Matej David

Emerging risks from ballast water treatment: The run-up to the International Ballast Water Management Convention

Uptake and discharge of ballast water by ocean-going ships contribute to the worldwide spread of aquatic invasive species, with negative impacts on the environment, economies, and public health. The International Ballast Water Management Convention aims at a global answer. The agreed standards for ballast water discharge will require ballast water treatment. Systems based on various physical and/or chemical methods were developed for on-board installation and approved by the International Maritime Organization. Most common are combinations of high-performance filters with oxidizing chemicals or UV radiation. A well-known problem of oxidative water treatment is the formation of disinfection by-products, many of which show genotoxicity, carcinogenicity, or other long-term toxicity. In natural biota, genetic damages can affect reproductive success and ultimately impact biodiversity. The future exposure towards chemicals from ballast water treatment can only be estimated, based on land-based testing of treatment systems, mathematical models, and exposure scenarios. Systematic studies on the chemistry of oxidants in seawater are lacking, as are data about the background levels of disinfection by-products in the oceans and strategies for monitoring future developments. The international approval procedure of ballast water treatment systems compares the estimated exposure levels of individual substances with their experimental toxicity. While well established in many substance regulations, this approach is also criticised for its simplification, which may disregard critical aspects such as multiple exposures and long-term sub-lethal effects. Moreover, a truly holistic sustainability assessment would need to take into account factors beyond chemical hazards, e.g. energy consumption, air pollution or waste generation.

Risk assessment for exemptions from ballast water management--the Baltic Sea case study.

The International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships Ballast Water and Sediments sets requirements to prevent organism transfers. Vessels on certain routes can be exempted from such requirements based on risk assessment (RA). As the convention nears its entry into force, the interest in exemptions increases. Such RA should be conducted according to the International Maritime Organization G7 Guidelines. We present a RA study for exemptions applied to intra-Baltic shipping considering different RA methods, i.e., environmental matching, species specific method including target species and species biogeographical aspects. As reliable species data in the ports considered are unavailable and following the precautionary principle, no exemptions should be granted. To ensure data reliability, port baseline surveys and regular monitoring programs should be undertaken during the exemption period as new species found influence the RA result. The RA model prepared is considered as of value to other areas worldwide.

A generic ballast water discharge assessment model as a decision supporting tool in ballast water management

One of the critical issues in species invasion ecology is the need to understand and evaluate the dimensions and processes of aquatic organisms transfer with vessels ballast water. The assessment of the quantity of ballast water discharged as the medium of transfer is one of the basic elements of the decision making process in ballast water risk assessment and management. The possibility to assess this in advance of the vessels arrival to a port enhances the management process and gives port authorities a decision supporting tool to respond in time with adequate measures. A new generic ballast water discharge assessment model has been prepared. The model is based on vessel cargo operation and vessel dimensions. The model was tested on real shipping traffic and ballast water discharge data for the Port of Koper, Slovenia. The results show high confidence in predicting whether a vessel will discharge ballast water, as well in assessing the quantity of ballast water (to be) discharged. Highlights? A model to predict ballast water discharge was developed. ? The model was applied to the Port of Koper and verified on reported data from vessels. ? The model assesses vessel specific ballast water discharges. ? Ballast water discharge information is crucial for risk assessment and management. ? The model is a decision support tool for a more effective management in shipping.

Global Maritime Transport and Ballast Water Management

Today global shipping transports over 90 % of the world’s overseas trade and trends anticipate that it will continue to play an increasing role world-wide. Shipping operations inevitably include also pressures on natural environments. The most recent waterborne threat is the transfer of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens with ballast water and sediments releases, which may result in harmful effects on the natural environment, human health, property and resources globally. The signifi cance of the ballast water issue was already addressed in 1973 by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) as the United Nations specialised agency for the regulation of international maritime transport at the global scale. Committed work by many experts, scientists, politicians, IGOs and NGOs at IMO resulted in the adoption if the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships ’ Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention) in February 2004, which is now to be ratifi ed and implemented. Work on ballast water management issues has also shown to be very complex, hence there are no simple solutions. Nevertheless, the BWM Convention represents a globally uniform framework for the implementation of ballast water management measures, and different supporting tools like risk assessment and decision support systems have been developed to support its effi ciency. In this chapter the reader is introduced to various ballast water issues and responses to it. The intention of this book and the overview of its content is also presented.

Ballast Water Sampling and Sample Analysis for Compliance Control

In the past, the purpose of ballast water sampling studies was limited to general scientific interest, awareness raising or the determination of organism numbers per water volume. In this chapter we focus on compliance control sampling with BWM requirements as set out in the BWM Convention. Key aspects described are sampling methods and approaches to take a representative ballast water sample and the need for a harmonised sampling approach, to avoid that the ballast water of a vessel is proven compliant in one port, but would not be proven compliant in another port just because of different sampling methods or approaches used. In this chapter we describe suitable compliance control sampling methods and approaches and address both indicative and detailed sampling. Details on possible sampling access points, equipment and other details recommended for in-tank and in-line sampling are given. Further, recommendations are given how samples should be handled, including suitable sample transport and storage conditions. Another subject of this chapter addresses organism detection technologies for indicative and detailed sample analysis for compliance control with BWM standards. Suitable organism detection technologies are recommended in the end of the chapter.

