Ballast Water Convention Looking to Panama to ensure that it comes into force soon
30 IMO member states have already ratified the Ballast Water Convention With 30 IMO member states having ratified the Ballast Water Convention, many are looking to Panama to ensure that it comes into force soon.Entry into force requirements say that 35% of the global fleet need to have ratified the convention in order for it to come into force a year later. The Convention still does not have the necessary percentage, being short by 8.56% with Panama, along with China (including Hong Kong) as the two countries who could make up the shortfall on their own.Panama is already part of the GloBallast Partnerships programme which aims to reduce the risks and impact of invasive species being transferred in ballast water. In a presentation to the GloBallast conference in Turkey this week, the country indicated its support for the convention and said it was working towards ratification, but gave no indication of when this might take place.According to some unofficial sources it has been suggested that Panama has probably has not signed the convention yet as there is no scientific solution for killing micro-organisms which has been recommended by the IMO as a scientifically based solution that will produce the very ...
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