
Open s 2
registered owner
Defined · s 2
“registered owner”, in relation to a ship, means —(a)the person registered as the owner of the ship; or(b)in the absence of registration, the person owning the ship,except that, in relation to a ship owned by a State which is operated by a person registered in that State as the ship’s operator, it means the person registered as its operator;
Open s 2
removal
Defined · s 2
“removal” means any form of prevention, mitigation or elimination of the hazard created by a wreck;
Open s 2
ship
Defined · s 2
“ship” means a seagoing vessel of any type whatsoever, and includes hydrofoil boats, air‑cushion vehicles, submersibles, floating craft and floating platforms, except when those platforms are on location engaged in the exploration, exploitation or production of seabed mineral resources;
Open s 2
wreck
Defined · s 2
“wreck”, following upon a maritime casualty, means —(a)a sunken or stranded ship;(b)any part of a sunken or stranded ship, including any object that is or has been on board such a ship;(c)any object that is lost at sea from a ship and that is stranded, sunken or adrift at sea; or(d)a ship that is about, or may reasonably be expected, to sink or to strand, where effective measures to assist the ship or any property in danger are not already being taken.
Open s 2

Report

Read on from s 8

Part 4

Liability for Wreck Removal

Read on from Part 4

Part 5

Miscellaneous

Read on from Part 5

Schedules

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