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IMCA Environmental Sustainability Bulletins summarise key ideas and solutions to environmental and sustainability matters.

Members are invited to submit details of their own environmental sustainability initiatives that can be shared as good practice via these bulletins.

These bulletins are produced as part of the work of the Environmental Sustainability Committee.

Marine sector decarbonisation – industry initiatives and resources

The construction vessel sector finds itself confronted with a pressing need to address its environmental footprint and actively participate in global shipping initiatives aimed at mitigating climate change. Operating as an essential component in the establishment of offshore wind farms and energy infrastructure and with a reliance on conventional propulsion



Control and Management of Ships’ Biofouling

Biofouling on ships entering the water of IMO Member States may result in the establishment of invasive aquatic species which may pose threats to human, animal and plant life, economic and cultural activities, and the aquatic environment. The potential for invasive aquatic species transferred through biofouling to cause harm has



Part Three of a Trilogy: IPCC releases key climate mitigation report

On 4 April 2022, Working Group III of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its much anticipated contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report, Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change.  The third report in the trilogy follows the publication of the Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability report



P&O Maritime Logistics Organise Beach Clean-Ups

Environmental Sustainability is important not only for our Members, but also for the local communities and habitats and ecosystems where they work.  This Environmental Bulletin highlights five examples of community engagement initiatives, which form part of the suite of measures P&O Maritime Logistics (P&OML) undertake to deliver on its commitment



New Chair of the Environmental Sustainability Committee

Thanks are extended to all three candidates who put their names forward to serve as Chair of IMCA’s Environmental Sustainability Committee (the ESC). The ESC is a core committee of IMCA and its member appointments are nominated by the Board. At its meeting on 9 December, ESC members voted to



Playing our part in the global marine plastics challenge

This Environmental Bulletin provides an overview of the extent of the plastics pollution challenge, drawing on the latest scientific evidence from UNEP’s Global Assessment. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought heightened attention to this issue and also served as a multiplier in terms of impact and attracting attention. Throughout this document,



IPCC release report on the Physical Science of Climate Change

On 9 August 2021, the output of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Working Group 1 of the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), consisting of 234 authors from 65 countries, reviewing over 14,000 publications was released and generating over 78,000 comments. This nearly 4000-page report forms part of the suite




Environmentally sustainable ship recycling

Ship recycling takes place today using various methods such as beaching, sideways, alongside or dry-docking. The majority of recycling occurs in Asia, particularly Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, with some activity in Turkey and elsewhere globally. This Information Note highlights two mechanisms to advance sustainable ship recycling, focusing on the environmental



Fuel Consumption Data Collection

The 70th session of IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 70) adopted mandatory MARPOL Annex VI requirements for ships to record and report their fuel oil consumption, also referred to as the Data Collection System (DCS). In addition to fuel oil consumption, a proxy for ‘transport work’ was also required



New Publication Alert – Managing environmental risks in the upstream oil & gas industry

In keeping with their members’ commitment to sustainable business, the Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP) and IPIECA have updated their widely-read 1997 publication on environmental management in upstream oil and gas, focusing specifically on the operational environmental aspects associated with oil and gas exploration and production[1]. Early on

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An Alternative Fuels Initiative (LNG, GTL, HVO)

Heerema Marine Contractors believes that a responsible company has an obligation to act in a sustainable manner.  This includes the minimisation of our impact on the environment, which is why we are investing in our alternative fuels initiative in order to reduce our carbon footprint and emissions. Heerema has already



Oil/chemical mapping and spill risk assessment in Saipem’s fleet

What was done Saipem has performed spill risk assessments for all its construction vessels.  Through a rigorous and consistent method, the assessments assign a risk level for all equipment on-board in order to evaluate the risk and to provide an order of priority for the implementation of mitigation measures. There



Sustainable supply chain: Food waste reduction

Reducing supply chain footprint, disposal of waste to sea and disposal of waste to shore are important contributing factors in optimising responsible fleet operations.  In 2017, Fugro teamed up with International Food Services to achieve further optimisation of these activities across its fleet.  By educating galley staff in the creation



Sleipnir: the most sustainable heavy lift vessel – Heerema Marine Contractors

Heerema Marine Contractors is one of the leaders in the offshore construction industry, embracing LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) as a marine fuel.  The most recent addition to Heerema’s fleet – the Sleipnir – has numerous features that reduce its impact on the environment and increase sustainability, including the use of



Plastics: a briefing on biodegradability

Plastic is the broad name given to different long-chain polymers with high molecular weight.  Some of the most commonly used are PE (polyethylene), PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and PET (polyethylene terephthalate), polypropylene and polystyrene.  The increasing accumulation of waste plastic, particularly in the marine environment, has become a global environmental threat. 



Plastic Pollution Inspections

This IMCA Environmental Sustainability Bulletin brings you information on an initiative developed at TechnipFMC, whereby plastic pollution inspections were developed within the TechnipFMC fleet.  It should be stressed that this was a crew-generated initiative rather than something mandated by top management. The Continued Effort in Plastic Pollution Prevention Everyone is



Saipem eco-operations program

This is the fourth IMCA Environmental Sustainability bulletin, and, like the others, it is drawn from one of the nominations for the inaugural IMCA Environmental Sustainability Awards made at the IMCA Annual Seminar in Den Haag, Netherlands, in November 2018.  It covers how Saipem has made energy efficiency a priority



Biofuels

This is the second IMCA Environmental Sustainability bulletin, and like the first, it is drawn from the inaugural IMCA Environmental Sustainability Awards made at the IMCA Annual Seminar in The Hague, Netherlands, in November 2018.  It relates to an initiative from IMCA contractor member Boskalis, involving the successful deployment of



Elimination of employee generated single use plastic

TechnipFMC Marine Operations Services (TMOS) won the inaugural IMCA Environmental Sustainability Award with their plan to eliminate employee generated single use plastics from their facilities and vessels by end of year 2018.  This objective was fully in line with their commitment to minimisw environmental impact through reduction of company carbon



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