Overview
Pollution of the sea in Tasmanian State waters may be regulated by general pollution laws such as the
Environmental Management and Pollution Control Act 1994, but the
Marine-related Incidents (MARPOL Implementation) Act 2020 deals specifically with discharges of oil and other pollutants from ships. It gives effect in Tasmania to the MARPOL international convention on marine pollution.
The regulations made under the Act are the Marine-related Incidents (MARPOL Implementation) Regulations 2020.
Outside of Tasmanian waters, pollution is controlled by the Australian Government under the
Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983, the
Environment Protection (Sea Dumping) Act 1981 and other legislation.
Sewage discharge
A revised Sewage Management Directive is presently being agreed in consultation with the Director of Public Health in accordance with section 30 of the
Marine-related Incidents (MARPOL Implementation) Act 2020.
The Directive
specifies where sewage may and may not be discharged from certain vessels into Tasmanian waters.
Legislation online
The
Act and
Regulations are available online at Tasmania’s legislation website.
