POL-005 - Ballast Water Management Plans (BWMP)

Marine Notice

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TO: ALL SHIPOWNERS, OPERATORS, MASTERS AND OFFICERS OF MERCHANT SHIPS, AGENTS AND RECOGNIZED ORGANIZATIONS

SUBJECT: Ballast Water Management Plans (BWMP)

References:

1. Maritime Regulation 2.38
2. International Convention for the Control and Management of Ship’s Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004 (BWM Convention)
3. Resolution A.868(20) – Guidelines for Control and Management of Ship’s Ballast Water
4. Resolution MEPC.127(53) “Guidelines for Ballast Water Management and Development of Ballast Water Management Plans (G4)” as amended by MEPC Resolutions 306(73) and 370(80)
5. Resolution MEPC.173(58) “Guidelines for Ballast Water Sampling (G2)”
6. Resolution MEPC.209(63) – “2012 Guidelines on Design and Construction to Facilitate Sediment Control on Ships (G12)”
7. Resolution MEPC.288(71), “2017 Guidelines for Ballast Water Exchange (G6)” as amended by MEPC Resolution 371(80)
8. Resolution MEPC.300(72) – BWMS Code
9. Resolution MEPC.378(80) – 2023 Biofouling Guidelines
10. Resolution MEPC 387(81)- Interim Guidance on operating in challenging water quality conditions
11. BWM.2/Cicr.42/Rev.2 – Guidelines for Ballast Water Sampling and Analysis for

Trial Use in Accordance with BWM Convention and (G2)

1. BWM.2/Circ.82- Guidance for temporary storage of sewage and/or grey water in ballast water tanks
2. Marine Notice POL-014

Supersedes: Marine Notice POL-005, dated 07/20

The following changes have been included

• 1. Amended paragraph 1.3 to include guidance in ports with challenging water quality conditions; and temporary storage of treated sewage and/or grey water.

• 1. Updated Appendix I and II

INTRODUCTION;

Inquiries concerning the subject of this Notice should be directed to the Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Republic of

Liberia, the Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry, 22980 Indian Creek Dr., Suite 200, Vienna, VA 20166,

USA. The most current version of all Marine Notices are available in the Online Library at: http://www.liscr.com

Invasive marine species are one of the four greatest threats to the world’s oceans. Unlike other forms of marine pollution, the impacts of invasive marine species are most often irreversible.

In response to the threats posed by invasive marine species, the United Nations Conference on Environment & Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in 1997 (Agenda 21) called on IMO and other international bodies to act to address the transfer of harmful organisms by ships. Under the Agenda 21, it called upon states acting individually or bilaterally within the IMO framework to address the degradation of the marine environment.

In response to this, the IMO Assembly developed & adopted the “Guidelines for the control & management of ships ballast water, to minimize the transfer of harmful organisms and pathogens” in 1997 by Resolution A.868 (20). This replaced the already existing guidelines A.774 (18).

Resolving to prevent, minimize and ultimately eliminate the risks to the environment, human health, property and resources arising from the transfer of Harmful Aquatic Organisms and Pathogens through the control and management of ships‘ Ballast Water and Sediments, as well as to avoid unwanted side-effects from that control and to encourage developments in related knowledge and technology, after more than 14 years of complex negotiations between IMO Member States, the BWM Convention was adopted by consensus at a Diplomatic Conference held at the IMO on 13 February, 2004.

Noting that Regulation A-2 of the BWM Convention requires that discharge of ballast water shall only be conducted through Ballast Water Management in accordance with the provisions of the Convention and that Regulation B-1 of the BWM Convention provides that each ship shall have on board and implement a BWM plan approved by the Administration, taking into account Guidelines developed by the Organization, the IMO MEPC adopted on 22 July, 2005 Resolution

MEPC.127(53) “Guidelines for Ballast Water Management and Development of Ballast Water Management Plans” – Guidelines (G4), which was amended by Resolutions MEPC.306(73) and 370(80).

PURPOSE:

This Notice provides guidance to vessel owners, operators and managers in the development of BWM Plans to meet the requirements of references (a) through (k).

This Notice also informs ship owners, vessel operators and masters that several states have adopted additional measures with a view to prevent, minimize and ultimately eliminate the risks of introduction of Harmful Aquatic Organisms and Pathogens through ships entering their ports.

APPLICABILITY:

This Notice applies to all ships to which the BWM Convention applies.

