What’s New in the 2022 IMDG Code?

The international Maritime Organization (IMO) has officially released the 2022 Edition of its International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code or IMDG Code. The IMDG Code is the manual used by shippers to offer hazardous materials/dangerous goods for transportation by vessel (e.g., cargo ship).

Failure to comply with the Code can result in shipment being rejected by carriers at the port, storage fees for stalled cargo, inefficient re-packaging and re-labeling of packages or containers, civil penalties from US DOT and/or the US Coast Guard, and dangerous (and costly) incidents in transit.

Hazmat/dangerous goods vessel shippers should review the new edition of the IMDG Code for changes that may impact their operations. We’ve summarized some of the noteworthy revisions for the 2022 Edition below.

Compliance with the 2022 edition is voluntary in 2023, and mandatory as of January 1, 2024.

What’s New in the 2022 IMDG Code?

See what changed in the 2022 Edition of the IMDG Code (Amendment 41-22) below. Will the changes affect your vessel shipping operations? There’s only one way to know – you’ll have to review them! The changes are diverse and affect many parts of the Code. Here’s a brief sampling of changes from Volume I:

• Certain definitions have been revised, deleted, or added in Part I and the units of measure table at 1.2.2.2 now includes electrical resistance in ohms as an applicable unit of measure in the Code.
• The update corrected omissions. Do you ship Division 6.1 toxic materials? The 2.6.0 Introductory Notes (note 3) has been revised to read as follows by adding UN 3462 (Toxins extracted from living sources, solid, n.o.s.): “Toxins from plant, animal or bacterial sources which do not contain any infectious substances, or toxins that are contained in substances which are not infectious substances, shall be considered for classification in class 6.1 and assigned to UN 3172 or UN 3462.”
• Part 4 weight limits for the common packing instructions P003, P004, P005, P006 have been liberalized. Other P packing instructions, as well as those for Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBCs) and portable tanks have been changed too.
• Part 5 Consignment Procedures moved some regulatory references such as those that instruct the shipper to indicate the words “marine pollutant” and the flash point on shipping papers.
• Part 6 now specifies that IBCs that are made from recycled plastic must be marked with “REC.”

Shippers of strong acids should take note of changes in Part 7: SGG1a for segregation group 1 entries for strong acids and segregation code SG75 (stow “separated from” SGG1a – strong acids) have been removed.

More than two dozen changes have been made to the 3.2 Dangerous Goods List in Part 3. For example, UN 1169, Extracts, Aromatic, Liquid (PG II/III) have been removed and UN 1197 was revised and now reads “EXTRACTS, LIQUID, for flavour or aroma.”

Other entries have been revised by changing wording in proper shipping names, adding special provisions, and changes to segregation groups. You’ll also find a revision and three new special provisions at 3.3. Finally, if you ship lithium batteries by vessel, there are changes throughout the code that affect special provisions, packing instructions, rules for damaged and defective batteries, and the lithium battery mark.

The 2022 IMDG Code is now available at Lion.com/Books.

Houston 49 CFR, IATA DGR, and IMDG Code Training

Be there when engaging, lively in-person training comes to Houston to cover the latest 49 CFR, IATA DGR, and IMDG Code regulations that hazmat shippers need to know this year. 

Houston

Complete Multimodal Hazmat Shipper Certifications (DOT/IATA/IMDG)
March 20—23  |   October 15—18

In addition to all revisions to US DOT’s 49 CFR hazmat regulations in the past three years, we will dig in to the 2023 IATA DGR regulations in effect for air shippers and the hot-of-the-presses IMDG Code (2022 Edition)—which enters into full force on January 1, 2024. 

Develop the expertise you need to classify and name hazardous materials, package hazmat, mark and label packages, fill out shipping papers, and otherwise comply with US and international regulations.