Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Oil Pollution) (Amendment) Regulations 2000 (No. 483 of 2000).

These Regulations further amend the Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Oil Pollution) Regulations 1996 to give effect to certain amendments to Annex 1 to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 to that Convention ("MARPOL 73/78"), which were adopted by the Marine Environment Protection Committee ("MEPC") of the International Maritime Organization ("IMO") at its 40th and 41st Sessions. The changes are: The North West European waters area is made a 'special area' for the purposes of Annex 1 to MARPOL 73/78. The area includes the North Sea and its approaches, the Irish Sea and its approaches, the Celtic Sea, the English Channel and its approaches, and part of the North Sea Atlantic immediately to the west of Ireland. There are new requirements specifying the intact stability criteria of tankers of 5,000 tons deadweight and above in respect of which building contracts were placed on or after a specified date.