1.0 REQUIREMENTS:

1.1 Each ship to which the BWM Convention applies shall have on board and implement a BWM Plan. The Liberian Administration has informed it’s Recognized Organization’s (RO) that from 22 April, 2017, the Administration will review and approve all BWM Plans. Regular review of the Plan by the owner, operator, or master should be conducted to ensure

that the information contained is accurate and updated. Any changes to the BWM Plan are required to be approved by the Administration.

1.2 The BWM Plan shall be specific to each ship and shall at least:

.1 detail safety procedures for the ship and the crew associated with Ballast Water Management as required by this Convention;

.2 provide a detailed description of the actions to be taken to implement the Ballast Water Management requirements, including approaches other than in accordance with Regulation D-1 and D-2 of the Convention; and supplemental Ballast Water Management practices as set forth in this Convention;

.3 detail the procedures for the disposal of Sediments:

.1 at sea; and

.2 to shore;

.4 include the procedures for coordinating shipboard Ballast Water Management that involves discharge to the sea with the authorities of the State into whose waters such discharge will take place;

.5 designate the officer on board in charge of ensuring that the plan is properly implemented;

.6 contain the reporting requirements for ships provided for under this Convention using the ballast water reporting form as may be required in Appendix I of Resolution MEPC.288(71);

.7 be written in the working language of the ship. If the language used is not English, French or Spanish, a translation into one of these languages shall be included; and

.8 for vessels entering the Antarctic treaty area, take into account guidelines for ballast water exchange in the Antarctic Treaty area as set out in the Resolution MEPC.163(56).

1.3 In addition to the minimum mandatory aspects of the BWM Plan listed above, the BWM Plan should, inter alia, contain:

.1 plans/drawings and a description of the ballast system;

.2 information on ballast water sampling points and sampling procedures;

.3 operational or safety procedures and restrictions;

.4 description of the method(s) used on board for the ballast water management and sediment control, including procedures for the disposal and handling of sediments;

.5 Any shipboard contingency measures implemented to discharge non-compliant ballast water in accordance with guidelines in BWM.2/Circ.62; and if applicable, procedures for operating in ports with challenging water quality conditions, taking into account interim guidance in reference (j);

.6 If applicable, ship-specific change-over procedure, from ballast water storage to treated sewage/grey water storage and back to ballast water storage, taking into account guidance in reference (l);

.7 duties of the ballast water management officer;

.8 recording requirements; and

.9 crew training and familiarization.

1.4 The non-mandatory section of the BWM Plan may include in appendices, additional information such as provision of additional diagrams and drawings, shipboard equipment and reference materials. National or regional requirements that differ from the Convention, including any additional measures taken pursuant to regulation C-1 of the BWM Convention may also be recorded for reference. Liberian flagged ships are required to comply with such National or regional requirements, including additional measures. Where these compromise the safety and security of the ship or conflict with any other Convention with which the ship must comply, this should be brought to the attention of that coastal or port State authority as soon as possible, and, where practicable, prior to entering into waters under the jurisdiction of that State.

1.5 The Administration recommends that ship owners, operators and masters contact destination ports to ascertain any additional measures taken by port State authorities regarding ballast water and sediment management and control procedures, relative to the vessel’s ports of call, including reporting procedures & other information that will be needed to obtain clearance.

1.6 Additional information on National requirements for Ballast Water management is provided in Appendix I of this Marine Notice.

1.7 Pursuant to BWM.2/Circ.52/Rev.1, ships (such as mobile offshore units and ships that may need to undertake a single international voyage to a dry-dock) that need to enter or reenter into exclusive operation should also include a procedure in their approved BWM Plan for thoroughly cleaning their ballast tanks, piping and equipment to the satisfaction of the Administration and any applicable authorizing Party.

2.0 BWM Plan Review and Approval

2.1 The Plan that is submitted for approval by the Administration shall be in English. To facilitate the review and plan approval process, it is recommended to complete the checklist in Appendix II and used by the Administration for plan approval and attach it to the submitted plan. The checklist identifies the applicable sections of the BWM Plan, taking into account guidance in references above.

2.2 The BWM Plan should be sent to the Office of the Deputy Commissioner of Maritime Affairs, Republic of Liberia, Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry, LLC, Attn: Regulations and Standards, 22980 Indian Creek Dr., Suite 200 Dulles, Virginia 20166, USA. Telephone: + 1 703 790 3434, Telefax: + 1 703 790 5655.

