II 

Calendar No. 589 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1578 

[Report No. 110–269] 

To amend the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act 

of 1990 to establish vessel ballast water management requirements, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 7, 2007 

Mr. INOUYE (for himself and Mr. STEVENS) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

MARCH 3, 2008 

Reported by Mr. INOUYE, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To amend the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention 

and Control Act of 1990 to establish vessel ballast water 

management requirements, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ballast Water Manage3 ment Act of 2007’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Section 1002(a) of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nui6 sance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 

7 4701(a)) is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (14) and (15) 

9 as paragraphs (15) and (16); 

10 (2) by inserting after paragraph (13) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(14) aquatic nuisance species may be intro13 duced by other vessel conduits, including the hulls of 

14 ships;’’; 

15 (3) by striking ‘‘inland lakes and rivers by rec16 reational boaters, commercial barge traffic, and a 

17 variety of other pathways; and’’ in paragraph (15), 

18 as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘other areas of the 

19 United States, including coastal areas, inland lakes, 

20 and rivers by recreational boaters, commercial traf21 fic, and a variety of other pathways;’’; 

22 (4) by inserting ‘‘nongovernmental entities, in23 stitutions of higher education, and the private sec24 tor,’’ after ‘‘governments,’’ in paragraph (16), as re25 designated; 


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1 (5) by striking ‘‘technologies.’’ in paragraph 

2 (16), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘technologies;’’; 

3 and 

4 (6) adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(17) in 2004, the International Maritime Or6 ganization agreed to a Convention, which the United 

7 States played an active role in negotiating, to pre8 vent, minimize, and ultimately eliminate the transfer 

9 of aquatic nuisance species through the control and 

10 management of ballast water and sediments; 

11 ‘‘(18) the International Maritime Organization 

12 agreement specifically recognizes that countries can 

13 take more stringent measures than those of the Con14 vention with respect to the control and management 

15 of ships’ ballast water and sediment; and 

16 ‘‘(19) due to the interstate nature of maritime 

17 transportation and the ways by which aquatic nui18 sance species may be transferred by vessels, a com19 prehensive and uniform national approach for ad20 dressing vessel-borne aquatic nuisance species is 

21 needed to address this issue effectively.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. MANAGEMENT OF VESSEL-BORNE AQUATIC NUI2 SANCE SPECIES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1101 of the Nonindige4 nous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act of 

5 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4711) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 1101. MANAGEMENT OF VESSEL-BORNE AQUATIC NUI7 SANCE SPECIES. 

8 ‘‘(a) STATEMENT OF PURPOSE; VESSELS TO WHICH

9 THIS SECTION APPLIES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section 

11 are— 

12 ‘‘(A) to provide an effective, comprehen13 sive, and uniform national approach for ad14 dressing the introduction and spread of aquatic 

15 nuisance species from ballast water and other 

16 ship-borne vectors; 

17 ‘‘(B) to require, as part of that approach, 

18 mandatory treatment technology, with the ulti19 mate goal of achieving zero discharge of aquatic 

20 nuisance species; 

21 ‘‘(C) to create incentives for the develop22 ment of ballast water treatment technologies; 

23 ‘‘(D) to implement the International Con24 vention for the Control and Management of 

25 Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, adopted 


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1 by the International Maritime Organization in 

2 2004; and 

3 ‘‘(E) to establish a management approach 

4 for other ship-borne vectors of aquatic nuisance 

5 species. 

6 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para7 graphs (3), (4), (5), and (6) this section applies to 

8 a vessel that is designed, constructed, or adapted to 

9 carry ballast water; and 

10 ‘‘(A) is a vessel of United States registry 

11 or nationality, or operated under the authority 

12 of the United States, wherever located; or 

13 ‘‘(B) is a foreign vessel that— 

14 ‘‘(i) is en route to a United States 

15 port or place; or 

16 ‘‘(ii) has departed from a United 

17 States port or place and is within waters 

18 subject to the jurisdiction of the United 

19 States. 

20 ‘‘(3) PERMANENT BALLAST WATER VESSELS.— 

21 Except as provided in paragraph (6), this section 

22 does not apply to a vessel that carries all of its per23 manent ballast water in sealed tanks and is not sub24 ject to discharge. 

