Americas News
Canadian Shipowners Protest U.S. Ballast Water Rules
The Canadian Shipowners Association (CSA) is protesting a new U.S. rule on ballast water discharge, arguing that compliance is "unachievable" and that the rule will have negative economic consequences for ships operating in the Great Lakes.
"Our members have tried to find solutions to comply with a problem that has yet to be quantified clearly with science," said CSA President Robert Lewis-Manning.
"We are calling on the Government of Canada to continue working with us to develop a flexible, bi-national non-discriminatory regime that will keep ships sailing while protecting the marine environment."
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the new regulation in late March to take effect on December 19, 2013, and say it reduces the levels of non-indigenous invasive species that may be present in discharged ballast water and requires certain vessels to take extra precautions to avoid contaminating the Great Lakes.
Conservation groups have registered objections to the rules from the other side, arguing that they do not go far enough to protect the Great Lakes from invasive species, according to Wisconsin newspaper the Journal Sentinel.
The International Maritime Organisation has been pushing for ratification of a global rule on ballast water treatment.
