Oil and Fuel Pollution

MCA guidance says oil should be retained aboard for disposal to shore reception facilities. A small pleasure vessel is not normally required to install approved oily-water separating equipment, so its practical default is not to pump oily bilge water overboard. Find and stop the leak, recover free oil with suitable absorbent material or equipment and follow the marina or waste facility's disposal route.

Prevention includes a clean bilge that makes new leaks visible, a drip tray under the engine, sound hoses and joints, an accessible spill kit and a crew member who knows how to stop the transfer. Before refuelling, confirm the correct filler and expected quantity, extinguish ignition sources, close openings against petrol vapour where relevant and keep the nozzle attended. Slow the delivery before the tank is full; do not rely on fuel appearing at a vent as the stopping signal.

If fuel escapes, stop the transfer and close the source if that can be done safely. Raise the alarm, protect drains and water, deploy the facility's absorbent pads or booms, and contact the fuel berth or harbour authority immediately. Detergent, hosing, propeller wash or dilution spreads or disguises the pollutant rather than recovering it and may make the response more harmful.