25 ‘‘(4) ARMED FORCES VESSELS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) EXEMPTION.—Except as provided in 

2 subparagraph (B) and paragraph (6), this sec3 tion does not apply to a vessel of the Armed 

4 Forces. 

5 ‘‘(B) BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT PRO6 GRAM.—The Secretary and the Secretary of De7 fense, after consultation with each other and 

8 with the Under Secretary of Commerce for 

9 Oceans and Atmosphere, the Administrator of 

10 the Environmental Protection Agency, and 

11 other appropriate Federal agencies as deter12 mined by the Secretary, shall implement a bal13 last water management program, including the 

14 promulgation of standards for ballast water ex15 change and treatment and for sediment man16 agement, for vessels of the Armed Forces under 

17 their respective jurisdictions designed, con18 structed, or adapted to carry ballast water that 

19 is— 

20 ‘‘(i) consistent with the requirements 

21 of this section, including the deadlines; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) at least as stringent as the re23 quirements promulgated for such vessels 

24 under section 312 of the Clean Water Act 

25 (33 U.S.C. 1322). 


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1 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR SMALL VESSELS.—In 

2 applying this section to vessels less than 50 meters 

3 in length that have a maximum ballast water capac4 ity of 8 cubic meters, the Secretary may promulgate 

5 alternative measures for managing ballast water in 

6 a manner that is consistent with the purposes of this 

7 Act. 

8 ‘‘(6) OTHER SOURCES OF VESSEL-BORNE

9 AQUATIC NUISANCE SPECIES.—Measures undertaken 

10 by the Secretary under subsection (s) shall apply to 

11 all vessels (as defined in section 3 of title 1, United 

12 States Code). 

13 ‘‘(b) UPTAKE AND DISCHARGE OF BALLAST WATER

14 OR SEDIMENT.— 

15 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—The operator of a vessel to 

16 which this section applies may not conduct the up17 take or discharge of ballast water or sediment except 

18 as provided in this section. 

19 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) does not 

20 apply to the uptake or discharge of ballast water or 

21 sediment in the following circumstances: 

22 ‘‘(A) The uptake or discharge is solely for 

23 the purpose of— 

24 ‘‘(i) ensuring the safety of the vessel 

25 in an emergency situation; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) saving a life at sea. 

2 ‘‘(B) The uptake or discharge is accidental 

3 and the result of damage to the vessel or its 

4 equipment and— 

5 ‘‘(i) all reasonable precautions to pre6 vent or minimize ballast water and sedi7 ment discharge have been taken before and 

8 after the damage occurs, the discovery of 

9 the damage, and the discharge; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) the owner or officer in charge of 

11 the vessel did not willfully or recklessly 

12 cause the damage. 

13 ‘‘(C) The uptake or discharge is solely for 

14 the purpose of avoiding or minimizing the dis15 charge from the vessel of pollution that would 

16 otherwise violate applicable Federal or State 

17 law. 

18 ‘‘(D) The uptake or discharge of ballast 

19 water and sediment occurs at the same location 

20 where the whole of that ballast water and that 

21 sediment originated and there is no mixing with 

22 ballast water and sediment from another area 

23 that has not been managed in accordance with 

24 the requirements of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(c) VESSEL BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT

2 PLAN.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The operator of a vessel to 

4 which this section applies shall conduct all ballast 

5 water management operations of that vessel in ac6 cordance with a ballast water management plan de7 signed to minimize the discharge of aquatic nuisance 

8 species that— 

9 ‘‘(A) meets the requirements prescribed by 

10 the Secretary by regulation; and 

11 ‘‘(B) is approved by the Secretary. 

