Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas
Clasification Society 2024 - Version 9.40
Statutory Documents - IMO Publications and Documents - Circulars - Marine Environment Protection Committee - MEPC.1/Circular.778/Rev.1 – List of Special Areas Under MARPOL and Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas – (16 November 2012) - Circular - Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas

Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas

  4 The MEPC began its study of the issue of Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas (PSSAs) in response to resolution 9 of the 1978 International Conference on Tanker Safety and Pollution Prevention concerning the protection of such sea areas.

  5 The MEPC, recognizing the importance of this issue, consequently defined PSSA as a sea area that needs special protection through action by IMO because of its significance for recognized ecological, socio-economic, or scientific attributes, where such attributes may be vulnerable to damage by international shipping activities.

  6 IMO, through the MEPC, is the only international body responsible for assessing proposals for and designating PSSAs and adopting associated protective measures (APMs) applicable to international shipping.

  7 Since 1990, the MEPC has assessed and designated 14 PSSAs in accordance with the PSSA Guidelines adopted by the IMO Assembly. The key details of every PSSA are provided in annex 2 to this circular. It may be noted that the annex also contains information on the proposing State(s), the APMs and the date of the MEPC resolutions designating the PSSAs.

Parent topic: Circular
Copyright 2022 Clasifications Register Group Limited, International Maritime Organization, International Labour Organization or Maritime and Coastguard Agency. All rights reserved. Clasifications Register Group Limited, its affiliates and subsidiaries and their respective officers, employees or agents are, individually and collectively, referred to in this clause as 'Clasifications Register'. Clasifications Register assumes no responsibility and shall not be liable to any person for any loss, damage or expense caused by reliance on the information or advice in this document or howsoever provided, unless that person has signed a contract with the relevant Clasifications Register entity for the provision of this information or advice and in that case any responsibility or liability is exclusively on the terms and conditions set out in that contract.