8.—(1) Every ship carrying noxious liquid substances shall be provided with a Cargo Record Book in the form specified in Annex II.
(2) Whenever any of the following operations takes place in respect of any noxious liquid substance a record of the operation shall be made in the Cargo Record Book in relation to each tank affected by the operation—
(a)loading of cargo;
(b)internal transfer of cargo;
(c)unloading of cargo;
(d)cleaning of cargo tanks;
(e)ballasting of cargo tanks;
(f)discharge of ballast from cargo tanks;
(g)disposal of residues to reception facilities;
(h)discharge of residues into the sea in accordance with Schedule 2 in Merchant Shipping Notice No NLS 1;
(i)removal of residues by ventilation.
(3) In the event that any emergency discharge of the kind referred to in paragraph 15 of Schedule 2 in Merchant Shipping Notice No. NLS 1 of any noxious liquid substance or mixture containing such a substance is made or occurs, an entry shall be made without delay in the Cargo Record Book stating the circumstances of, and the reason for, the discharge.
(4) The entries in the Cargo Record Book, in the case of a United Kingdom ship shall be in English and, in the case of any other ship in the official language of the State in which the ship is registered and, where that language is neither English nor French, in English or French. Each entry shall be signed by the officer or officers in charge of the operation and each page shall be signed by the master.
(5) The Cargo Record Book shall be kept in such a place as to be readily available for inspection and, except in the case of unmanned ships under tow, shall be kept on board the ship. It shall be retained on board the ship for a period of three years after the last entry in it has been made.