Continental Shelf Act 1964

5 Discharge of oil

(1) If any oil to which section 1 of the Oil in Navigable Waters Act 1955 applies or any mixture containing not less than one hundred parts of such oil in a million parts of the mixture is discharged or escapes into any part of the sea—

(a) from a pipe-line; or

(b) (otherwise than from a ship) as the result of any operations for the exploration of the sea bed and subsoil or the exploitation of their natural resources in a designated area,

the owner of the pipe-line or, as the case may be, the person carrying on the operations shall be guilty of an offence unless he proves, in the case of a discharge from a place in his occupation, that it was due to the act of a person who was there without his permission (express or implied) or, in the case of an escape, that he took all reasonable care to prevent it and that as soon as practicable after it was discovered all reasonable steps were taken for stopping or reducing it.

(2) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable, on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one thousand pounds, and on conviction on indictment to a fine.