Day 1 – Introduction and IMDG Code Amendment Cycle

Welcome to the first day this week on Dangerous Goods Cargo.

Dangerous Goods are successfully handled daily by our industry worldwide. However if something goes wrong, the consequences can be severe. In June 2022 thirteen people died and over 250 were injured in a toxic gas leak at a port. A cable, lifting a tank filled with an estimated 25 tonnes of chlorine, broke. The tank fell and fractured releasing the hazardous gas.

Robust safety management of Dangerous Goods is multifaceted and complex. A key component in the toolbox is regulation. Today we start with the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code which is produced by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and is on the front line of safe transport of dangerous goods worldwide.

The IMDG Code was developed as an international code for the maritime transport of packaged dangerous goods to enhance and harmonize their safe carriage and prevent pollution. The Code details the requirements for individual substances, materials or articles, including packing, stowage and segregation. The IMDG Code is mandatory under the umbrella of the SOLAS Convention[1].

According to TT Club many millions of tonnes of packaged dangerous goods are safely transported each year. Most are packaged and labelled correctly, loaded safely and securely into suitable means of transport such as shipping containers and have accurate and complete documentation that is passed on in good time to those in the supply chain who need to know. The potential risk to the health and safety of packers, drivers, port workers and ships’ crew as well as safety of vehicles, ports, ships and the environment is effectively managed when everyone plays their part. Doing the right things right such as packing, labelling, marking and placarding provide the essential information to those along the supply chain is key. The 2024 Allianz Safety and Shipping Review reported “55 total losses caused by fires in the past five years, and there were over 200 fire incidents reported during 2023 alone”[2]. TT Club estimates that a serious ship fire occurs every sixty days. A contributing factor to on-board fires is hazardous cargo that has not been declared, has been mis-declared (unintentionally or sometimes intentionally by bad actors) or that has not been properly packed. It is difficult to know for sure, but in the region of 1.3 million out of 6 million containers of dangerous goods may not be properly packed or identified.

IMDG Amendment Life Cycle The Code is amended every two years. In even numbered years a single version only is valid. In odd numbered years the previous and new versions are valid; either can be used.

Amendments take account of member government proposals to IMO and changes to the United Nations Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods which sets requirements for all modes of transport. IMDG Code Amendment 42-24 Amendment 42-24 became available for use 1 January 2025. The previous (41-22) amendment remains valid until 31 December 2025. However, the changes in 42-24 have improved the Code and ICHCA encourages organisations to transition to 42-24 as soon as it is safe and practicable to do so. Tomorrow we will look at how the IMO updates the IMDG Code and how member states, inter-governmental organisations and non-governmental organisations such as ICHCA contribute to this work. In the coming days we will provide a summary of what has changed in the new 42-24 edition of the Code, launch our updated quick guide to the Code, put the spotlight on charcoal and other substances, talk about the amendment that ICHCA took through the process aimed at safer carriage of Ammonium Nitrate and publish our infographic on transport of battery electric vehicles. We hope that you will find the journey interesting and informative. For more information and ongoing updates on our work, visit www.ichca.com

[1] “The SOLAS Convention in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships. The first version was adopted in 1914, in response to the Titanic disaster, the second in 1929, the third in 1948, and the fourth in 1960. The 1974 version includes the tacit acceptance procedure – which provides that an amendment shall enter into force on a specified date unless, before that date, objections to the amendment are received from an agreed number of Parties. As a result the 1974 Convention has been updated and amended on numerous occasions. The Convention in force today is sometimes referred to as SOLAS, 1974, as amended.” Text ©IMO.

[2] https://commercial.allianz.com/news-and-insights/reports/shipping-safety.html