BALTIC SEAENVIRONMENT PROCEEDINGS No. 59 - Helcom

Another very important matter that influences the organisation is the legal system of
a country.
We shall not spend much time on this item, but I think it is worthwile to mention
the differences between a large federation like the United States and a very strongly
centralized small nation.
A central part of the legal system is of course the principles for allocation of
responsibilities for oil spill response to e.g. the polluter, the Coast Guard, the Fire
Briga de, the Navy or the County Administration to mention some of the solutions
on that matter.
When considering legal principles you must also remember the administrative in-
frastructure of a county in e.g. counties and communities with their legal and econo-
mical responsibilities which also have effect on oil spill combatting matters
(appendix 1. Sweden).
A third very important cornerstone is: Who has the equipment and who shall pay?
He who has the equipment or he who shall pay also wants to take part in the deci-
siomnaking and the management.
Different countries have also different policies for response to oil spills. A policy
could depend on many things e.g. geographical situations, water depth and salinity,
weather, ecological vulnerability or participation in bi- or multilateral agreements.
So, to summarize there are sex cornerstones upon which also the organisation of an
oil spill response authority has to rest.
- Cultural
- Legal
- Administrative
- Economical
- Geographical and
- Political
Now let me show you some examples of different solutions (Appendix 2).
This compilation was made by the ITOPF (International Tanker Owners Pollution
Federation) and shows the different Oil Spill Response Arrangement of the Bonn
Agreement countries.
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