Safe Shipment of Plastic Pellets in Containers

What are Plastic Pellets?

“Plastic pellets mean a mass of pre-formed moulding material, having relatively uniform dimensions, used as feedstock in plastic product manufacturing operations. Plastic pellets are transported in various forms, including flakes, granules and powders, and can be referred to as resin or pellets”. They are also referred to as Plastic Nurdles. Derived primarily from petrochemicals, plastic nurdles are non-biodegradable and considered a major environmental concern.

Understanding the Risks of Plastic Pellets:

In recent years, several high-profile incidents have occurred, such as the Trans Carrier in 2020 and the X-Press Pearl in 2021, where containers have fallen overboard from container ships and resulted in the release of plastic pellets into seas and oceans with subsequent harm to the marine environment.

While the carriage of plastic pellets in shipping containers is a secure means of shipment, the environmental concern arises when these containers are lost overboard. Once plastic pellets are released, their physical properties of being small and light allow them to travel extensive distances from the initial release location. These incidents have given rise to concerns within the shipping industry about not only the risks plastic pellets pose to marine ecosystems, but also about the resulting multi-million-dollar clean-up and recovery operations, which can span many months or even years. These costs include shoreline recovery, wildlife rehabilitation and long-term monitoring, and achieving complete recovery is often impossible

The inclusion of plastic nurdles in the IMDG Code is being considered in part due to the escalating cost of recovery, because mandatory packaging, labelling, and stowage requirements are considered essential in reducing the frequency and severity of such incidents.  

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