A unique aspect of ballast water management requirements--the same location concept.

Under certain circumstances vessels do not need to meet ballast water management requirements as stated in the International Convention for the Management and Control of Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention). Besides exceptions to ensure e.g., (a) the safety of a ship, (b) discharge of ballast water for the purpose of avoiding or minimizing pollution incidents, (c) uptake and discharge on high seas of the same ballast water, the same location concept comes into play as ballast water discharges from a ship at the same location where it was taken up is also excepted from BWM requirements. The term same location was not defined in this instrument, hence it is exposed to different interpretations (e.g., a terminal, a port, a larger area where two or more ports may be located). As the BWM Convention is an instrument with biological meaning, the authors recommend a biologically meaningful definition of the same location in this contribution.

Ballast Water Management Systems for Vessels

In this chapter we focus on ballast water management systems (BWMS) which are currently in use as well as treatment approaches manufacturers have chosen for the development of future BWMS. The main purpose of this review is to identify the current availability of BWMS technologies worldwide. Until January 2014 we brought together information of 104 different BWMS. To achieve the ballast water discharge standards, different water treatment technologies are used, mostly in combination, and applied in different stages of the ballasting process. In general, the treatment processes can be split in three stages, i.e., pre-treatment, treatment and residual control (neutralisation). Among the 104 BWMS identified, 100 apply their treatment at the uptake, some of those BWMS require also a treatment during ballast water discharge (in-line treatment) and three BWMS apply treatment only during the voyage (in-tank treatment). The majority of BWMS use filtration or a combination of hydrocyclone and filtration as pre-treatment separation step. The dominating treatment processes are to use an active substance, mostly generated on board by electrolysis/electrochlorination. The second most frequent treatment process is UV. BWMS to be installed for operation on vessels need to be type approved by a state. By the writing of this chapter more than 30 BWMS were type approved. It should be noted that the development of BWMS is a very dynamic market with newly proposed BWMS appearing almost on a monthly basis. The chapter also outlines how BWMS are applied on vessels, their capacities and installation requirements, which BWMS were type approved, and what projected global market for BWMS may exist. A recent calculation on the estimated value of the global market for purchasing and installing BWMSs resulted in an estimated turn-over of possibly

Ballast Water Management Under the Ballast Water Management Convention

50–74 billion. The chapter ends with a list of manufacturers, commercial names of their BWMS, applied treatment technologies used and links to BWMS web pages where available.

Risk Assessment in Ballast Water Management

The importance of ballast water as a vector for moving non-indigenous species was initially addressed in a 1973 International Maritime Organization (IMO) resolution. Subsequently IMO worked towards the finalization of the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention) which was adopted in February 2004 at a diplomatic conference in London. The BWM Convention’s main aim is to prevent, minimize and ultimately eliminate the risks to the environment, human health, property and resources which arise from the transfer of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens via ships’ ballast waters and related sediments. It should be noted that harmful aquatic organisms in this context are not limited to non-indigenous species, but covers all aquatic species irrespective of their origin. As defined at IMO “Ballast Water Management means mechanical, physical, chemical, and biological processes, either singularly or in combination, to remove, render harmless, or avoid the uptake or discharge of Harmful Aquatic Organisms and Pathogens within Ballast Water and Sediments.” The BWM Convention and its supporting guidelines are described in this chapter, outlining the ballast water exchange and performance standards, warnings concerning ballast water uptake in certain areas, ballast water reception facilities, sediment management as well as exemptions and exceptions from ballast water management requirements. This chapter ends with the description of implementation options of the BWM Convention.

Ballast Water Management Decision Support System Model Application

The risk assessment (RA) developed according to the BWM Convention is the most recently agreed global RA for bioinvasions. It was developed to enable a selective ballast water management (BWM) approach according to the BWM Convention and the G7 Guidelines. It describes three different BWM RA methods, “environmental matching”, “species’ biogeographical” and “species-specific” RA. The environmental matching RA between the areas of ballast water origin and discharge considers non-biological parameters as surrogates for the species survival potential in the new environment. The species’ biogeographical RA identifies species with overlapping distribution in the donor and recipient ports and biogeographic regions which is taken as direct indications of the similarity of the environmental conditions and hence species survival in the new environment. The species-specific RA is focused on life history information and physiological tolerances to identify a species’ physiological limits estimating its potential to survive or complete its life cycle in the new environment and considers target species. There are two fundamentally different RA approaches under the BWM Convention, the selective and the blanket approach. A blanket approach means that all ships intending to discharge ballast water in a port are required to conduct BWM. The selective approach means that appropriate BWM measures are required depending on different risk levels posed by the intended ballast water discharge. In one instance ships may be exempted from BWM requirements provided that the risk level of a ballast water discharge is acceptable. In another instance, if the risk is identified as (very) high, ships may be required to take additional measures based on the G13 Guidelines. The risk level is a RA result and input data reliability is of key importance. The chapter provides detailed step-by-step RA models for exemptions and for selective BWM measures, ready to be used by administrations.