Incineration is the most environmentally friendly way to dispose of garbage and sludge oil. Here’s why:

Regulatory benefits: Classification societies like DNV recognize incineration as a key environmental measure, requiring it for their “Clean Ship” notation.

Limited port facilities: Many ports lack proper reception facilities for sludge oil and waste, making onboard disposal essential.

Cost efficiency: Discharging waste to shore can be expensive, and while some places pay for sludge oil, using it as fuel has environmental consequences.

Legal compliance: Proper incineration helps prevent illegal waste disposal, reducing the risk of fines, imprisonment, and reputational damage.

Space saving solution: Storing garbage onboard can lead to bad odors, drainage issues, and space constraints. Incineration reduces waste volume by approximately 95%, leaving only sterile ash.

Operational convenience: Discharging waste in port often requires prior approval and, in some cases, costly vessel relocation.

Incinerators are not affected by the 2020 requirements, nor is there any proposal coming up limiting the use of incinerators within IMO regulation.

Since 1 January 2015 the sulphur limit for fuel oil used by ships in SOx Emission Control Areas (ECAS) established by IMO has been 0.10% m/m.
 
The ECAs established under MARPOL Annex VI for SOx are: the Baltic Sea area; the North Sea area; the North American area (covering designated coastal areas off the United States and Canada); and the United States Caribbean Sea area (around Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands).

In ECAs incinerators can be used when burning waste oil from low sulphur fuel and garbage. Oil sludge from HFO cannot be burned in the incinerator within ECAS.

Incineration of plastics and PVC’s are allowed in IMO-type approved incinerators.

Emissions outlet from incinerators are approx. 1% of the total emissions from ships.