Regulators and shipping experts will gather at a unique conference in Rotterdam this November to consider the scope for redesigning the exterior and interior surfaces of shipping containers.
The aim: to reduce the risk of them becoming contaminated by plant or animals and inadvertently contributing to the global spread of invasive pests.
The one-day event on November 11 will be hosted by the secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).
Representatives of National and Regional Plant Protection Organisations will join representatives of the manufacturers, owners, operators and users of freight containers to discuss the scope for eliminating voids, spaces and other features on container surfaces and fittings where pests could gather and possibly multiply during a long sea voyage.
Many of the changes to be discussed and developed would be applied to future container construction, but the symposium will also assess the scope for treatments of existing containers, especially the underside surface which may touch the ground during loading and storage.
Any new measures would supplement operational recommendations developed by the Commission for Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) earlier this year that every party handling containers or their cargoes should take steps to avoid them becoming contaminated by pests whilst in their custody – an approach known as ‘Custodial Responsibility’.
The IPPC secretariat is organizing the symposium with the collaboration of the World Shipping Council (WSC), the Container Owners Association (COA), and the Bureau International des Containers (BIC), and participation by industry is also endorsed and encouraged by the other partners of the Cargo Integrity Group.