Installation or use of an USCG accepted Alternative Management Systems (AMS) does not waive a vessel's requirement to meet the California Code of Regulations ballast discharge performance standards. In accordance with the California Public Resource Code and California Code of Regulations, vessels may manage ballast water using an alternative, environmentally sound method approved by the California State Lands Commission or the USCG as being at least as effective as ballast water exchange, using mid-ocean waters, in eliminating nonindigenous species. As any USCG accepted AMS must demonstrate efficacy at least as effective as mid-ocean exchange…