Venezuela

Pollution

The Environmental Criminal Offence Act provides the master will be imprisoned for up to 3 years and fined up to 3,000 days salary if hydrocarbons leak from the vessel.

Further any failure to report any incident would result in the master being arrested for 4 to 8 months and fined up to 800 days his salary.

The act further specifies similar penalties in relation to dumping waste water, effluents, non biodegradable products, emission of gasses, toxic and radioactive waste.

Under the Commercial Code, the shipowner is liable for the acts of the master and the vessel may be arrested in addition.