MARPOL Annexes 3, 4, and 5 Overview

MARPOL Annexes 3, 4, and 5

• MARPOL annexes regulate pollution from ships.
• Annex 3 addresses harmful substances in packaged form.
• Dangerous goods are substances or articles threatening people, property, or the environment.
• Dangerous goods exist in solid, liquid, or gaseous states and pose various dangers.
• Common dangers include flammability, toxicity, and corrosivity.
• Many dangerous goods are essential in manufacturing various products (e.g., cars, plastics, electronics, pharmaceuticals).
• The IMDG Code, adopted in 1965, governs the safe transport of dangerous goods.
• Key objectives of the IMDG Code: protect human life, prevent marine pollution, and facilitate the free movement of dangerous goods.
• The code ensures that goods transported through seaways are safely packaged and transported.

Learning Objectives

• The objectives of the IMDG Code.
• The content of the IMDG Code itself.
• Different types of dangerous goods.
• Documentation and reporting procedures.
• Regulations for sewage discharge from ships.
• Prevention of pollution by garbage from ships.
• Garbage management plans.

Annex 3 - Harmful Substances in Packaged Form

• Dangerous goods are substances or materials posing a threat to people, property, and/or the environment.
• Dangerous goods exist in three main physical states: solid, liquid, or gas and can present a range of dangers in transportation.
• Important dangers: flammability, toxicity (poisonous), corrosivity.

IMDG Code

• The International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code) was adopted in 1965.
• The SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) Convention from 1960, under IMO jurisdiction, lays the groundwork for this code.
• The IMDG Code's goal is to improve the safe transport of dangerous goods and facilitate their movement.
• Key objectives include safeguarding human life, curbing marine pollution, and maintaining the unobstructed flow of these goods.

IMDG Code - Objectives

• Protect human life.
• Prevent marine pollution.
• Facilitate the free movement of dangerous goods.
• Safety of transported dangerous goods.

Different Types of Dangerous Goods

• Explosives (Class 1)
• Gases (Class 2)
• Flammable Liquids (Class 3)
• Flammable Solids (Class 4)
• Oxidizing Substances and Organic Peroxides (Class 5)
• Toxic and Infectious Substances (Class 6)
• Radioactive Material (Class 7)
• Corrosive Substances (Class 8)
• Miscellaneous Dangerous Substances and Articles (Class 9)

Identifying Dangerous Goods

• All dangerous goods are uniquely identified for transport with a UN number and proper shipping name (PSN).
• UN number and PSN enable quick and precise identification during transport.
• Correct handling, storage, segregation, and emergency response are ensured.

Overview of the IMDG Code

• The IMDG Code establishes specific provisions for shipping dangerous materials by sea.
• Correct classification, identification, packing, marking, labeling, placarding, documentation, stowage, and segregation of dangerous goods are required.
• These provisions prevent harmful reactions between different goods during transport.

Updating the IMDG Code

• The IMDG Code is regularly updated every two years.
• Updates reflect biennial revisions in UN Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods (UN Model Regulations).

Annex 4 - Regulations for the Prevention of Pollution by Sewage from Ships

• Raw sewage discharge into the sea poses health hazards.
• Sewage causes oxygen depletion and visual pollution in coastal areas.
• Annex 4 establishes regulations concerning sewage discharge.
• These regulations deal with ship equipment, sewage discharge control systems, port reception facilities, survey requirements, and certification.
• Ships are required to have adequate treatment systems.
• Ships need to be within a specific distance from land to discharge wastewater.

Annex 4 Regulations

• On the high seas, oceans are capable of handling raw sewage.
• Annex 4 from MARPOL prohibits sewage discharge near land without exceptions.
• Governments must maintain efficient port facilities for sewage reception without delays.

Annex 5 - Regulations for the Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Ships

• MARPOL Annex V aims to reduce or eliminate garbage from ships.
• This Annex covers all ships, including merchant vessels, pleasure crafts, and floating platforms.

Annex 5 - Garbage Disposal

• Garbage from ships can cause substantial harm to marine life.
• Plastic is a significant concern, lasting for years in the sea.
• Garbage can be mistaken for food and entangles marine mammals.
• Detailed written protocols for the handling and disposal of garbage are necessary.

Port Reception Facilities

• The effectiveness of ships complying with MARPOL rules relies on port reception facilities.
• These facilities are essential, especially in designated areas.
• Annex V obliges governments to ensure the provision of appropriate reception facilities at ports and terminals.

Port State Control

• Port state control officers have the authority to inspect foreign-flagged vessels at ports or offshore terminals.
• Officers have the legal right to inspect if they have grounds to believe unfamiliar procedures may cause pollution.

Placard

• Regulation 10.1 mandates that ships over 12 meters in length and floating platforms must display placards.
• Placards provide information regarding the disposal rules in an official manner.
• These notices are in the crew's working language and also in English, French, and Spanish for ships traveling to other countries' ports.

Garbage Management Plan

• Ships of 100 gross tonnage or more and those carrying 15 or more people or operating on fixed or floating platforms are required to develop a garbage management plan.
• The plan should detail minimizing, collecting, storing, handling and disposing of garbage.
• The plan will include the use of shipboard equipment.

Garbage Record Book

• Ships above 400 gross tonnage and those carrying 15 or more people or operating on fixed or floating platforms must maintain a Garbage Record Book.
• The book includes details of garbage disposal and incineration operations.
• Data such as date, time, location, type, and amount of garbage needs to be documented and signed.

Special Areas

• Special areas under Annex V include the Mediterranean, Baltic, Black, Red, Gulf, North Seas, the Wider Caribbean Region, and the Antarctic.

Problems

• Each year, over 8 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean.
• If current trends continue, the seas will have more plastic than fish by 2050.
• Plastic pollution originates mostly from 10 major rivers.
• Proper waste management on land around these rivers is essential.