5. Special defences
Feedback & supportWhere a person is charged with an offence under section 3, or is charged with an offence under section 4 as the owner, the master or the agent of a vessel, it shall be a defence to prove that the oil or mixture containing oil in question was discharged for the purpose of securing the safety of any vessel, or preventing damage to any vessel or cargo, or of saving life:Provided that a defence under this subsection shall not have effect if the court is satisfied that the discharge of the oil or mixture containing oil was not necessary for the purpose alleged in the defence or was not a reasonable step to take in the circumstances.
owner
“owner”, in relation to a vessel, means the person registered as the owner of the vessel or, in the absence of registration, the person owning the vessel: Provided that in the case of a vessel owned by a state and operated by a company which in that state is registered as the vessel’s operator,
Where a person is charged with an offence under section 3, or is charged with an offence under section 4 as the owner, the agent or the master of a vessel, it shall also be a defence to prove —
master
“master” includes every person, except a pilot, having command or charge of any ship;
that the oil or mixture containing oil escaped in consequence of damage to the vessel, and that as soon as practicable after the damage occurred all reasonable steps were taken for preventing or (if it could not be prevented) for stopping or reducing the escape of the oil or mixture containing oil; or
that the oil or mixture containing oil escaped by reason of leakage, that the leakage was not due to any want of reasonable care, and that as soon as practicable after the escape was discovered all reasonable steps were taken for stopping or reducing it.
Where a person is charged with an offence under section 4 as the occupier of a place on land, or as the person in charge of any apparatus, from which the oil or mixture containing oil is alleged to have escaped, it shall be a defence to prove that the escape of the oil or mixture was not due to any want of reasonable care, and that as soon as practicable after the escape was discovered all reasonable steps were taken for stopping or reducing it.
occupier
“occupier”, in relation to any place on land if it has no occupier, means the owner thereof and, in relation to a railway wagon or road vehicle, means the person in charge of the wagon or road vehicle and not the occupier of the land on which the wagon or vehicle stands;
Without prejudice to subsection (3), it shall be a defence for the occupier of a place on land, who is charged with an offence under section 4, to prove that the discharge was caused by the act of a person who was in that place without the permission (express or implied) of the occupier.
place on land
“place on land” includes anything resting on the bed or shore of the sea, or of Singapore waters, and also includes anything afloat (other than a vessel) if it is anchored or attached to the bed or shore of the sea or of Singapore waters;
Where a person is charged with an offence under section 4 in respect of the discharge of a mixture containing oil from a place on land, it shall (without prejudice to any other defence under this section) be a defence to prove —
mixture containing oil
“mixture containing oil” means a mixture with an oil content of 100 parts or more in 1,000,000 parts of the mixture;
that the oil was contained in an effluent produced by operations for the refining of oil;
that it was not reasonably practicable to dispose of the effluent otherwise than by discharging it into Singapore waters; and
that all reasonably practicable steps had been taken for eliminating oil from the effluent:Provided that a defence under this subsection shall not have effect if it is proved that, at the time to which the charge relates, the surface of the waters into which the mixture was discharged from the place in question, or land adjacent to those waters, was fouled by oil, unless the court is satisfied that the fouling was not caused, or contributed to, by oil contained in any effluent discharged at or before that time from that place.
Where any oil or mixture containing oil is discharged in consequence of the removal of sunk, stranded or abandoned vessels by the proper authority in exercise of any power conferred by any written law, and apart from this subsection the proper authority exercising the power, or a person employed by or acting on behalf of the proper authority, would be guilty of an offence under section 4, in respect of that discharge, the proper authority or person shall not be convicted of that offence unless it is shown that the proper authority or that person failed to take such steps (if any) as were reasonable in the circumstances for preventing, stopping or reducing the discharge.
oil
“oil” means oil of any description and includes spirit produced from oil of any description, and also includes coal tar;