Environmentally Hazardous Substances

The environmentally hazardous substances included in Class 9 are known to be harmful to the aquatic environment and cannot be classed elsewhere. These are liquid and solid substances that pollute the aquatic environment, which is defined as the organisms that live in the water and their ecosystem. The negative effects on the aquatic environment are described in a range, as follows:

• Acute toxicity - causes immediate and serious damage
• Chronic toxicity - causes ongoing damage
• Bioaccumulation - results in the collecting of dangerous toxicity in the aquatic environment
• Degradation - causes damage to the chemistry of the aquatic environment

Guidelines for substance classification are provided under 2.9.3.3.

To learn more about IMDG visit our International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code Online Training web page.