News: Ballast water log requirements on United States west coast

Members are advised that environmental inspectors on the United States West Coast have recently issued notices of violations to ships that lacked proper ballast water handling logs. California, Oregon and Washington all require ballast water reporting on a tank-by-tank basis. Additionally, all three states require that the ballast water log book show ballast activities for each ballast tank and that such documentation be made available to inspectors for two years.

Additionally, Oregon and Washington require recording the exact time and position of the start and stop of ballast water exchange or treatment operations for each tank. See, O.A.R.§ 340-143-0020(6) and W.A.C.  § 220-650-030(6).

A shipowner or operator that calls the US West Coast should review their ballast water handling logs to ensure compliance as these requirements are more restrictive than IMO requirements. Members should be aware that failure to comply with ballast water log requirements can result in civil or criminal penalties.

Category: Pollution