Prospect of China's Accession to the 1992 International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage

After its establishment in 2015, the Management Committee of Chinese Oil Pollution Compensation Fund has been involved in nine cases of oil pollution damage; its establishment has played a positive role in compensation for oil pollution damage from Chinese vessels. The Chinese Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (＂COPC Fund＂), however, may be less helpful for major oil pollution incidents because of the scope of compensation, the maximum compensation, and compensation practices, while the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds (＂IOPC Funds＂) provide much more help in these respects. Based on the national conditions at the time, China only joined the 1992 International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage - the 1992 International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage only applied to Hong Kong, China. In view of China being an upper-middle income State since 2010, the improvement of clean-up level, and the improvement of the evaluation system of ship oil pollution, it is high time that China joins the 1992 International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage, along with the development of the shipping industry and the increasing risk of oil pollution damage.