Abstract
Ship accidents may create, apart from other damage, environmental pollution. For at least three decades, continuous efforts have been made by various maritime organizations, and especially the IMO, to find effective ways towards reducing these accidents. This paper tries to quantify the risk of an accident leading to pollution as a result of the exposure of the ship to certain risk factors. It tests the statistical significance of the relevant risk’s magnitude by using real data that refer to pollution incidents occurring during 1993‐1997. The results have shown that 60 per cent of the accidents occurred in ports and regulated zones. The large tankers involved in pollution accidents, that happened in ports and regulated zones, present an almost seven times higher risk than smaller tankers. Most frequently these accidents are attributed to collisions, hull and machinery damage and groundings. Small bulk carriers have experienced a risk rising to ten. The paper also provides certain recommendations for policy makers and indications for further research.