The International Maritime Organization's (IMO) Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR) has agreed on a draft 2025 Action Plan to Address Marine Plastic Litter from Ships. This draft plan will be presented for approval by the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 83) during its session from April 7th to 11th, 2025.
This significant development was achieved alongside other key outcomes at the 12th session of the PPR Sub-Committee, held at IMO Headquarters in London from January 27th to 31st, 2025. Dr. Anita Mäkinen of Finland chaired the meeting.
The 2025 Action Plan builds upon the initial plan approved in 2018, incorporating revisions based on actions completed since its adoption.
The plan outlines actions to be completed by 2030, aiming to achieve the following key objectives:
-Reduction of the contribution from fishing vessels to marine plastic litter.
-Reduction of shipping's overall contribution to marine plastic litter.
-Enhanced public awareness, education, and seafarer training.
-Improvement of the effectiveness of port reception facilities and waste treatment to reduce marine plastic litter.
-Improved understanding of the contribution of ships to marine plastic litter.
-Strengthened international cooperation.
The Sub-Committee updated the timeframes for the expected completion of these actions, categorizing them into short-, mid-, long-term, and continuous actions.
The draft 2025 Action Plan includes a dedicated action for developing mandatory measures to mitigate the environmental risks associated with the sea transport of plastic pellets in freight containers. To inform future discussions on the legal framework for implementing these measures, the Sub-Committee developed a table outlining various considerations, including advantages, limitations, and impacts, related to potential amendments to mandatory instruments concerning the carriage of plastic pellets by sea.