WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT?
Ballast water management System!
Ballast water management system in Dubai helps the process of restricting the spread of harmful organisms from ballast water before it is discharged into the ocean. BWMS uses filtration technology to reduce the number of organisms present in the water. They also help maintain the stability of the ship.
Canada and Australia raised the issue of invasive species bought to their waters through the discharge of ballast water by the vessels.
Application of ballast water management convention
The first question is to which all kinds of ships do this convention apply? A ship which carries ballast and one which ratifies the convection falls into the convention rules and allegations.
There are few logical exemptions such as a ship that carries permanent ballast in sealed tanks on ships, that are not subject to discharge. These ships do not apply to the convention.
It is all about the environmental hazards that are likely to arise from ballast water discharge.
So it is obvious that the ballast water management convention would require us to treat the ballast water in ways that it becomes less harmful or not harmful at all.
The ballast water management (BWM) convention provides two ways of doing that.
Ballast water exchange standard (regulation D1)
Mid-sea ballast water management replacement is the first standard to consider.
When replacing the ballast water in the deep sea, BWM convention regulation D1 requires that at least 95% of the ballast water needs to be exchanged. But still, there are two ways to do this.
The first method of doing this is to Refill tanks after the discharge of 95% of the ballast water from the tank. This is called the “Sequential method or simply Pump-in, pump-out method)”. It is important to deballast as much as possible from the tank. However, 5% is just allowed for the un-pumpable ballast.
The second method is to keep on ballasting the ballast tank and keep on overflowing the ballast water from the ballast tank through an air pipe or other openings of the ballast tank.
For the flow-through method, BWM convention regulation D1 requires pumping in 3 times the ballast tank capacity to achieve 95% of the volumetric exchange.
Ballast water performance standard (Regulation D2)
The first ballast water standard is temporary and ultimately all ships need to arrive at the ballast water performance standard (regulation D-2). The second ballast water standard is more scientific in nature. It aims to control the number of actual species (in simpler words micro-organisms) that can be discharged.
The system pre-fixed the ballast overboard and it treats the ballast water to the required standards before it goes overboard.
Criteria for ballast water exchange (Regulation B-4)
To achieve the ballast water standard as per regulation D-1, the vessel needs to exchange the ballast in the mid-sea. BWM convention regulation B-4 provides the criteria for the deep sea where the ballast exchange needs to be carried.
And as per regulation B-4, the ballast water exchange needs to be carried at 200 Nautical miles from the nearest land at a minimum water depth of 200 meters. Where above is not possible, then as far as practicable from the nearest land but not less than 50 NM from the nearest land and in a minimum water depth of 200 meters.
Also, Regulation B-4.3 clarifies that a ship need not deviate from the intended route to comply with this regulation.
Here arises the million-dollar question on everyone’s mind;
Well, the best way is to communicate with the agent in order to know the local requirements of the port authority.
We like it or not but there is one more regulation that we have to comply with. Now, the focus is on verifying compliance with ballast water management convection.
And the time has come up to know the in and out about the convection and how the compliance can be ensured by us.
Once we know that, demonstrating compliance with the BWM convention would not be difficult.
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