Chief engineer jailed and fined US$3,000

The seafarer is to face a supervised release term of two years after he emerges from prison.
“This sentence sends a loud and clear message to crew members and companies alike that dumping pollution directly overboard and attempting to conceal it will lead to penalties,” John Cruden, acting assistant attorney general for the US Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, said.
“Maritime companies and their employees must understand that violations of our nation’s laws are serious and the Justice Department stands ready to prosecute those who choose to ignore them.”
The sentencing follows on a US$2.5m criminal fine agreed by the 1998-built, 43,538 dwt, Cyprus-flag ship’s operator, Madrid-based Consultores de Navegacion.
Charges against Iceport Shipping of Cyprus, the owner of the ship, have been dismissed.
According to the government, the infractions occurred between June 2007 and March 2008, as senior engineers on the Nautilus directed subordinate engine room crew members to use a metal pipe to bypass the ship’s oil water separator and instead to discharge oil-contaminated waste directly overboard.
The seafarer sentenced to jail was in that post between January and March 2008.
The government investigation began when the Nautilus entered the Port of Boston on March 22.
The ship’s log, which the chief engineer was responsible for maintaining, failed to disclose the overboard discharge of oil-contaminated bilge water.