1 Introduction
Clasification Society 2024 - Version 9.40
Statutory Documents - IMO Publications and Documents - Resolutions - Marine Environment Protection Committee - Resolution MEPC.279(70) – 2016 Guidelines for Approval of Ballast Water Management Systems (G8) – (Adopted on 28 October 2016) - 1 Introduction

1 Introduction

General

1.1 The 2016 Guidelines for approval of ballast water management systems (G8) are aimed primarily at Administrations, or their designated bodies, in order to assess whether ballast water management systems meet the standard as set out in regulation D-2 of the "International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments," hereafter referred to as "the Convention". In addition, these guidelines can be used as guidance for manufacturers and shipowners on the evaluation procedure that equipment will undergo and the requirements placed on ballast water management systems. These Guidelines should be applied in an objective, consistent and transparent way and their application should be evaluated periodically by the Organization.

1.2 Articles and regulations referred to in these Guidelines are those contained in the Convention.

1.3 The Guidelines include general requirements concerning design and construction, technical procedures for evaluation, the procedure for issuance of the Type Approval Certificate of the ballast water management system, and reporting to the Organization.

1.4 These Guidelines are intended to fit within an overall framework for evaluating the performance of systems that includes the experimental shipboard evaluation of prototype systems under the provisions of regulation D-4, approval of ballast water management systems and associated systems that comply fully with the requirements of the Convention, and port State control sampling for compliance under the provisions of article 9 of the Convention.

1.5 The requirements of regulation D-3 stipulate that ballast water management systems used to comply with the Convention must be approved by the Administration, taking into account these Guidelines. In addition to such ballast water management system approval, as set forth in regulation A-2 and regulation B-3, the Convention requires that discharges of ballast water from ships must meet the regulation D-2 performance standard on an on-going basis. Approval of a system is intended to screen-out management systems that would fail to meet the standards prescribed in regulation D-2 of the Convention. Approval of a system, however, does not ensure that a given system will work on all ships or in all situations. To satisfy the Convention, a discharge must comply with the D-2 standard throughout the life of the ship.

1.6 The operation of ballast water management systems should not impair the health and safety of the ship or personnel, nor should it present any unacceptable harm to the environment or to public health.

1.7 Ballast water management systems are required to meet the standards of regulation D-2 and the conditions established in regulation D-3 of the Convention. These Guidelines serve to evaluate the safety, environmental acceptability, practicability and biological effectiveness of the systems designed to meet these standards and conditions. The cost effectiveness of type-approved equipment will be used in determining the need for revisions of these Guidelines.

1.8 These Guidelines contain recommendations regarding the design, installation, performance, testing, environmental acceptability and approval of ballast water management systems.

1.9 To achieve consistency in its application, the approval procedure requires that a uniform manner of testing, analysis of samples, and evaluation of results is developed and applied. These Guidelines should be applied in an objective, consistent, and transparent way; and their suitability should be periodically evaluated and revised as appropriate by the Organization. New versions of these Guidelines should be duly circulated by the Organization. Due consideration should be given to the practicability of the ballast water management systems.

Goal and purpose

1.10 The goal of these Guidelines is to ensure uniform and proper application of the standards contained in the Convention. As such the Guidelines are to be updated as the state of knowledge and technology may require.

1.11 The purpose of these Guidelines is to provide a uniform interpretation and application of the requirements of regulation D-3 and to:
  • .1 define test and performance requirements for the approval of ballast water management systems;

  • .2 assist Administrations in determining appropriate design, construction and operational parameters necessary for the approval of ballast water management systems;

  • .4 provide guidance to Administrations, equipment manufacturers and shipowners in determining the suitability of equipment to meet the requirements of the Convention and of the environmental acceptability of treated water; and

  • .5 assure that ballast water management systems approved by Administrations are capable of achieving the standard of regulation D-2 in land-based and shipboard evaluations and do not cause unacceptable harm to the ship, crew, the environment or public health.

Applicability

1.12 These Guidelines apply to the approval of ballast water management systems in accordance with the Convention.

1.13 These Guidelines apply to ballast water management systems intended for installation on board all ships required to comply with regulation D-2.


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