Technical Arrangement Made Under Article 6 (4) Of The Agreement For Co-Operation In Dealing With Pollution Of The North Sea By Oil Signed At Bonn On 9 June 1969
Source:
Representatives of the Governments of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the French Republic and the Kingdom of Belgium
Having considered article 6 (4) of the Agreement for Co-operation in Dealing with Pollution of the North Sea by Oil signed at Bonn on 9 June 1969
Have reached an understanding as follows:
1. Surveillance of the zone between parallels 51°32' and 51°06'N will be carried out in accordance with paragraphs 2 to 4 of this Arrangement.
2. If any of the Governments has information about:
a) a casualty causing or likely to cause oil pollution of the sea, or
b) the presence of an oil slick on the sea,
likely to constitute a serious threat to the coasts or related interests of one of the three countries,
it will without delay inform the other Governments through their competent authorities as defined in paragraph 4 of this Arrangement. It will also inform the other Governments of its estimate of the danger of pollution represented by the casualty or the oil slick to the coasts or related interests and of any action which it has taken or is taking to deal with it.
3. If any of the Governments considers that its coasts or related interests are threatened with pollution as a result of the casualty or of the oil slick it will immediately undertake surveillance of the casualty or slick. If two or three of the Governments consider that their coasts or related interests are threatened they will discuss between them how surveillance can best be co-ordinated. If no Government considers its coasts or related interests threatened the three Governments will discuss between them whether there is a need for surveillance and, if so, how it is to be carried out. Discussions in accordance with this paragraph need not be limited to surveillance, but may cover the intentions of the three Governments as to other appropriate measures for dealing with the oil.
4. The competent authorities for the purposes of the present Arrangement will be:
-for France: the Prefet maritime of the 1st Maritime Region (telegraphic address: << Marine Cherbourg »; telephone: 53.11.45, extension 2100 or 2125; telelex: 77795, or through Northwood).
-for the United Kingdom: Coast Rescue Headquarters, Shoreham by Sea, Sussex (telephone: 07917/3882; telex: 87386).
-for the Kingdom of Belgium: Groupement operationnel de la Force navale, Caserne Général-Mahieu, Ostende; (telephone Ostende 059-81403/06, extensions 300 or 302; telegraphic address COMOPSNAV, Ostende).
5. This Arrangement will come into operation on the 15th of August 1972. It will continue in operation until it is terminated by one Government giving 6 months notice in writing to the other Governments.
SIGNED in triplicate at Paris this 28th day of July 1972 in the English and French languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
For the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland:
[Signed] J.S. ROOKE Ministre Plénipotentiaire For the Government of the French Republic: [Signed] J.P. CABOUAT Ministre Plénipotentiaire For the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium: [Signed] M. LEJEUNE Ministre Plénipotentiaire
BELGIAN RESERVATION:
Without prejudice to the general obligations assumed by the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium within the framework of the Bonn Agreement, the particular obligations which arise for it from paragraphs 2 and 3 of the present Arrangement in respect of the section of the joint zone which coincides with the zone of the Amsterdam Flight Information Region will be the subject of a bilateral arrangement to be concluded between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
