Identifying and Overcoming Challenges Towards Management of Ship-Generated Waste in Indian Ports

Abstract

The management of waste received from ships at Indian ports plays a significant role towards the sustainable development of the maritime industry and aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Goals. Port Reception Facilities (PRFs) are arrangement that any port should offer for the collection of operational discharges like oily mixtures, residues, and garbage generated from a seagoing vessel. There was inadequate research that investigated the adequacy of PRF for Indian ports. Thus, examining the adequacy of PRF in the ports of India with an emphasis on major ports is the aim of the study. The barriers to the effective management of waste in the major ports are also identified in the study from PRF plans of major ports of India, reports published by DG Shipping and Indian Port Association (IPA), and secondary data published by various journals and research articles. In the study, a qualitative approach is used. Alongwith that, the study finds that Indian major ports are required to provide more types of PRF for MARPOL compliance. Only 38% of the Advance Notification Forms (ANF) were converted into the delivery of waste in Indian ports for the calendar year 2022. Further, the study explores the policy initiatives like Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways (MoPSW) implemented and offers recommendations, such as the adoption of green technologies to optimize PRF in India.