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Activities
The
Global Ballast Water Management Programme - India conducts various
activites to raise awareness to assist various agencies involved
to reduce the transfer of invasive marine species in ballast water.
These
include:
Environment
Global
shipping moves approximately 90% of the world commodities. As the
globalization of the economy continues, larger and faster ships
make it possible to keep pace with increasing demand. Technology
is making it possible to reduce or eliminate the natural boundaries,
which have helped maintain the integrity of natural systems for
millennia. While the elimination and shrinking of boundaries through
technology have yielded enormous economic benefits, there has been
a negative consequence. One of the consequences is the introduction
of non-indigenous species through ballast water.
Water
carried by ships to provide stability to it is known as “Ballast
water”. Most vessels carry ballast water that may be fresh,
brackish or saltwater. Water carried on ships as ballast contain
marine organisms. It has been estimated that more than 7000 species
of animals and plants are transported daily around the world through
ballast water and are introduced to new environment. Out of these,
some species become established and may have a detrimental effect
on the ecosystem, economy and health.
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Communication,
Education and Awareness Raising
Information
about the dangers of ballast water transfers is poor to non-existent
in India, and hence constitutes a major barrier to action. This
lack of information and low level of general awareness is seen as
an extremely serious issue.
One
of the priorities recommended for removal of these barrier is the
development of communication, education and awareness raising on
the issue of ballast water.
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Risk
Assessment
This
is important for establishing the level and types of risk of introductions
that a particular port faces, as well as the most sensitive resources
and values that might be threatened. These will determine the types
of management that are required.
Risk
Assessment is carried out analyzing shipping patterns and comparing
the environmental similarity of source and sink ports.
The
relevant data for risk Assessment should include:
 |
Existing
environmental condition |
|
Shipping
movements |
|
Most
sensitive environment resources and their values |
|
Location
of source |
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Port
Base Line Survey
 These
surveys are necessary to check the presence of introduced marine
species and includes biological, physical and chemical sampling.
Research
& Development
At
present there is no single technological ‘fix’ for problems
associated with ballast water transfer. There is no system or practise
used today that will totally prevent the introduction of unwanted
non-indigenous aquatic species into port or esturine water.
Technologies
being researched include filtration and physical separation, treatment
with chemicals, ultra-violet light, ozone, heat, de-oxygenation,
electro-ionisation, gas super-saturation and various combinations
of the above.
These
technologies are at an early stage of development and significant
further research is required.
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Compliance
Monitoring and Enforcement
This
activity will be carried out either by the Maritime Administration
or by the Port Authority.
This
activity can only be started once the Convention is ratified by
the respective State.
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Regional
Cooperation and Replication
 An
important objective of the Glo-Ballast Programme is to establish
and support regional countries to increase awareness and eventual
replication of the demonstration sites across each region. Six countries
are chosen for regional replication and they are Maldives, Singapore,
Srilanka, Thailand, Bangladesh and Malaysia.
This
project expects that each pilot country must take initiative to
inform and share the experience gained on this Global Ballast Water
issue.
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