Following China’s extension of the treaty to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, ships flagged to Hong Kong will now be required to apply the requirements of the Ballast Water Management Convention (BWM).
Keeping in mind that the China – Hong Kong flag is the fourth largest flag Administration in the world by shipping tonnage, the treaty will which helps prevent the spread of potentially invasive aquatic species by ships now covers more than 90% of shipping worldwide.
To remind, the BWM Convention aims to protect marine ecosystems by requiring ships to manage their ballast water so that harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens are removed or rendered harmless before the ballast water is released into a new location. This helps prevent the spread of invasive species – as well as potentially harmful pathogens.
The Convention entered into force in 2017 and now includes 83 parties, representing the 90.98% of the gross tonnage of the world’s merchant shipping, up from 81.83% previously.
China notified IMO on 13 May that the Government of the People’s Republic of China has extended the BWM Convention to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, with effect from 13 August 2020.
