Noise under water is becoming a subject
Everyone hears what a boat makes above water. What it does below water is only now becoming a subject for the rule makers.
Technology NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH
Underwater noise from shipping, underwater radiated noise in the technical term, has occupied the International Maritime Organization for several years. Revised guidelines on reduction exist, and at the end of June 2026 the IMO published a toolkit on the subject under the GloNoise partnership. It addresses states, authorities and maritime actors and is meant to make the guidelines easier to implement. It includes an archive of studies and practical examples.
Where else the topic turns up is notable. On 23 June 2026 underwater noise was on the agenda of the ISO committee responsible for large yachts. When a topic moves from environmental policy into standards work, it is on the way from appeal to requirement.
There is no requirement on underwater noise for leisure boats today. The direction is recognisable anyway: run quieter, cleaner propellers, less cavitation. Much of that comes free with electric propulsion.
A reader in the UK or Ireland will already know the debate from the marine protected area side. There noise sits next to anchoring and speed in the same discussion. The first effect on leisure boating is likely to be local rather than technical.
What this means for owners
From an insurance point of view this is a non topic for now, and we would rather say so than invent a significance. It becomes interesting elsewhere: where cruising areas impose speed or access restrictions for noise or nature protection, what may be navigated changes. Where a boat is allowed to go is a question that gets asked long before a claim.
Our view as NAMMERT, not part of the news. Your own policy wording decides.
Where this comes from
- Source: Verband Maritime Wirtschaft Deutschland, information on GloNoise
- Source: GloNoise platform of the IMO
The text is our own; the sources supplied the facts and figures, not the wording.
