Poland: PRS to Help Shipowners in Fulfilling BWT Control Requirements

Polski Rejestr Statków offers assistance for shipowners in fulfillment by their ships of the requirements for the management and control of ship’s ballast water and sediments.

The Convention will enter into force 12 months after its ratification by at least 30 States representing 35 per cent of world merchant shipping tonnage. The ratification conditions have not been met so far although the 35 states have ratified it as their proportion is only 27.95% of the world shipping tonnage. It is expected that the ratification may take place in 2014.

Anyway, numerous countries, including e.g. Norway in Europe, have been, for several years, incorporating the Convention provisions in their local legislation to be binding in their territorial waters.

According to the latest regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), USA, which came into force on 21 June 2012, all ships operating the USA waters, including those built from 2013 will have to be fitted with the ballast water treatment systems and, from 2014, so will all the existing ships by 2016. The deadline for the instillation of ballast water treatment system will depend on the total capacity of ballast water tanks and the dry-dock survey date.

In order to adjust ships to the Convention requirements as well as local provisions, Polski Rejestr Statków offers, for shipowners, the services of engineering consultancy, technical documentation approval and certification of the ballast water treatment systems in respect of modification of ballast water systems on existing ships as well as installation of such systems on new ships.

PRS points out that, according to the IMO information, the number of available ballast water treatment systems to be installed onboard the ships may be lower than the market demand, so early commencement of the ballast water management systems’ modification or early design of the appropriate systems in new ships as well as commissioning of such systems from the manufacturers is in the shipowners’ best interest.

PRS-classed ships where new ballast water treatment systems are being installed will be given an additional mark, the so called ‘green mark’, in the symbol of class to inform that the new requirements for the marine environment are fulfilled. Relevant rules regarding, among others, the compliance of ships with the requirements for the management and control of ship’s ballast water and sediments, air pollution protection, improvement in the design and operational energy efficiency as well as safe and ecological recycling of ships are being developed in PRS within the BSR InnoShip project.

“PRS class green mark” may, in the future, facilitate obtaining by shipowners port charge discounts for their ships and meeting the requirements specified in the environmental management standard PN-EN ISO 14001.