Responding to marine pollution incidents arising from hazardous and noxious substances (HNS) pollution is a highly complex, costly and specialized activity. Notwithstanding the complexity and high costs of putting in place a HNS marine pollution response system, safety risks and impacts to the public, the marine environment and the responding personnel associated with HNS can be potentially severe and thus the need for littoral States to develop appropriate systems for preparedness and response to HNS marine pollution. Consequently, the need for a HNS preparedness and response system cannot be overemphasized in the face of increased seaborne transport of HNS. This work is a legal analysis of the Protocol on Preparedness, Response and Co-operation to Pollution Incidents by Hazardous and Noxious Substances, 2000 (OPRC-HNS Protocol) adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on the 15th of March, 2000. The work is directed towards the implementation of the OPRC-HNS Protocol in Kenya but raises issues that could easily be identified with the countries of the Eastern African region. The work identifies the emerging challenges in the implem