Magic pipe

A magic pipe is a surreptitious change to a ship's oily water separator (OWS), or other waste-handing equipment, which allows waste liquids to be discharged in contravention of maritime pollution regulations.

[1] The pipe may be improvised, aboard ship, from available hoses and pumps, to discharge untreated waste water directly into the sea.

[4] In the United States, magic pipe cases often attract large fines for shipping lines, and prison sentences for crew.

[5] In April 2021 a ship engineer on the Zao Galaxy, an oil tanker, was convicted of intentionally dumping oily bilge water in February 2019 and submitting false paperwork in an attempt to conceal the crime.

[11] Crew members, engineers, and ship owners can receive huge fines and even imprisonment if they continue to use a magic pipe to pollute the environment.