The Ballast Water Management Convention has been ratified

The BWM convention is aimed at preventing the spread of harmful and invasive aquatic species in ship’s ballast water and with the latest accession and the final ratification, the ships will be required to manage their ballast water by render harmless, avoid uptake or discharge of aquatic organisms. 

The Finnish ratification brings the total tonnage of contracting countries of the treaty to 35.1441% with 52 committed parties. The convention, which has been under way since 2004 will enter into force on September 8, 2017. IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim is very pleased with the final ratification and states in a press release issued by the International Maritime Organization:

“This is a truly significant milestone for the health of our planet. The spread of invasive species has been recognized as one of the greatest threats to the ecological and the economic well-being of the planet. These species are causing enormous damage to biodiversity and the valuable natural riches of the earth upon which we depend. Invasive species also cause direct and indirect health effects and the damage to the environment is often irreversible,”