A decade of delay in ratification of the ballast water management convention and further underlying problems

Ballast water is a major transport mechanism responsible for the introduction of invasive aquatic species to marine ecosystems around the world. The threat posed by ballast water for future spread of aquatic organisms has been a concern for the international community since the early 1990s. The International Maritime Organisation introduced the Ballast Water Management Convention in 2004. Global enforcement of this Convention will occur after ratification by at least 30 countries representing not less than 35% of the gross tonnage of the world’s merchant shipping. However, after over a decade the tonnage requirement has not been reached and the Convention has not yet entered into force. The unfamiliarity of stakeholders with multi-dimensional issues of Ballast Water and the lack of technological knowledge has created resistance to ratifying the Convention and hence a delay of over a decade. Collecting representative samples and developing reliable detection tools has been identified as causing delay to the implementation of the BW Convention. However, solutions have been sought for many of the initial Ballast Water issues but not all. This paper discusses three main issues in greater detail: 1. treatment systems, 2. sample size and 3. sample analysis, describing and highlighting the importance of certain underlying problems that still exist and may continue even after implementation of the Convention.