8.2 MANAGEMENT OF BALLAST FROM COASTAL SHIPPING

There are currently no standard ballast water management controls for coastal shipping in Australia. Further, coastal vessels are not required to follow the Australian (International) Ballast Water Management Guidelines. Coastal shipping includes both domestic ships, and international vessels visiting ports beyond their first Australian port of call.

In 1994, the Agriculture and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand (ARMCANZ) recommended that ballast water guidelines for coastal shipping be considered. Guidelines were then developed by AQIS in consultation with relevant key bodies. In November 1996, the Australian Ballast Water Management Advisory Council (ABWMAC) endorsed voluntary ballast water management Guidelines for coastal shipping. The Guidelines are intended to be a subset of the Australian (International) Guidelines. Compliance with the Coastal Guidelines will be a matter for state governments and port authorities, with assistance from AQIS³⁸⁸

In summary, the Coastal Guidelines recommend that the relevant authority in each port undertake a voyage-by-voyage risk assessment and that the ships' master obtain approval from the relevant authority to discharge ballast. Sediment should be disposed of properly, and attention paid to ballast water uptake. Importantly, the Guidelines refer to port management plans, recognising the necessity for a system of ballast management in each port.

The Australian Coastal Ballast Water Guidelines Working Group (CBWGWG) hopes to develop and trial model procedures for implementation of the Guidelines and funding is being sought from the Coasts and Clean Seas Initiative, and the shipping industry and port authorities.

The Committee notes that the voluntary Coastal Guidelines are written with the view that exchange of ballast at sea is not practical for all interstate shipping due to the length of time required to change ballast and the often short periods of time of coastal vessels travelling between Australian ports³⁸⁹ The Committee discusses this further in the context of Victoria's ports in Chapter 9.

8.2.1 Summary

The Committee considers that the distinction between coastal and international shipping has resulted in a situation where international shipping is subject to voluntary Australian (International) Guidelines, while coastal shipping is currently subject to no regulation at all.

The Committee commends ABWMAC and the Domestic Ballast Water Working Group on its efforts to institute Guidelines for coastal shipping, and agrees that there is a clear need to address the problem of ballast water discharges from coastal shipping. The Committee does, however, have concerns about the efficacy of the proposed Guidelines if the distinction between international and coastal shipping is maintained. This is discussed further in Chapter 9.