MARAD's ballast water effort have grown into a multi-state and multi-agency cooperative effort that supports the development of technical and scientific protocols for technology testing and verification, and operation of independent testing facilities to provide the needed data for certification of ballast water management systems (BWMS) to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and U.S. Coast Guard standards. These facilities also conduct research and development for improved technology and processes to control aquatic nuisance species.

Prior to 2010, MARAD contributed ship platforms for testing, scientific, technical, engineering, and marine architectural support and year-end funding to the ballast waster research effort. MARAD also worked with academia and other stakeholders to coordinate the development of a network of U.S.-based facilities for testing and verification of BWMS. MARAD's early ballast water efforts were also supported with funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2005 and 2006.

Beginning in 2010, MARAD provided funding under the META program to support the creation and operation of three independent BWMS testing facilities. By 2012, all three facilities were able to test technologies in accordance with IMO testing protocols, and by 2013 all were accepted by the U.S. Coast Guard as sub-laboratories for the evaluation and testing of these systems.

Current

Water Quality Monitoring in the Great Lakes

The real time water quality monitoring project explored available environmental monitoring sensors and piloted a long-term field deployment of the Proteus multiparameter sonde developed by Proteus Instruments, and developed an accessible an accessible platform for viewing real-time data in support of uptake avoidance best management practices as defined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's 2013 Vessel General Permit. Project staff conducted a literature review and investigation of commercially available sensors and selected an instrument that consists of a multiparameter sonde- able to measure turbidity, chlorophyll-a, phycocyanin, a total coliform bacteria-, telemetry system, and solar panel. Long-term deployment of the Proteus began in April 2022 and ended in October 2022 at the Montreal Pier Testing Facility located on the Duluth-Superior Harbor in Superior, Wisconsin. Data collected from the multiparameter sonde was made publicly available.

Completed

Ballast Water Technology Testing in the Chesapeake Bay Region

In 2008, MARAD partnered with the Maryland Department of Transportation and the University of Maryland's Center for Environmental Science to establish the Maritime Environmental Resource Center (MERC) to evaluate the mechanical and biological efficacy, costs, and logistical aspects of ballast water management systems (BWMS), and to assess the economic impacts of ballast water regulations and management approaches. In 2011, MERC created a mobile barge-based test platform which enables testing of ballast water control systems in a wide range of environmental conditions with differing biological communities and varying salinities. MERC continues testing technology and conducting research related to the prevention of the introduction of non-indigenous aquatic species into ecosystems.

Ballast Water Technology Testing in the Great Lakes

MARAD is a sponsor of the Great Waters Research Collaborative (GWRC), a collaborative effort to end ship-mediated introductions of invasive species in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system through independent research and demonstration of environmental technology, financial incentives, and consistent basin-wide harbor monitoring. With the help of MARAD, SI established a land-based Research, Development and Technology Evaluation (RDTE) facility in Superior, Wisconsin, to provide intensive testing services to vendors of BWMS and bench-scale testing of promising treatments. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Superior's Lake Superior Research Institute and the University of Duluth, among others, provide critical scientific and technical expertise and services for biological research activities and other activities at GWRC.

Ballast Water Technology Testing on MARAD's Training Ship Golden Bear

MARAD teamed with the California Maritime Academy, the University of Washington, and Glosten Associates to establish a ballast water testing capability onboard the California Maritime Academy training ship Golden Bear. The ship was successfully modified in 2010 and now assists with BWMS research and verification by conducting tests of systems during the regular school year while the ship in moored at its dock in Vallejo, California, and during the summer sea-term when the ship is underway. This West Coast-based research platform facilitates BWMS research in a region highly populated with non-indigenous aquatic species.

MARAD is also addressing issues related to the introduction of non-indigenous aquatic species through hull biofouling. Hull biofouling is another significant ship vector for the introduction of non-indigenous aquatic species. The urgency of this issue is evidenced by the rapid development of the IMO's guidelines for the control and management for the control and management of ships' biofouling to minimize the transfer of invasive aquatic species - approved by the IMO MEPC 62 in July 2011 and revised at IMO MEPC 80 in July 2023. Hull husbandry is being considered as regulations are developed as part of the implementation of the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act.

Completed

Ship Biofouling

This project has updated and expanded the Quality Management System, Quality Assurance Project Plan, and Standard Operating Procedures specific to in-water cleaning system testing. The completed biofouling survey in Baltimore, MD for the fully-autonomous, proactive in-water cleaning system.

In-Water Hull Cleaning Pilot in Support of California Interim BMPs

In 2012, MARAD conducted an in-water hull cleaning pilot test under the oversight of the California San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) on the MARAD vessel Cape Orlando in Alameda, California. The test demonstrated the successful containment and capture of the removed biological material and small amounts of anti-fouling paint through the use of a suction line on the discharge of the scrubber unit and a seal between the scrubber and the hull. As a result of the pilot test, the California San Francisco Bay RWQCB issued a fact sheet accepting the in-water hull cleaning test as an interim best management practice (BMP) until such time as the State Water Quality Board completes further studies. MARAD has subsequently utilized this BMP in cleaning its vessels' hulls. With support and guidance from MARAD, the Alliance of Coastal Technologies and MERC have taken the lead on international efforts to facilitate the development and approval of ship biofouling in-water cleaning innovations.

Current

The Release of Microplastics as a Result of Ship Biofouling

The Maritime Environmental Resource Center continues field sampling and laboratory experimenting to investigate the fate, behavior, and bioavailability of microplastics released from ship coatings. Results are now being analyzed for a peer-reviewed publication. MERC continues to host an international technical working group on the release of microplastics from ship antifouling coating, involving coating companies, in-water cleaning companies, researchers, and agency representatives.