Water Management

Measures Announced to Prevent Environmental Damage from Harmful Aquatic Plants and Animals

The USCG announced measures to prevent environmental and health problems resulting from harmful aquatic plants and animals carried from abroad in ships' ballast water, a move reflecting the Department of Transportation's commitment to controlling and preventing the introduction of these species. A new interim rule, effective July 1, requires ships operating outside of U.S. waters to report their ballast water management practices. It also establishes voluntary ballast water management guidelines for all waters of the U.S. The USCG is taking these actions to implement the National Invasive Species Act (NISA) of 1996. Current federal regulations require ships entering the Great Lakes and upper portions of the Hudson River to conduct an open-ocean exchange of their ballast water prior to using these waterways. During this procedure a ship replaces the water in its ballast tanks with water that is less likely to contain potentially invasive species. This is currently defined as water from a sea area over 200 miles from shore and with a depth of 6,561 ft. This operational process has drawbacks, including ship safety concerns, but it is the best solution available at the moment. The interim rule requires a ship with ballast tanks, after having operated beyond the 200-mile-wide Exclusive Economic Zone, to provide information that documents the ship's ballast water management efforts

Ballast Water Management – Angola, Africa, Rules

Angola, Africa, maritime authority draws attention of masters to its ballast water management requirements All vessels coming from outside Angola must follow Angolan Executive Decree 12-05, article 10 regarding ballast water management. It appears to the Angolan authority that the relevant information has not been passed on to ships' master. The decree states that Operators must ensure that vessels and/or installations originating fromoutside the country and operating under their

LR Guidance on BWM

Ballast Water Management: Lloyd’s Register offers vessel owners and operators timely information series to help them select right technology. ‘One stop information shop’ includes an online comparison tool and a list of the available technologies. Lloyd’s Register’s new Understanding Ballast Water Management Series introduces a range of tools and technical guidance to help operators make informed decisions that meet compliance with forthcoming requirements of

Wärtsilä AQUARIUS BWMS LPG Carrier Retrofit

Wärtsilä contracted to retrofit its AQUARIUS UV ballast water management system for the Marola, a 37,000 cbm fully-refrigerated Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) vessel of the Carbofin SPA, Italy fleet. The retrofitting for the Marola will take place in autumn 2013 when the ship is dry docked. The vessel will operate in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and South American waters.   By virtue of its design

Ballast Water Treatment Technology

The U.S. Coast Guard is seeking information regarding the status of research and development of ballast water management systems and analytical technologies and methods used in testing ballast water management systems. The agency is particularly interested in technologies and methodologies for rapid detection, enumeration, and determination of organism viabilities in ballast water. Comments should be submitted by June 23 71 Fed. Reg. 25798 source: HK Law

World Tankers Wins Lloyd’s Register BWMP

Singapore-based World Tankers Management is the first tanker operator in Singapore to have its fleet certified under Lloyd's Register's new BWMP operational notation for ballast water management. In recognition of this achievement, at a formal ceremony in Singapore, World Tankers was awarded with a certificate from Lloyd’s Register commending them for their proactive approach to ballast water management. Accepting the award, Michael Bruce

California Issues Report on Ballast Water

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) issued a document entitled Report on the California Ballast Water Management Program

IMO Meeting Approves Measures on Ballast Water Management

Ballast water management is to become a major consideration in the design of new vessels following the approval by IMO of a series of measures aimed at reducing the harmful effects of marine organisms transported in ballast water and the risks involved in some ballast water management techniques. The 47th session of the International Maritime Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), which met from 4 to 8 March at IMO Headquarters in London

U.S. Ballast Water Regulations Will Be Superseded

Beginning June 21, 2012, the U.S. regulations on ballast water management and reporting (detailed in Classification News 14/2004) will be superseded by new regulations, which will require ships to treat ballast water and regularly remove hull fouling. Ships calling at U.S. ports and intending to discharge ballast will be required to use an approved ballast water treatment system, which meets the U.S. discharge standard (which is the same as the IMO D-2 standard) in accordance with the

USCG and EPA Develop Initiative for Ballast Water Management

The US Coast Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have developed an initiative for domestic ballast water management that would both legislatively overrule the 2006 federal court decision on ballast water discharges and be as consistent as possible with the IMO-sponsored International Convention for the Control and Management of Ship’s Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004.  Among other things, the proposal, if enacted