Successful co-operation between the Black Sea Commission and REMPEC in the field of Ships’ ballast water and invasive species. – Jul 19, 2010

    Successful co-operation between the Black Sea Commission and REMPEC in the field of Ships’ ballast water and invasive species.

    REMPEC participated as a lecturer in the Regional Training Course on the Legal Implementation of the Ballast Water Management Convention held in Odessa, Ukraine, from 19 to 21 July 2010.  The event was organized by the GEF / UNDP / IMO GloBallast Partnerships Project and the Commission on the Protection of the Black Sea against Pollution, in co-operation with the State Administration of the Maritime and Inland Water Transport, Ministry of Transport and Communication of Ukraine.

    The training content, which was similar to the one delivered in the Mediterranean region (Istanbul, Turkey, 2-3 December 2009) provided State representatives from the Black Sea (Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, Russia Federation, Turkey and Ukraine) with the necessary knowledge to familiarize   themselves with the 2004 Ballast Water Management Convention and relative IMO Guidelines, and prepare for the drafting of national legislation.

    This training activity was followed by a one-day Workshop on the Black Sea Regional Strategy for Ballast Water Management. In this regard, REMPEC was invited to present the process followed in the Mediterranean region to develop a regional strategy on ballast water management, its content and the next steps towards its adoption by the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention.

    The Workshop representatives identified an urgent need for revising the Black Sea Regional Ballast Water Strategy and Action Plan developed during the GloBallast Phase I Project and identified key elements that could be included in the said revised strategy.  The Workshop representatives also recommended that a first draft strategy document be finalised by September 2010, for submission to the next meeting of the Black Sea Commission’s AG ESAS (Advisory Group on Environmental Safety Aspects of Shipping) scheduled in October 2010.