HELCOM planning a joint ballast water management strategy with OSPAR

Helsinki, 8 October (HELCOM Information Service) – The Maritime Group of the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM MARITIME) will hold its regular Meeting on 9-11 October in Szczecin, Poland, to discuss further measures to improve safety of navigation and reduce pollution from ships in the Baltic Sea.

One of the high-profile issues on the Agenda is the establishment of a joint ballast water management strategy with the OSPAR Commission for the protection of the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic, prior to the IMO Ballast Water Management Convention coming into force. At present, OSPAR is working on a strategy which will provide interim guidance for vessels entering the OSPAR maritime area to reduce the risk of non-indigenous species introduction in the region. The strategy includes Voluntary Guidelines and a Joint Notice to Shipping requesting vessels to conduct on a voluntary basis ballast water exchange before entering the OSPAR area.

“Representatives of the HELCOM Member States will discuss the feasibility of joining the OSPAR initiative to request vessels transiting the Atlantic, or entering the North-East Atlantic from routes passing the West African Coast to conduct on a voluntary basis ballast water exchange before arriving at the OSPAR area or passing through the OSPAR area and heading to the Baltic Sea,” says Monika Stankiewicz, HELCOM Professional Secretary. “HELCOM will also look into a possibility of undertaking a similar initiative for vessels leaving the Baltic and transiting through the OSPAR region to other destinations so that ballast water would not be exchanged until the vessel was 200 nautical miles off the coast of North-West Europe and in waters greater than 200 meters deep.”

The introduction of invasive aquatic organisms into new environments has been identified as one of the greatest threats to the world’s seas today. Ballast water, ballast sediments, and hull fouling are the most common means for unintentional species introduction into the aquatic environments. Ships without cargo need to take on ballast water in order to remain stable at sea. When this ballast water is exchanged for cargo at the port, the water and any organisms in it are released into the marine environment. The Baltic Sea with its busy maritime traffic is particularly in danger of intensified introductions of alien invasive species. More than 105 non-indigenous species have been recorded in the Baltic. Some 60-70 have established reproducing populations. Some of them have the potential to reduce native diversity by depleting zooplankton populations thus altering the food web.

Among other topics, the Meeting is expected to finalize the outstanding issues in the maritime activities segment of the Baltic Sea Action Plan which is currently being drafted by the HELCOM countries to restore the good ecological status of the sea by 2021. Representatives of the coastal countries will particularly discuss actions on sewage discharges from ships, especially passenger ships and ferries. The Meeting will also evaluate the final report by Finland on estimated nutrient load from ship originated wastewater in the Baltic Sea, as well as how the coastal countries are implementing Regulation 5 of Annex IV to the Helsinki Convention concerning discharge of sewage by other ships than those covered by the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships (MARPOL 73/78).

Another major issue on the Agenda is the joint contribution of the HELCOM countries to the work of IMO aiming to implement more stringent requirements for emission from shipping within the revision process of Annex VI to MARPOL 73/78. The Meeting will review the details of two joint submissions to IMO concerning nitrogen oxide (NOx) and sulphur oxide (SOx) emissions from ships. The first submission will be based on the outcome of the ShipNODeff project, carried by Finland and Estonia, which will provide best available data on NOx emission from different types of ships operating in the Baltic and contribution of these emissions – through deposition – to eutrophication. The emissions are modeled according to the IMO “Three Tier Approach” to provide estimation of effects of possible new measures. This joint paper will also provide an additional aspect in the IMO discussion, which is currently not covered, notably impact on marine environment. The second submission will represent the experience of the Baltic Sea countries in implementing the Baltic Sea SOx Emission Control Area, where more demanding requirements as to sulphur content in fuel oil used by ships are enforced comparing to other parts of the world, hence supporting efforts of IMO to tighten sulphur content in fuel oil.

Note to Editors:

The Helsinki Commission (HELCOM), officially known as the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, is an intergovernmental organisation of the nine Baltic Sea coastal countries and the EU working to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution and to ensure safety of navigation in the region. 

HELCOM is the governing body of the "Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area," more usually known as the Helsinki Convention.

For more information, please contact:

Ms. Monika Stankiewicz

Professional Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0)207 412 643

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 639

E-mail: monika.stankiewicz@helcom.fi

Mr. Nikolay Vlasov

Information Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0)207 412 635

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 639

E-mail: nikolay.vlasov@helcom.fi