The industry is in a state of limbo, says Ballast Water Treatment Technology editor Craig Jallal. With less than 1,000 days until the D-2 deadline, several of our stories forecast a compliance landscape that is likely to be fragmented at best. Meanwhile, in the US, while more BWMSs are being type-approved denoting progress, VIDA seems to have stalled
Over the course of 2021, Ballast Water Treatment Technology reports and features were, like much of the industry, focused on looming compliance deadlines. Here’s a list of our editor’s favourites:
Large part of global fleet may miss D-2 standard deadline
As one of many stories concerning the looming D-2 standard deadline, this story reveals, through VesselsValue’s statistics, that the vast majority of the global fleet has yet to install ballast water treatment systems, let alone conform to the required D-2 standards.
1,000 days to go: MEPC 77, The Shanghai Test and BWMS decision time
Filtersafe head of marine Mark Riggio has a track record as a ballast water treatment system manufacturer, was president of the trade association BEMA, and is well-qualified to comment on the state of the industry. As an experienced equipment supplier, Mr Riggio says The Shanghai Test, developed with Control Union, should be a standard adapted by IMO and USCG, with the D-2 standard deadline looming. Mr Riggio looks at what owners and operators need to do and the steps they can take before the deadline.
1,000 days to go: making D-2 standard implementation work
In another ’1,000 days to go’ feature, ERMA FIRST chief technical officer Dr Stelios Kyriacou looks into the limited data available from the experience building phase of ballast water regulation implementation. Noting the understandable desire of groups that represent shipowners to have a pathway towards resolution of the whole ballast water treatment issue, Dr Kyriacou covers some of the data available from other sources and the need to develop workable inspection guidelines.
When alternate ballast water management systems displace retrofit projects
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020, Riviera Maritime Media has produced more than 250 webinars targeting specific technical and operational questions in shipping. In the ballast water treatment technology sector, the alternatives to managing ballast water treatment were explored in the webinar: When alternate ballast water management systems displace retrofit projects.
What we know about changes to ballast water regulations in US waters
In an industry riddled with difficulties, understanding the state-of-play in the US is one of the most problematic. The webinar, What we know about changes to ballast water regulations in US waters, looked at the regulatory landscape for US territorial waters and shared waters such as the Great Lakes, as well as the latest on the Environmental Protection Agency’s rulings post-VIDA and the right way to react to a US Coast Guard inspection. With so much at stake, the subjects will be revisited as part of our webinar programme in 2022.
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