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| | | Ocean Dumping and Ship Wastes |
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| | This section deals with ocean dumping and ship wastes. It includes nuclear waste disposal, sewage outfalls, land-based materials or those that derive from shipping, such as from cargo transport ships and passenger ships. | | | | About 80-90% of the material dumped at sea results from dredging and currently amounts to hundreds of millions of tons a year. Of the total material dredged, probably two-thirds is associated with operations to keep harbours, rivers and other waterways from silting up. The other third involves new works. Future dredging operations and the requirement for ocean disposal are expected to follow current trends. The ocean disposal of dredged material represents only 20-22% of the total dredged and the remainder is mostly dumped in internal waters, or placed on land for disposal or productive purposes. Approximately 10% of dredged sediments are heavily contaminated from a variety of sources including shipping, industrial and municipal discharges, and land runoff. Typical contaminants include heavy metals, such as cadmium, mercury and chromium; hydrocarbons, such as oil; organochlorines such as pesticides; and nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous. Disposal at sea of these materials carries the possibility of acute or chronic toxic effects on marine organisms, and potential contamination of human food sources. | | | | It was recognized that ships, especially oil powered ships, could cause pollution and both the United Kingdom and the United States introduced legislation in the 1920s to curb discharges of oil resulting from operations such as tank cleaning. Attempts to tackle the problem at an international level were unsuccessful, however, and the outbreak of World Wear II resulted in the problem being deferred. The potential for oil to pollute was finally recognised by the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil, 1954. The Convention provided for certain functions to be undertaken by the International Maritime Organization. OILPOL 54 prohibited the dumping of oily wastes within a certain distance from land and in 'special areas' where the danger to the environment was especially acute.
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 | | | | | | | Institute Name | International Atomic Energy Agency
( CONTACT [INSTITUTION] )
| | Short Institution Name | IAEA | | Description | The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA): is an independent intergovernmental, science and technology-based organization, in the United Nations family, that serves as the global focal point for nuclear cooperation assists its Member States, in the context of social and economic goals, in planning for and using nuclear science and technology for various peaceful purposes, including the generation of electricity, and facilitates the transfer of such technology and knowledge in a sustainable manner to developing Member States develops nuclear safety standards and, based on these standards, promotes the achievement and maintenance of high levels of safety in applications of nuclear energy, as well as the protection of human health and the environment against ionizing radiation verifies through its inspection system that States comply with their commitments, under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and other non-proliferation agreements, to use nuclear material and facilities only for peaceful purposes. | | Keywords | NUCLEAR; SAFETY; SECURITY; ENERGY | |
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| Type of Institution | Funding organization | |
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| Address | | Wagramer Strasse 5 | | Vienna | | Austria A-1400 | |
| | Telephone | (+431) 2600-0 | | Fax | (+431) 2600-7 | | Email | Official.Mail@iaea.org | | Homepage | http://www.iaea.org/index.html | |
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| Fabio Carocci
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1076 Topics - 5135 Related Knowledge - 2534 Members - 34 Editors |
