Removing vessels from the water for biofouling treatment has the potential to introduce mobile non-indigenous marine species.
Vessels found contaminated with biofouling non-indigenous marine species are predominantly removed from the water and treated in vessel maintenance facilities (i.e., slipways, travel lifts and dry-docks). Using pre-fouled settlement plates to simulate a vessel's removal from the water for treatment, we demonstrate that a range of mobile organisms (including non-indigenous marine species) may be lost to the marine environment as a consequence of this process. We also determined that different levels of biofouling (primary, secondary and tertiary) and emersion durations (0.5, 5 and 15 min) affected the abundance and composition of mobile taxa lost to the marine environment. Primary biofouling plates lost 3.2% of total animals, secondary plates lost 19.8% and tertiary plates lost 8.2%, while hanging duration had only minor effects. The results suggest that removing vessels contaminated with biofouling non-indigenous marine species from the water for treatment may not be as biosecure as is currently recognised.
Coutts
Ashley D M
AD
Aquenal Pty Ltd., Kingston, Tasmania 7050, Australia. acoutts@aquenal.com.au
Valentine
Joseph P
JP
Edgar
Graham J
GJ
Davey
Adam
A
Burgess-Wilson
Bella
B
D000818:Animals; D057219:Biofouling / Q000517:prevention & control*; D058865:Introduced Species; D007448:Invertebrates / Q000502:physiology*; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000379:methods*; D012767:Ships / Q000379:methods*