{"id":1077,"date":"2026-03-06T09:18:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T01:18:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/imo-advances-2026-strategy-to-cut-ocean-plastic-from-ships\/"},"modified":"2026-03-06T09:18:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T01:18:19","slug":"imo-advances-2026-strategy-to-cut-ocean-plastic-from-ships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/imo-advances-2026-strategy-to-cut-ocean-plastic-from-ships\/","title":{"rendered":"IMO advances 2026 strategy to cut ocean plastic from ships"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The International Maritime Organization (IMO)\u2019s Sub-Committee on Pollution <\/p>\n

Prevention and Response has finalised a draft strategy to tackle plastic <\/p>\n

pollution from ships, including fishing vessels.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Meeting in London from 9 \u201313 February 2026 for its 13th session (PPR 13), <\/p>\n

the committee completed the 2026 Strategy and Action Plan to Address Marine <\/p>\n

Plastic Litter from Ships, which will be submitted for adoption at Marine <\/p>\n

Environment Protection Committee 84 from 27 April \u2013 1 May 2026.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The 2026 strategy will replace IMO\u2019s 2021 plastics strategy and 2025 action <\/p>\n

plan, consolidating them into a single framework and reaffirming the <\/p>\n

organisation\u2019s ambition to achieve zero plastic waste discharges to sea from <\/p>\n

ships by 2030.<\/p>\n

\"IMO<\/p>\n

The plan focuses on reducing shipping\u2019s contribution to marine plastic <\/p>\n

pollution, improving port reception and onboard waste handling, and <\/p>\n

strengthening international regulation and compliance, alongside enhancing <\/p>\n

seafarer training, public awareness, and technical support for Member <\/p>\n

States.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Sub-Committee advanced targeted measures on specific sources of marine <\/p>\n

litter. On plastic pellets, or \u201cnurdles,\u201d it reviewed legal pathways to mitigate <\/p>\n

environmental risks from containerised transport and recommended that MEPC 84 <\/p>\n

consider a new mandatory code under MARPOL Annex III and\/or SOLAS.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Regarding abandoned, lost, or discarded fishing gear, a draft circular was <\/p>\n

approved promoting gear marking systems and implementation of the FAO Voluntary <\/p>\n

Guidelines on Marking of Fishing Gear.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

These guidelines provide a risk assessment framework and practical marking <\/p>\n

manual, supporting improved reporting, recovery, and disposal, and will be <\/p>\n

submitted to MEPC 84.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Work on biofouling management also advanced, following MEPC 83\u2019s decision <\/p>\n

to develop a legally binding framework to prevent the spread of invasive aquatic <\/p>\n

species via hulls.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Sub-Committee recommended a standalone legal instrument and finalised <\/p>\n

terms of reference, with a correspondence group tasked with defining objectives, <\/p>\n

drafting guidelines, and preparing a work plan for implementation.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Other PPR 13 outcomes include final NOx Code amendments, draft MARPOL Annex <\/p>\n

VI changes on VOCs, ongoing work on black carbon and polar fuels, continued <\/p>\n

review of exhaust gas cleaning systems, agreement in principle on sewage and <\/p>\n

oily bilge water amendments, and approval of revised guidance for <\/p>\n

machinery-space waste systems and Oil Record Book Part I.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

In January, IMO faced a complex landscape in 2026, shaped by geopolitical <\/p>\n

tensions, rising security risks, urgent decarbonisation goals, and the <\/p>\n

continuing challenge of seafarer welfare, Arsenio Dom\u00ednguez told a recent press <\/p>\n

briefing.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The International Maritime Organization (IMO)\u2019s Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response has finalised a draft strategy to tackle plastic pollution from ships, including fishing vessels.Meeting in London from 9 \u201313 February 2026 for its 13th session (PPR 13), the committee completed t…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"hj_lang":[3],"class_list":["post-1077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1077"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1077\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1077"},{"taxonomy":"hj_lang","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hajomech.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hj_lang?post=1077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}