1.1 These guidelines are intended to assist Administrations
in establishing operational performance testing programmes for sewage
treatment plants for the purpose of Regulation
3(1)(a)(i) of Annex IV of the Convention.
1.2 It is acknowledged that the performance of
sewage treatment plants may vary considerably when the system is tested
on-shore under shipboard simulated conditions or on-board ship under
actual operating conditions. A review of actual test data showed this
difference could be as high as a factor of two.
1.3 It is recognized that Administrations may
wish to modify the specific details outlined in these guidelines to
take account of very large or unique sewage treatment plants.