12 ‘‘(2) APPROVAL CRITERIA.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

14 not approve a ballast water management plan 

15 unless the Secretary determines that the plan— 

16 ‘‘(i) describes in detail the actions to 

17 be taken to implement the ballast water 

18 management requirements established 

19 under this section; 

20 ‘‘(ii) describes in detail the procedures 

21 to be used for disposal of sediment at sea 

22 and on shore in accordance with the re23 quirements of this section; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) describes in detail safety proce2 dures for the vessel and crew associated 

3 with ballast water management; 

4 ‘‘(iv) designates the officer on board 

5 the vessel in charge of ensuring that the 

6 plan is properly implemented; 

7 ‘‘(v) contains the reporting require8 ments for vessels established under this 

9 section and a copy of each form necessary 

10 to meet those requirements; 

11 ‘‘(vi) incorporates regulatory require12 ments, guidance, and best practices devel13 oped under subsection (s) for other vessel 

14 pathways by which aquatic nuisance spe15 cies are transported; and 

16 ‘‘(vii) meets all other requirements 

17 prescribed by the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(B) FOREIGN VESSELS.—The Secretary 

19 may approve a ballast water management plan 

20 for a foreign vessel (as defined in section 

21 2101(12) of title 46, United States Code) on 

22 the basis of a certificate of compliance with the 

23 criteria described in subparagraph (A) issued 

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1 ance with regulations promulgated by the Sec2 retary. 

3 ‘‘(3) COPY OF PLAN ON BOARD VESSEL.—The 

4 owner or operator of a vessel to which this section 

5 applies shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) maintain a copy of the vessel’s ballast 

7 water management plan on board at all times; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(B) keep the plan readily available for ex10 amination by the Secretary at all reasonable 

11 times. 

12 ‘‘(d) VESSEL BALLAST WATER RECORD BOOK.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The owner or operator of a 

14 vessel to which this section applies shall maintain a 

15 ballast water record book in English on board the 

16 vessel in which— 

17 ‘‘(A) each operation involving ballast water 

18 or sediment discharge is fully recorded without 

19 delay, in accordance with regulations promul20 gated by the Secretary; 

21 ‘‘(B) each such operation is described in 

22 detail, including the location and circumstances 

23 of, and the reason for, the operation; and 

24 ‘‘(C) the exact nature and circumstances of 

25 any situation under which any operation was 


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1 conducted under an exception set forth in sub2 section (b)(2) or (e)(3) is described. 

3 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The ballast water record 

4 book— 

5 ‘‘(A) shall be kept readily available for ex6 amination by the Secretary at all reasonable 

7 times; and 

8 ‘‘(B) notwithstanding paragraph (1), may 

9 be kept on the towing vessel in the case of an 

10 unmanned vessel under tow. 

11 ‘‘(3) RETENTION PERIOD.—The ballast water 

12 record book shall be retained— 

13 ‘‘(A) on board the vessel for a period of 3 

14 years after the date on which the last entry in 

15 the book is made; and 

16 ‘‘(B) under the control of the vessel’s 

17 owner for an additional period of 3 years. 

18 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—In the regulations pre19 scribed under this section, the Secretary shall re20 quire, at a minimum, that— 

21 ‘‘(A) each entry in the ballast water record 

22 book be signed and dated by the officer in 

23 charge of the ballast water operation recorded; 


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1 ‘‘(B) each completed page in the ballast 

2 water record book be signed and dated by the 

3 master of the vessel; and 

4 ‘‘(C) the owner or operator of the vessel 

5 transmit such information to the Secretary re6 garding the ballast operations of the vessel as 

7 the Secretary may require. 

8 ‘‘(5) ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF RECORD9 KEEPING.—The Secretary shall provide by regula10 tion for alternative methods of recordkeeping, in11 cluding electronic recordkeeping, to comply with the 

12 requirements of this subsection. Any electronic rec13 ordkeeping method authorized by the Secretary shall 

14 support the inspection and enforcement provisions of 

15 this Act and shall comply with applicable standards 

16 of the National Institute of Standards and Tech17 nology and the Office of Management and Budget 

18 governing reliability, integrity, identity authentica19 tion, and nonrepudiation of stored electronic data. 

