GloBallast Story Published at UN Ocean Conference
During the 20th century, tiny organisms carried in the ballast water of ships began to be recognized as alien invasive species.
These aquatic species were hitching a ride across the oceans and some were embedding themselves in new areas, multiplying and becoming harmful invasive aquatic species.
The impacts on native species, local ecosystems and sea-based economies have, in some cases, been devastating.
The story of how global partnerships, governments, industry, academia and other stakeholders came together to tackle this problem is told in a new publication, The GloBallast Story, launched (6 June) during a side event at the UN Ocean Conference in New York.
The publication outlines the key achievements of the GloBallast Partnerships Programme, executed by IMO in collaboration with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The project was launched in 2007 after an initial 4-year phase and has been assisting developing countries to reduce the transfer of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens in ships’ ballast water and implement the IMO Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention.
The 10 most invasive species that can be transferred through ships’ ballast water are profiled in the publication, which also provides infographics, diagrams and detailed case histories.
The book was launched by Chris Severin from the GEF, Andrew Hudson from UNDP and Stefan Micallef from IMO, in the presence of Rear Admiral Brady from the Maritime Authority of Jamaica.
"Shipping is a great connector between continents, countries and cities—about 80 percent of international trade relies on shipping. However, global shipping is also a significant source of the spread of invasive alien species when ship’s ballast water is not managed properly," says in the introduction of th book.
Invasive alien species often disrupt the local ecosystems, threaten local economies and livelihoods, cause diseases, and can even cause the loss of human life. Moreover, experience shows that once invasive alien species have been introduced and established, they are virtually impossible to eradicate. Preventing their arrival in the first place is the best strategy.
This was the fundamental rationale for GloBallast. For more than a decade – in partnership with IMO and UNDP – GloBallast has mobilized a broad coalition of more than 50 countries, shipping lines, port authorities and other stakeholders around a bold vision to eliminate ballast water as a key conduit for invasive alien species and a driver of global biodiversity loss.
The entry into force of the Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention in September 2017 will be a crowning moment for our joint efforts. The BWM Convention provides a strong basis for the world to tackle this important problem, and it is also helping create the foundations for private sector investments in the global water ballast industry that may be worth US$35 billion over the next decade.
