General Guidance
The Ballast Water Management Convention (BWMC) entered into force on September 8, 2017,
The BWMC is applicable to all ships that are designed and constructed to carry ballast water.
These ships is required to have an International Ballast Water Management Certificate (IBWMC) (if > 400 GT), an approved ballast water management plan (BWMP) and a ballast water record book (BWRB) on board.
- The ballast water record entries should be maintained on board the ship for a minimum period of two years after the last entry has been made and then in the Company’s control for a further period of at least three years.
- In the event of the discharge of ballast water in accordance with the regulations or in case of other accidental or exceptional discharge of ballast water not exempted by the BWM Convention , a description of the circumstances and reasons for discharge must be made in the Ballast water record book
- The Ballast Water Record Book shall be kept readily available for inspections at all reasonable times.
- A record of each operation concerning ballast water shall be fully recorded without delay in the Ballast Water Record Book.
The officer in Charge of the operation shall sign each entry and the Master shall sign each completed page
The entries in the Ballast Water Record Book shall be in a working language of the ship, However if the language is not English, French or Spanish the entries shall include a translation into one of those three languages.
When the official national language of the State whose flag the ship is entitled to fly are also used to make entries, these shall prevail in case of a dispute or discrepancy - While a ship to which the BWM Convention applies, is in port or an offshore terminal, officers duly authorized by a Party may inspect the Ballast Water Record Book and make copies of an entry and requires the master to certify that the copy is true. Such certified copies will be admissible in any judicial proceeding as evidence of the facts stated in the entry. Where inspection and taking of certified copy of entries of a Ballast Water Record Book is made, it shall be done as expeditiously as possible without causing the ship to be unduly delayed