Climate Change and Reactive Cargo Hazards in Containerised Transport
The Silent, Unseen Accelerators of Fire Risk in Maritime Transport
Containerised cargo transport is entering a new era of risk. Hazards that were once manageable under stable operating conditions are now increasingly triggered by escalating global temperatures, port congestion, humidity-driven degradation, and persistent blind spots in cargo responsibility.
With global containerised transport volumes now exceeding 850 million TEU annually and continuing to rise as supply chains become more interconnected, exposure to hazardous, temperature-sensitive, and misdeclared cargoes is intensifying. At the same time, congestion in ports and onboard vessels is creating operational conditions that amplify latent risks.
While the IMDG Code and CTU Code provide robust regulatory foundations, many existing risk models were developed for a climate environment that no longer exists. The industry is now facing a structural shift driven by climate change, requiring more integrated, predictive, and climate-responsive approaches to risk management across the entire cargo chain.
Waves Group is working in collaboration with CINS and a number of CINS member organisations on a new series of industry whitepapers exploring these emerging challenges. This paper will be one of the first in that series, scheduled for publication in 2026. It provides an evidence-based assessment of how climatic stressors interact with cargo behaviour, operational patterns, and microclimate conditions within containers and concludes with a call for greater industry cooperation and the development of climate-adjusted thresholds, technologies and governance frameworks.
Co Authors of this White Paper are:
- Marc Lefebvre – Vessel Auditor CMA-CGM, CINS Member
- Captain Y.S. Hwang – Operations Director Evergreen, CINS President
- Captain Dirk Van de Velde – Senior Consultant Waves Group and CINS Member
To register your interest in receiving copies of these publications, please contact [email protected] or via the CINS website.
The next article is being produced and is about the need for training on board and ashore. This moves into the direction of the CINS Member meeting in March 2026, where we have proposed to give a training on Fire fighting and Lithium Ion Batteries Transport.
