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THE INTERNATIONAL MARITIME Organisation’s (IMO) Sub-committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers held its sixth session (CCC 6) in London this past 9 to 13 September. The decisions it reached, which mainly affected the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code and the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) Code, have been forwarded to the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) for approval and adoption. Of particular interest to HCB readers would be the agreement of the next set of draft amendments (40-20) to the IMDG Code, which were still to be finalised by the Editorial &
the 102nd session of MSC, which is due to be held this coming May. The draft amendments relate to: segregation requirements for alcoholates; segregation in relation to liquid organic substances; classification and transport of carbon, following incidents involving the spontaneous ignition of charcoal; classification of UN portable tanks for multimodal transport; and provisions for labels. Possibly more significantly, CCC 6 established a correspondence group to review the maritime special provisions in Chapter 3.3 of the IMDG Code, so as to
AWAY FROM THE CODE CCC 6 continued revising and updating the guidance on inspection programmes for cargo transport units (CTUs), including expanding the current guidelines for inspections related to transport of dangerous goods at sea to include all types of cargoes carried in CTUs. A correspondence group was instructed to further develop the draft amendments to the inspection programmes; review the draft guidelines to ensure they are up to date; and consider contamination and pest control matters with regard to CTU inspections, taking into account the IMO/ILO/UNECE Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units (CTU Code). CCC 6 also reiterated its call for IMO member states to undertake CTU inspections and report their findings to IMO. Draft amendments were also agreed to Annex 13 of the Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing (CSS Code) related to weather-dependent lashing, in an effort to reduce the number of containers lost overboard in bad weather. Progress was made in developing the next set of draft amendments to the IMSBC Code, which will be further considered by the E&T Group in spring 2020. This set of amendments (06-21) will include updates to individual schedules and proposed new individual schedules, among other things. CCC 6 discussed the need for a distinction between the phenomena of liquefaction and dynamic separation for Group A cargoes, noting that dynamic separation only applies to bauxite. The issue was referred to the E&T Group for further discussion ahead of CCC 7. CCC 6 also validated a new IMO Model Course on Safe Handling and Transport of Solid Bulk Cargoes, focusing on the mandatory measures for the handling and transport of solid bulk cargoes in the IMSBC Code. One other topic addressed by CCC 6 was the growing use of alternative fuels, in advance of the IMO restrictions on exhaust emissions. The
Technical (E&T) Group prior to submission to
identify those that permit exemptions from the full application of the Code. The review is intended to address issues related to non-declaration and misdeclaration of dangerous goods and is expected to lead to the removal of what may be seen as loopholes in the provisions.
Sub-committee’s work in this area focuses on guidelines for the use of alternative fuels – CCC 6 discussed methanol/ethanol, fuel cells, LPG and low-flashpoint fuels – as well as the design and construction of cargo tanks. CCC 7 will take place in London from 14 to 18 September.
CAULKING THE CODE MARITIME • IN AN ATTEMPT TO IMPROVE COMPLIANCE, IMO’S CCC SUB-COMMITTEE HAS STARTED WORK THAT MAY LEAD TO SOME EXTENSIVE CHANGES IN THE IMDG CODE
THE EVER-INCREASING SIZE OF CONTAINER SHIPS MAKES THE PREVENTION OF ACCIDENTS INVOLVING DANGEROUS GOODS YET MORE VITAL AND IMO IS TAKING STEPS TO TIGHTEN COMPLIANCE
HCB MONTHLY | JANUARY 2020
