WAREHOUSING AND SUPPLY CHAIN OF VOLATILE AND HAZARDOUS

CARGOS:
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds that have high vapour pressure
and low solubility in water.
● Emitted as gases from many solids/liquids organic chemicals such as household
chemicals like paints, varnishes, pesticides, lacquers, building and furnishing
materials, and wax.
GENERATION AND IMPACT:

● In the maritime industry, VOCs are mainly generated in oil and chemical tankers,
which are involved in loading, transporting and unloading organic chemical
substances through ports.
● When cargo splashes in the piping system of the ships from the source to the cargo
tanks, and from evaporation from the surface of oil or chemicals stored in oil cargo
tanks during and after loading.
● Generated by a build-up of positive pressure, through vaporisation, evaporation and
boiling.
● VOCs emission also leads to loss of a great amount of energy which can be utilized as
fuel for propelling the ship. The environmental impact of these emissions is hazardous
and disastrous as the emitted gas consists of a range of hydrocarbons from methane to
higher (typically C6+).
REGULATIONS BY IMO FOR VOC

There are two aspects of VOC control within this regulation. In the first, regulations 15.1 –
15.5 and 15.7, control on VOC emitted to the atmosphere in respect of certain ports or
terminals is achieved by a requirement to utilize a vapour emission control system (VECS).
Where so required, both the shipboard and shore arrangements are to be in accordance with
MSC/Circ.585 “Standards for vapour emission control systems”. A Party may choose to
apply such controls only to particular ports or terminals under its jurisdiction and only to
certain sizes of tankers or cargo types. Where such controls are required at particular ports or
terminals, tankers not so fitted may be accepted for a period of up to 3 years from the
implementation date. Where VECS is so mandated the relevant Party is to notify IMO of that
requirement and its date of implementation. A Party regulating tankers for VOC emissions
shall submit a notification to IMO. Notifications of VOC from Parties are available through
GISIS ((Public users need to register to use GISIS).

The second aspect of this regulation, regulation 15.6, requires that all tankers carrying crude
oil have an approved and effectively implemented ship specific VOC Management Plan
covering at least the points given in the regulation. Guidelines in respect of the development
of these plans is given by resolution MEPC.185(59) and related technical information on
systems and operation of such arrangements is given by circular MEPC.1/Circ.680.

CLASSES OF HAZARDOUS CARGOS

HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS REGULATION IN INDIA

Manufacture, Storage And Import Of Hazardous Chemical (Amendment)

Rules, 1989
"Hazardous Chemicals " includes 3 schedules. Regulatory requirements are different for
each schedule.

● (i) any chemical which satisfies any of the criteria laid down in Part I of Schedule 1
or listed in Part II of this Schedule 1 ;
● (ii) any chemical listed in Column 2 of Schedule 2;
● (iii) any chemical listed in Column 2 of Schedule 3.

EXPLANATION OF THE SCHEDULE-

https://www.chemsafetypro.com/Topics/India/Overview_of_Chemical_Regulations_in_India.
html

CASE STUDY
TIANJIN EXPLOSION ACCIDENT

On 12 August 2015, a series of explosions at the Port of Tianjin in Tianjin, northern China,
killed 173 people, according to official reports,and injured hundreds of others. The
explosions occurred at a container storage station in the Binhai New Area of Tianjin,
China.The first two explosions occurred 33 seconds apart.The second explosion was far
larger and involved the detonation of about 800 tonnes of ammonium nitrate (approx. 256
tonnes TNT equivalent).Fires caused by the initial explosions continued to burn uncontrolled
throughout the weekend, resulting in eight additional explosions on 15 August.

MORE ON:

● https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Tianjin_explosions#Cause
● https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0957582019312091
● https://www.researchgate.net/publication/303634679_Facts_and_lessons_related_to_t
he_explosion_accident_in_Tianjin_Port_China

BEIRUT EXPLOSION
A massive chemical detonation occurred on August 4, 2020 in the Port of Beirut, Lebanon.
An uncontrolled fire in an adjacent warehouse ignited ~2,750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate
(AN), producing one of the most devastating blasts in recent history. The blast supersonic
pressure and heat wave claimed the lives of 220 people and injured more than 6,500
instantaneously, with severe damage to the nearby dense residential and commercial areas.

MORE ON

● . https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.657996/full
● https://preparecenter.org/resource/beirut-explosion-case-study-technological-and-biol
ogical-hazards/
● https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/8/4/infographic-how-big-was-the-beirut-explos
ion

RULES FOR IMPORT AND EXPORT OF HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS IN INDIA

https://blog.ipleaders.in/rules-import-storage-hazardous-chemicals/
List of warehouses and imports of volatile chemical details on-
https://www.cpcb.nic.in/openpdffile.php?id=UmVwb3J0RmlsZXMvTmV3SXRlbV8xMjhfc
GFja2FnZS5wZGY=