Recueil IBC, 2008

Recueil international de règles relatives à la construction et à l'équipement des navires transportant des produits dangereux en vrac (recueil IBC) 2008

IBC Code, 2007 version anglaise

"On 17 June 1983, the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) adopted, by resolution MSC.4(48), the International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk (IBC Code).

Under the provisions of chapter VII of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974 (SOLAS 74), as amended, chemical tankers constructed on or after 1 July 1986 must comply with the provisions of the Code.

On 5 December 1985, by resolution MEPC.19(22), the IBC Code was extended by the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) to cover marine pollution aspects for the implementation of Annex II to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto (MARPOL 73/78). Under the provisions of Annex II to MARPOL 73/78, chemical tankers constructed on or after 1 July 1986 must comply with the provisions of the Code.

The revised Annex II to MARPOL 73/78, which was adopted by resolution MEPC.118(52), encompassed the development of a new pollution categorization system and criteria for assigning products to these new categories; and the revision of stripping requirements and discharge criteria. As a consequence of these revisions, it was necessary to make a number of amendments to the IBC Code. The amended IBC Code was adopted by resolutions MEPC.119(52) and MSC.176(79) in October 2004 and December 2004 respectively. Since the adoption of the amended IBC Code by these two resolutions, products contained in the Code have had their carriage requirements or product name revised in light of new information, and the evaluation and assignment of carriage requirements of new products has continued with a view for inclusion in the next set of amendments of the IBC Code. These products have also been included in chapters 17 or 18 as appropriate and are marked with a footnote (n) in this edition of the Code.

Under regulation 11 of Annex II to MARPOL 73/78, chemical tankers constructed before 1 July 1986 must comply with the provisions of the Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Dangerous Chemicals in Bulk (BCH Code). Under SOLAS 74, the BCH Code remains as a recommendation. The BCH Code is issued as a separate publication.

Previously, appendices II and III of Annex II to MARPOL 73/78 contained lists of products which were reproduced in chapters 17 and 18 of the IBC Code as well as chapters VI and VII of pre-1993 editions of the BCH Code. However, since 1993, the lists of products in chapters VI and VII of the BCH Code have been replaced by references to the IBC Code, and the lists of products in Annex II to MARPOL 73/78 have been deleted. As a result, the IBC Code is now the definitive source of names for products subject to Annex II to MARPOL 73/78.

Reference is also made to the MEPC.2/Circulars, issued annually in December. These contain, inter alia, details of products that have been the subject of Tripartite Agreements and are, in effect, a supplement to the IBC Code during the interim period before the entry into force of relevant amendments of the Code. Annex 1 of these circulars includes products that are expected to become new or amended entries to the IBC Code. A future amendment, shown in the Circular, serves as prior notice of the carriage conditions which will only apply to that product when the next set of amendments enter into force.

A number of other documents closely related to the IBC Code are annexed to this publication. A compact disc containing files for chapters 17, 18 and 19, in portable document format, is also provided with the book, so that these chapters may be searched electronically."