Regulation 1
Application
Regulation
1 Unless expressly provided otherwise, this chapter shall apply to all ships on all voyages, except:
.1 warships, naval auxiliaries and other ships owned or operated by a Contracting Government and used only on government non-commercial service; and
.2 ships solely navigating the Great Lakes of North America and their connecting and tributary waters as far east as the lower exit of the St.Lambert Lock at Montreal in the Province of Quebec, Canada.
However, warships, naval auxiliaries or other ships owned or operated by a Contracting Government and used only on government non-commercial service are encouraged to act in a manner consistent, so far as reasonable and practicable, with this chapter.
2 The Administration may decide to what extent this chapter shall apply to ships operating solely in waters landward of the baselines which are established in accordance with international law.
3 A rigidly connected composite unit of a pushing vessel and associated pushed vessel, when designed as a dedicated and integrated tug and barge combination, shall be regarded as a single ship for the purpose of this chapter.
4 The Administration shall determine to what extent the provisions of regulations 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 and 28 do not apply to the following categories of ships:
.1 ships below 150 gross tonnage engaged on any voyage;
.2 ships below 500 gross tonnage not engaged on international voyages; and
.3 fishing vessels.
Summary
Regulation 1 defines the scope of application of the Regulations
Guidance Notes
1. Regulation 1 replaces the same regulation of SOLAS V(74) but is more detailed. It states that the Regulations contained in SOLAS V apply to all vessels on all voyages unless expressly provided otherwise.
2. Paragraph 1.2 exempts vessels operating in the Great Lakes of North America. (Repeats Regulation 1 of SOLAS V(74))
3. The provision of paragraph 2 of Regulation 1 gives Administrations the right to determine the extent to which the Regulations shall apply to ships operating solely in internal waters. The baselines referred to are those established by coastal States under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. (UNCLOS)
4. Paragraph 3 establishes that integrated pushing vessels and their pushed vessel are considered to be a single vessel. (Repeats old Regulation 12(s) of SOLAS V(74))
5. Paragraph 4 gives Administrations the right to determine the extent to which certain Regulations (which relate to specific navigational equipment, layout, pilot access etc.) apply to smaller vessels and fishing vessels.
6. Although naval vessels, auxiliaries and government service vessels are exempt, the Regulation encourages them to comply as closely as possible with the provisions of SOLAS V.