Ballast water, International Maritime Organization, Regulations/advisory

15-Year Extension For BWMS Retrofitting Rejected by MEPC 69

A proposal submitted by Liberia to the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) 69th Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) that called for the Ballast Water Management System (BWMS) relaxation period to be extended by 15 years due to existing ships needing the time to retrofit systems successfully has failed to gain support, therefore the original implementation dates remain untouched.

Liberia was pushing for the 15-year relaxation period in order to enable “certainty and confidence for all stakeholders” and for additional time to allow for the consideration of alternatives.

The majority of countries did not support the Proposal, citing that they required more information.

MEPC Chairman, Mr Arsenio Dominguez has proposed that the debate be postponed to the next MEPC (MEPC 70) when more information had been submitted.

The Committee decided that a note of the comments will be taken, but that it will not send to the review group as they said that focussing on the review of the G8 guidelines is more important at the moment.

The Proposal submitted by Liberia read as follows:

4/13 Proposal for additional revision of the application schedule of regulation B-3 of the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004

Liberia provides comments on recent developments in the retrofitting market in conjunction with the revised application schedule adopted by resolution A,1088(28). The Committee is advised that according to data relating to the completion of IOPP renewal surveys in 2015 and predicted up until entry into force of the BWMC combined with known dry dock capacity Liberia predicts a shortfall in dry dock capacity to fit ballast water management systems in 2020/2021. Liberia estimates that demand for retrofitting after the entry into force of the BWMC will reach a peak in 2020 with 9,500 ships but with a global capacity to retrofit 6,000 ships annually – a predicted shortfall in excess of 50%.

Additionally issues relating to the lack of suitable available systems for existing tonnage such as bulk carriers with topside tanks are discussed. It is noted that ballast water is discharged using gravity from the topside tanks and there is no opportunity to treat ballast water or neutralize active substances on discharge.

Liberia discusses the possible need for an additional revision to regulation B-3 of the BWM Convention to address the concerns identified of retrofitting ballast water management systems to comply with regulation D-2 of the Convention. The possibility of “BWE with additional measures” to comply with the D-2 standard is discussed as an alternative, for existing ships, to fitting a BWMS for a period of up to 15 years.

The Committee is asked to consider the information provided in the submission and the supporting paper MEPC 69/INF.22 and a possible further revision to the implementation schedule. If the Committee agrees to consider an additional revision Liberia it will then submit a proposal to MEPC 70 to clarify the scope of the application of this extended BWE to comply with the D2 standard.

Member State Feedback

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) voiced support in principal of the Proposal saying that ship owners feel they have to carry out their International Oil Pollution Prevention (IOPP) certificate renewal early. ICS also stated that ship owners need time to select systems they feel they have more confidence and to meet worldwide needs. The lack of United States Coastguard (USCG) Type Approvals, for example, means that more time is needed for systems to be approved and for ship owners to feel confident in global operation of their system, said ICS.

The Japanese delegation did not support the Liberian Proposal, voicing that many stakeholders have already prepared for implementation, and therefore changing the schedule would lead to early penalisation. They stated that the Convention needs to be implemented properly rather than be changed and that it needs to keep its credibility. They also highlighted the fact that ballast water exchange is not enough to achieve D2 standard, stating that it would be almost impossible to achieve D2 standard just using BW exchange. The industry doesn’t don’t install systems for 5 years then it will not be able to achieve the purpose of the Convention, said Japan.

The Community of European Shipyards Associations (CESA) did not support the Proposal, acknowledging that there are technical difficulties for retrofitting BWMS, stating that it is the same for any system. They said that concerns raised by Liberia do not warrant postponing.

Cyprus posed the question: “is dockyard capacity enough for retrofitting BWMS in the next 3 years?” They voiced that if the industry wants to protect the credibility of the IMO then it should do something “otherwise it will make a mess of this”. They also stated that if there is a lack of capacity then as a responsible organisation the IMO MEPC should do something. However, the confirmed that they believed Liberia’s 15 years suggestion is too much and that the period should be less than that.

Vanuatu said that the 15-year relaxation period is too much, but should be considered as an option by the review group.

Canada confirmed that it believed that MEPC 69 was too busy with the G8 Guidelines and implementation and so the BWMS retrofitting issues aspect should be left until another time.

In conclusion, it was agreed that the proposals would not to be sent to the review group, and the MEPC 69 would focus on G8 instead. Liberia will submit further information at another session. Therefore, the Proposal was noted but not moved forward.