BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGIES

BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGIES

Regulation D-3 of the BWM Convention requires that ballast water management systems used, to comply with the Convention, must be approved by the Administration taking into account the Guidelines for approval of ballast water management systems (G8).


In order to be type-approved by an Administration, ballast water management systems need to be tested in a land-based facility and on board ships to prove that they meet the performance standard contained in regulation D-2 of the BWM Convention. Guidelines (G8) provide the technical specifications and the approval and certification procedures to be used by the Administration when granting Type Approval. Successful fulfillment of the provisions contained in Guidelines (G8) should lead to the issuance of a Type Approval Certificate, which allows ballast water management system to be used on board ship.


Regulation D-3 also requires that ballast water management systems which make use of Active Substances, to comply with the Convention, shall be approved by IMO in accordance with the 'Procedure for approval of ballast water management systems that make use of Active Substances (G9)'. Procedure (G9) consists of a two-tier process - Basic Approval and Final Approval- to ensure that the ballast water management system does not pose unreasonable risk to the environment, human health, property or resources.