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1.0 Interpretation

1.1 For the purposes of this Guide:
“exclusive economic zone” consists of an area of the sea beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea of Canada that has as its inner limit the outer limit of the territorial sea of Canada and as its outer limit the line every point of which is at a distance of 200 nautical miles from the nearest point of the baselines of the territorial sea of Canada or as specified in the Oceans Act,

“IMO” means the International Maritime Organization

2.0 Ballast Water Management Plan

2.1 Recognizing the importance of pre-planning in order to conduct any ballast water management procedure in a safe and effective manner, sections 11 and 12 of the Regulations outline the requirement for the preparation and carriage of a ballast water management plan.

2.2 A Canadian ship registered under the Canada Shipping Act is required to submit four copies of its ballast water management plan to the Board of Steamship Inspection.

2.3 Plans carried on Canadian and non-Canadian ships should be reviewed by the national Administration, but do not have to be approved.

2.4 Ballast water management plans must include the information listed in section 11 of the Regulations. The following documents may be useful in preparing a ballast water management plan:

1. IMO Resolution A.868(20), Guidelines for the Control and Management of Ships Ballast Water to Minimize the Transfer of Harmful Aquatic Organisms and Pathogens, in particular section 7.1
2. the Model Ballast Water Management Plan developed by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO)
3. Regulation B-1 of the IMO’s Regulations for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (not yet in force)
4. Part B of the Annex to Resolution MEPC.127(53), Guidelines for Ballast Water Management and Development of Ballast Water Management Plans which is included as Schedule 1 of this Guide.

2.5 Ships that conduct best management practices in accordance with section 5 of the Regulations and section 7 of this Guide should incorporate these practices into their ballast water management plan.

3.0 Ballast Water Exchange ^

3.1 With the exception of ships specifically exempted from the provision of the Regulations, all ships are expected to exchange or treat their ballast prior to discharge in waters under Canadian jurisdiction.

3.2 When conducting ballast water exchange in order to meet the provisions of the Regulations, Part A of the IMO Guidelines For Ballast Water Management and Development of Ballast Water Management Plans and the IMO Guidelines for Ballast Water Exchange should be followed. The IMO Guidelines are included as Schedule 1 and 2 to this Guide.

3.3 The Regulations specify the procedures that must be followed for ships on transoceanic and non-transoceanic voyages, including the recognition that under certain circumstances, for reasons of safety, equipment failure or practicality, the preferred option for management of ballast water may not always be possible. In these cases, those alternatives that are acceptable have been identified, particular to specific voyages. Situations where exchanging ballast would be impractical would include cases where the voyage was not of sufficient length in waters suitable for exchange or where exchange could only be conducted in waters of another country and that country did not permit the exchange.

3.4 In cases where the preferred option or alternatives are not complied with, the Master should be able to provide clear proof of why compliance was not possible.

3.5 In dealing with the exceptional circumstance where a ship can not comply with the specific provisions of the Regulations, the ship will be required to comply with one or more of the provisions listed in subsection 13(5) of the Regulations. At a minimum, ships would be required to discharge only the amount of ballast water operationally necessary for cargo operations. The Master may wish to suggest suitable measures to Transport Canada for consideration.

3.6 If when verifying compliance through an onboard inspection it is determined that the ship does not comply with the Regulations (for example the salinity of the ballast is found to be below 30 parts per thousand as required in paragraph 8(2)(b) of the Regulations) or it is determined that the reasons provided for not complying were unjustified, then Transport Canada will treat the ship the same as an exceptional circumstance and require the ship to comply with one or more of the provisions listed in subsection 13(5) of the Regulations. MARINE SAFETY ISSUED: January 1, 2000 REVISED: June 28, 2006 Page 8 of 44 TP 13617 E

3.7 A ship shall not be required to deviate from its intended voyage, or delay the voyage, in order to conduct an exchange beyond 200 nautical miles from shore or beyond 50 nautical miles from shore as referred to in sections 6(1), 6(2), 6(4)(b), 7(1), 7(2) and 7(3)(b) of the Regulations. A ship may however be required to deviate from its intended voyage or delay its voyage in order to conduct an exchange within waters under Canadian jurisdiction, as referred to in sections 6(3), 6(4)(a), 6(4)(c), 6(4)(d), 6(5), 7(3)(c) and 7(3)(d) of the Regulations.

3.8 In addition to the mandatory provisions in the Regulations, for ships traveling to and from ports in the Bay of Fundy, it is recommended that exchange occur in the Gulf of Maine in waters greater than 100 metres deep, as indicated in Figure 1. It is also recommended that ship traffic crossing the Gulf of Maine and using a coastal route along the Scotian Shelf should exchange in the Gulf of Maine in waters deeper than 100 metres.

3.9 Figure 1 also indicates the alternate exchange zone for transoceanic voyages to east coast ports referred to in paragraph 6(4)(a) of the Regulations and for non-transoceanic voyages along the east coast of North America referred to in paragraph 7(3)(a) of the Regulations.

Figure 1. Recommended ballast water exchange zones on the Scotian Shelf and Gulf of Maine
The magenta zone indicates that traffic transiting to/from the Bay of Fundy should exchange in the Gulf of Maine, in water deeper than 100 m. The yellow zone indicates that traffic crossing the Gulf of Maine and using a coastal route on the Scotia Shelf should exchange in the Gulf of Maine, in water deeper than 100 m.

The green zone is the exchange zone for on-shelf traffic heading to/from Nova Scotia, plus ships following a shelfbreak path. Ships should exchange in waters deeper than 1000 m, west of Sable Island and the Gully and away from the entrance to N.E. Channel.

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