"3.5 In deciding whether or not to adopt or amend a
mandatory routeing system, IMO will, in addition to the provisions of paragraphs 3.2,3.3,
as appropriate, and 3.4, consider whether:
.1 proper and sufficient justification for the establishment of a
mandatory routeing system has been provided by the sponsoring Government or Governments;
.2 ports or harbours of littoral States would be adversely
affected."
"3.6 In deciding whether or not to adopt or amend a routeing
system which is intended to protect the marine environment, IMO will consider whether:
.1 the proposed routeing system can reasonably be expected to
prevent or significantly reduce the risk of pollution or other damage to the marine
environment of the area concerned;
.2 given the overall size of the area to be protected, or the
aggregate number of environmentally sensitive areas established or identified in the
geographical region concerned, the use of routeing systems - particularly areas to be
avoided - could have the effect of unreasonably limiting the sea area available for
navigation; and.
.3 the proposed routeing system meets the requirements of these
General Provisions.
3.7 IMO will not adopt a proposed routeing system until it is
satisfied that the proposed system will not impose unnecessary constraints on shipping and
is completely in accordance with the requirements of regulation V/8, paragraph (1) of the
SOLAS Convention. In particular, an area to be avoided will not be adopted if it would
impede the passage of ships through an international strait."
Responsibilities of Governments and recommended practices
3.8 A new or amended routeing system adopted by IMO shall not
come into force as an IMO adopted system before an effective date promulgated by the
Government that proposed the system, which shall be communicated to IMO by the responsible
Government. That date shall not be earlier than six months after the date of adoption of a
routeing system by IMO but, when new chart editions necessitate a substantially longer
period between adoption and implementation, IMO shall set a later date as required by the
circumstances of the case. If the Government that proposed the system is unable at the
time of adoption by IMO to declare a definite date of implementation, this information
should be communicated to IMO as soon as possible thereafter and the implementation date
then declared should not be earlier than four months after the date on which the
declaration is made; in the case of a traffic separation scheme the exact time of
implementation should also be stated. If there is a protracted delay in making such a
declaration, the Government concerned should periodically inform IMO of the situation and
forecast when implementation is likely to be possible. Either Notices to Mariners to amend
charts, or revised charts to depict the system shall be made available in ample time
before the system comes into force.
