Information provided by the Gard P&I Club
The Gard P&I Club issues news alert regarding Mediterranean countries agree on voluntary interim ballast water management regulations as follows:
The Ballast Water Management Convention (BWM Convention) was adopted in 2004 and will enter into force 12 months after the date on which not less than 30 States, the combined merchant fleets of which constitutes not less than 35% of the gross tonnage of the world merchant shipping, have ratified it. As of December 2011, 32 States have ratified the Convention, the last two States acceding to the Convention being Montenegro and Lebanon, but the current contracting parties still represent only 26.46% of the world tonnage.
The Convention status can be followed on the IMO webpage covering Ballast Water Management1. In anticipation of the entry into force of the BWM Convention, the Mediterranean Coastal States have adopted interim arrangements to address the risk of invasion by alien species via ships’ ballast water and sediment within their areas.
The “Harmonized voluntary arrangements for ballast water management in the Mediterranean region” (IMO BWM.2/Circ 35) require ships sailing in the Mediterranean to exchange their ballast water in accordance with the requirements set out in the D-1 Standard of the BWM Convention. These arrangements are of a voluntary and interim nature and were implemented on 1 January 2012. The arrangements will be in force until the date the BWM Convention enters into force.
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Source: The Gard P&I Club