Email: Planapproval@liscr.com

Questions regarding this instruction and fees for BWM Plan review and approval should

be referred to E-mail: RegsandStandards@liscr.com.

2.3 In accordance with BWM.2/Circ.40, BWM Plans approved in accordance with resolution A.868(20) or MEPC Resolution 127(53) as amended, remain valid until the plan requires revision due to the implementation of the ballast water performance standard in regulation D-2 or other approaches for ballast water management provided for in the BWM Convention.

2.4 BWM Plans submitted to an authorized RO for review prior to 22 April, 2017 may be approved by the RO. After that date all BWM Plans shall be submitted to the Administration for review and approval.

* * * * *

Appendix I

National Guidelines for Ballast Water and Bio-Fouling Management

The following States have implemented additional ballast water management measures, including reporting and further details are available in the following links:

1. United States Ballast Water Rules for controlling the discharge of Living Organisms from ships’ Ballast Water in US waters may be found in United States Code of Federal Regulations, 33 CFR 151, subparts C & D and 46 CFR, subpart 162.060.

https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-

bin/retrieveECFR?gp=&SID=646436d759d5c6dfba13ccc55eed6a79&mc=true&n=pt33.2.15

1&r=PART&ty=HTML

https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-

idx?SID=57986cbc95d9bc545851fd25dafb9963&mc=true&node=sp46.6.162.162_1060&rgn =div6

Information on current US ballast water management, reporting requirements, regulations and policy may be accessed on the link to the US Coast Guards website: https://www.dco.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Prevention-Policy-

CG-5P/Commercial-Regulations-standards-CG-5PS/Office-of-Operating-andEnvironmental-Standards/Environmental-Standards/

1. Australian Ballast Water Management requirements may be accessed on https://www.agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/avm/vessels/marine-pestbiosecurity/ballast/australian-ballast-water-management-requirements

The state of Victoria has slightly different requirements which may be found on https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au/as-made/statutory-rules/environment-protection-shipsballast-water-regulations-2017

1. Argentine National requirements may be accessed on http://www.prefecturanaval.gov.ar/web/es/html/ordn_pdf/6-1998-7.pdf

The translated version in English may be found in ordinance no.7 of 1998 in Volume 6 http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=es&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.prefect uranaval.gov.ar%2F

1. Brazilian Ballast Water Regulation may be found in NORMAM-401/DPC on the link to the Brazilian Maritime Authority’s website https://www.marinha.mil.br/dpc/filtro-normamall?page=2

1. Canadian Ballast Water Control & Management Regulations may be accessed on Transportation Publication 13617, A Guide to Canada's Ballast Water Control and Management Regulations http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafety/tp-tp13617-menu-2138.htm

Information on the Canadian Ballast Water Program may be accessed on

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafety/oep-environment-ballastwater-menu-449.htm

1. Regional Harmonized Procedures for the Uniform Implementation of the Ballast Water Management Convention in the Mediterranean Sea can be found in BWM.3/Circ.4.

1. Guidelines for ballast water management prior to discharging ballast in the ROPME Sea area of the Arabian Gulf may be found in IMO’s MEPC 59/INF.3 and MEPC 69/INF.2.

1. Resolution 0477/2012 of 6 September,2012 issued by the Directorate-General of Maritime Affairs, Ministry of Defence, adopted and established measures and a control procedure for verifying the management of ballast water and sediments on board domestic and foreign ships and maritime craft in Colombian jurisdictional waters. The English translation is available in IMO BWM.2/Circ.41.

1. New Zealand rules to control discharge of ballast can be found in https://www.maritimenz.govt.nz/commercial/environmental-requirements/environmentalrequirements-for-operators/ballast-water-management-bwm/

The New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) issued a notice announcing that, from May 2018, all vessels arriving in New Zealand must have clean hulls. The Craft Risk Management Standard (CRMS) has been developed to provide guidance regarding compliance. A copy of the CRMS may be downloaded through the link:

https://www.mpi.govt.nz/document-vault/11671

1. For any additional requirements for ballast water management at Black Sea ports, the shipowner, operator or master should contact the ship’s agent at that port for guidance.

Appendix II

Ballast Water Management (BWM) Plan Questionnaire

VESSEL NAME: DATE: ___/___/____