Poster abstracts and manuscripts from the Third International ...

INTRODUCTION
During the early 1970s, increasing international concern over
marine pollution from ships prompted the International Maritime
Consultative Organization (IMCO, now known as the International
Maritime Organization [IMO]) of the United Nations to address the
issue. The International Convention for the Prevention of
Pollution from Ships, 1973, was adopted by the International
Conference on Marine Pollution, convened by IMCO, in November
1973. The Convention was subsequently modified by the Protocol
of 1978 adopted by the International Conference on Tanker Safety
and Pollution Prevention. The Convention, as modified by the
1978 Protocol, is known as MARPOL 73/78 and was designed to
address the problem of marine pollution from ships on a global
scale. MARPOL 73/78 consists of five annexes, each of which is
directed toward a particular type of marine pollution.
Annex V, Regulations for the Prevention of Pollution by Garbage
from Ships, prohibits at-sea disposal of plastic wastes and
regulates the distance from land that all other waste materials
may be discharged. Annex V also provides for Special Areas
which, because of their unique oceanographic, ecological and/or
traffic characteristics, are protected from all overboard
discharge of garbage except comminuted food wastes, which can be
discharged at distances greater than 12 nautical miles from
nearest land. Annex V also requires that ports and terminals
provide adequate reception facilities for ship-generated garbage.
In the United States, growing scientific concern over increasing
marine mammal mortalities and injuries due to entanglements in
lost and discarded synthetic commercial fishing gear prompted the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National
Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to review the problem and convene
a workshop to address the issue of persistent marine debris. The
Workshop on the Fate and Impact of Marine Debris was held in
November, 1984, in Honolulu, Hawaii. This Workshop was the first
comprehensive effort ever undertaken to examine the impacts of
marine debris on living marine resources. It was international
in-scope, involved scientists, fishermen, government officials
and conservationists, and concluded that a number of initiatives
were needed, including the development of education, mitigation
and research programs.
The 198.4 Workshop laid the foundation of information and
recommendations that, until late 1988, had driven government,
industry and private organizations to seek solutions to the
problem. In conjunction with the United States' ratification of
Annex V, and its subsequent entrance into force, the NMFS' Marine
Entanglement Research Program (MERP) began planning a second
conference to review the status of science, technology and
administration relevant to the marine debris problem. The Second
International Conference on Marine Debris (SICMD) convened in
Honolulu in April 1989. Participants agreed that the marine