IMO adopted amendments to make the Garbage Record Book mandatory also for smaller ships

The International Maritime Organization has adopted amendments to extend the requirement for mandatory garbage record books to smaller ships, to help tackle marine litter.

IMO has published this information on its Twitter page.

These amendments were adopted during the 79th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), which takes place from December 12th to 16th, 2022.

From the MEPC 79 preview:

The MEPC is expected to adopt amendments to MARPOL Annex V to make the Garbage Record Book mandatory also for ships of 100 gross tonnage and above and less than 400 gross tonnage.

This extends the requirement for mandatory garbage record books to smaller ships, which will be required to keep records of their garbage handling operations, namely discharges to a reception facility ashore or to other ships, garbage incineration, permitted discharges of garbage into the sea, and accidental or other exceptional discharged or loss of garbage into the sea.

Strategy to address marine plastic litter from ships

MEPC 77 adopted the Strategy to address marine plastic litter from ships, which sets out to the following outcomes as key goals:  reduction of marine plastic litter generated from, and retrieved by, fishing vessels; reduction of shipping's contribution to marine plastic litter; and improvement of the effectiveness of port reception and facilities and treatment in reducing marine plastic litter.

Actions have been agreed, to be completed by 2025, which relate to all ships, including fishing vessels.

The action plan supports IMO's commitment to meeting the targets set in the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14) on the oceans.

The MEPC will be invited to consider the recommendations from the review of the terms of reference for the IMO Study on marine plastic litter from ships.

Capacity building to address marine plastic litter from ships

GloLitter Partnerships, a project between the Government of Norway, IMO and FAO is supporting developing countries, including Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), in identifying opportunities for the prevention and reduction of marine litter.