Save the nurdles: IMO spearheads investigation into preventing plastic pellet spillage

22 Aug 2022 --- The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is launching an investigation into plastic pellet loss following Sri Lanka’s disaster last year in which billions of pellets spilled onto the island’s beaches. The UN agency has tasked experts with investigating how shipping accidents such as this one can be prevented in the future.

An IMO spokesperson tells PackagingInsights the decision to begin looking into the issue began last year after “all delegations expressed support for measures that would reduce the environmental risk of plastic pellets transported by ship.” They stress that pollution resulting from the loss of such plastic pellets should be addressed as soon as possible. 

Plastic pellet spillage is one of the leading causes of plastic pollution globally. In Europe, most plastic raw materials, which are converted into plastic packaging and other products, take the form of round or oval granules approximately 2-5 mm in diameter, also known as nurdles. 

These pellets are lost into the environment at nearly all stages of the value chain, from production, packing, loading, transport, unloading and conversion. This happens despite current moves by companies to adopt standard environmental, safety and quality management controls.

Plastic pellets spill throughout every stage of the value chain.Some estimations put the number of pellets lost at hundreds of thousands of metric tons annually in Europe alone. For this reason, the IMO announced its intention to “reduce the environmental risk associated with the maritime transport of plastic pellets.” 

The Sri Lanka disaster 
In May 2021, a cargo ship carrying plastic pellets caught fire and sank off the coast of Sri Lanka. This resulted in billions of pellets, many contaminated with oil and other debris from the wreckage, washing up on the island’s coastlines for hundreds of miles. 

A UN report called the incident the “single largest plastic spill” in history, with roughly 1,680 metric tons of nurdles released into the ocean. The damage to marine life was said to be immense, with many pellets being reduced to particles too small for cleanup efforts to counter. 

The incident also wreaked havoc on the country’s fragile economy, which relies heavily on tourism. Following the UN’s findings in this report, the IMO has been tasked with finding solutions to safeguard against any such incident happening again. 

European efforts 
The plastics industry is well aware of the problem of pellet loss. Last year, European Plastics Converters and PlasticsEurope, the trade association representing plastics manufacturers in Europe, signed an agreement to introduce a certification scheme aimed at reducing pellet loss throughout the plastic supply chain. 

The scheme, which will be implemented across Europe by 2022, forms part of Operation Clean Sweep (OCS), an initiative to achieve zero pellet loss worldwide. Over 1,200 companies from the plastics supply chain in Europe have signed on to the OCS, including three major ports – Cartagena and Tarragona in Spain and Felixstowe in the UK. The IMO wants to prevent any future shipping disaster that could cause mass plastic pellet loss.

Plastic emissions into the aquatic environment in the EU is estimated at a median rate of 41,000 metric tons annually, according to a 2018 study by Eunomia. This also comes at a great cost to industry by way of lost resources. 

Research on pre-production pellets compiled by the OSPAR Commission estimated total losses in Europe amount to between 16,888 and 167,431 metric tons per year.

Operation Clean Sweep 
OCS has been operating globally for over 25 years and includes the US and China. 

In the US, it operates by monitoring companies’ practices and standards and awarding a “blue member plaque” to those achieving the required level of commitment. 

To become a blue member, applicants must conduct employee training on preventing plastic resin loss throughout its operations, establish written procedures, conduct site checks and annually share information on wastage, among many other requirements. 

The IMO’s recommendations on better-improving pellet loss will be revealed by a panel of its experts in April next year. 

By Louis Gore-Langton