title: Emerging risks from ballast water treatment: the run-up to the International Ballast Water Management Convention.
abstract: Uptake and discharge of ballast water by ocean-going ships contribute to the worldwide spread of aquatic invasive species, with negative impacts on the environment, economies, and public health. The International Ballast Water Management Convention aims at a global answer. The agreed standards for ballast water discharge will require ballast water treatment. Systems based on various physical and/or chemical methods were developed for on-board installation and approved by the International Maritime Organization. Most common are combinations of high-performance filters with oxidizing chemicals or UV radiation. A well-known problem of oxidative water treatment is the formation of disinfection by-products, many of which show genotoxicity, carcinogenicity, or other long-term toxicity. In natural biota, genetic damages can affect reproductive success and ultimately impact biodiversity. The future exposure towards chemicals from ballast water treatment can only be estimated, based on land-based testing of treatment systems, mathematical models, and exposure scenarios. Systematic studies on the chemistry of oxidants in seawater are lacking, as are data about the background levels of disinfection by-products in the oceans and strategies for monitoring future developments. The international approval procedure of ballast water treatment systems compares the estimated exposure levels of individual substances with their experimental toxicity. While well established in many substance regulations, this approach is also criticised for its simplification, which may disregard critical aspects such as multiple exposures and long-term sub-lethal effects. Moreover, a truly holistic sustainability assessment would need to take into account factors beyond chemical hazards, e.g. energy consumption, air pollution or waste generation.
authors.affiliation: Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Max-Dorn-Str. 8-10, D-10589 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Werschkun
authors.affiliation: Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Max-Dorn-Str. 8-10, D-10589 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Sangeeta
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Banerji
authors.affiliation: Marine Division, AZTI-Tecnalia, Txatxarramendi ugartea z/g, 48395 Sukarrieta, Spain.
authors.forename: Oihane C
authors.initials: OC
authors.lastname: Basurko
authors.affiliation: Dr. Matej David Consult, Korte 13e, SI 6310 Izola, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Matej
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: David
authors.affiliation: Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), P.O. Box 59, NL-1790 AB Den Burg, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fuhr
authors.affiliation: GoConsult, Grosse Brunnenstr. 61, D-22763 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Stephan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gollasch
authors.affiliation: Federal Environment Agency (UBA), Bad Elster Branch, Heinrich-Heine-Str. 12, D-08645 Bad Elster, Germany.
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Grummt
authors.affiliation: Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute (TI), Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries, Palmaille 9, D-22767 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haarich
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, Plymouth University, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK.
authors.forename: Awadhesh N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Jha
authors.affiliation: Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH), Bernhard-Nocht-Str. 78, D-20359 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kacan
authors.affiliation: Federal Environment Agency (UBA), Wörlitzer Platz 1, D-06844 Dessau-Roßlau, Germany.
authors.forename: Anja
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kehrer
authors.affiliation: Pastoor Pieckweg 8, NL-3828 PR Hoogland, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Linders
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK.
authors.forename: Ehsan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mesbahi
authors.affiliation: Marine Environment Division, International Maritime Organization (IMO), 4 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7SR, UK.
authors.forename: Dandu
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pughiuc
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, 631 Sumter Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
authors.forename: Susan D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Richardson
authors.affiliation: Federal Environment Agency (UBA), Wörlitzer Platz 1, D-06844 Dessau-Roßlau, Germany.
authors.forename: Beatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schwarz-Schulz
authors.affiliation: Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, P.O. Box 611, CH-8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Amisha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.affiliation: Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH), Bernhard-Nocht-Str. 78, D-20359 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Norbert
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Theobald
authors.affiliation: Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, P.O. Box 611, CH-8600 Dübendorf, Switzerland; Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Urs
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: von Gunten
authors.affiliation: Federal Environment Agency (UBA), Wörlitzer Platz 1, D-06844 Dessau-Roßlau, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wieck
authors.affiliation: Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR), Max-Dorn-Str. 8-10, D-10589 Berlin, Germany. Electronic address: thomas.hoefer@bfr.bund.de.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Höfer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004203:Disinfection; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012767:Ships; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity
chemical_list: D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Ballast water treatment; Disinfection by-products; Environmental health; Genotoxicity; Marine pollution; Risk assessment