20 ‘‘(e) BALLAST WATER EXCHANGE REQUIRE21 MENTS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

23 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT.—Until a vessel is re24 quired to conduct ballast water treatment in ac25 cordance with subsection (f) of this section, the 


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1 operator of a vessel to which this section applies 

2 may not discharge ballast water in waters sub3 ject to the jurisdiction of the United States ex4 cept after— 

5 ‘‘(i) conducting ballast water exchange 

6 as required by this subsection, in accord7 ance with regulations prescribed by the 

8 Secretary, in a manner that results in an 

9 efficiency of at least 95 percent volumetric 

10 exchange of the ballast water for each bal11 last water tank; 

12 ‘‘(ii) using ballast water treatment 

13 technology that meets the performance 

14 standards of subsection (f); or 

15 ‘‘(iii) using environmentally-sound al16 ternative ballast water treatment tech17 nology, if the Secretary determines that 

18 such treatment technology is at least as ef19 fective as the ballast water exchange re20 quired by clause (i) in preventing and con21 trolling the introduction of aquatic nui22 sance species. 

23 ‘‘(B) TECHNOLOGY EFFICACY.—For pur24 poses of this paragraph, a ballast water treat25 ment technology shall be considered to be at 


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1 least as effective as the ballast water exchange 

2 required by clause (i) in preventing and control3 ling the introduction of aquatic nuisance species 

4 if preliminary experiments prior to installation 

5 of the technology aboard the vessel demonstrate 

6 that the technology removed at least 98 percent 

7 of organisms larger than 50 microns. 

8 ‘‘(2) GUIDANCE; 5-YEAR USAGE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) GUIDANCE.—Within 1 year after the 

10 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Man11 agement Act of 2007, after public notice and 

12 opportunity for comment, the Secretary shall 

13 develop guidance on technology that may be 

14 used under paragraph (1)(A)(iii). 

15 ‘‘(B) 5-YEAR USAGE.—The Secretary shall 

16 allow a vessel using environmentally-sound al17 ternative ballast water treatment technology 

18 under paragraph (1)(A)(iii) to continue to use 

19 that technology for 5 years after the date on 

20 which the environmentally-sound alternative 

21 ballast water treatment technology was first 

22 placed in service on the vessel, or the date on 

23 which treatment requirements under subsection 

24 (f) become applicable, whichever is later. 

25 ‘‘(3) EXCHANGE AREAS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) VESSELS OUTSIDE THE UNITED

2 STATES EEZ.—The operator of a vessel en route 

3 to a United States port or place from a port or 

4 place outside the United States exclusive eco5 nomic zone shall conduct ballast water ex6 change— 

7 ‘‘(i) before arriving at a United States 

8 port or place; 

9 ‘‘(ii) at least 200 nautical miles from 

10 the nearest point of land; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) in water at least 200 meters in 

12 depth. 

13 ‘‘(B) COASTAL VOYAGES.—In lieu of using 

14 an exchange zone described in subparagraph 

15 (A)(ii) or (iii), the operator of a vessel origi16 nating from a port or place within waters sub17 ject to the jurisdiction of the United States, or 

18 from a port within 200 nautical miles of the 

19 United States in Canada, Mexico, or other ports 

20 designated by the Secretary for purposes of this 

21 section, and which does not voyage into waters 

22 described in subparagraph (A)(ii) or (iii), shall 

23 conduct ballast water exchange— 

24 ‘‘(i) at least 50 nautical miles from 

25 the nearest point of land; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) in water at least 200 meters in 

2 depth. 

3 ‘‘(4) SAFETY OR STABILITY EXCEPTION.— 

4 ‘‘(A) SECRETARIAL DETERMINATION.— 

5 Paragraph (3) does not apply to the discharge 

6 of ballast water if the Secretary determines that 

7 compliance with that paragraph would threaten 

8 the safety or stability of the vessel, its crew, or 

9 its passengers because of the design or oper10 ating characteristics of the vessel. 

11 ‘‘(B) MASTER OF THE VESSEL DETER12 MINATION.—Paragraph (3) does not apply to 

13 the discharge of ballast water if the master of 

14 a vessel determines that compliance with that 

15 paragraph would threaten the safety or stability 

16 of the vessel, its crew, or its passengers because 

17 of adverse weather, equipment failure, or any 

18 other relevant condition. 

19 ‘‘(C) NOTIFICATION REQUIRED.—When20 ever the master of a vessel is unable to comply 

21 with the requirements of paragraph (3) because 

22 of a determination made under subparagraph 

23 (B), the master of the vessel shall— 

24 ‘‘(i) notify the Secretary as soon as 

25 practicable thereafter but no later than 24 


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1 hours after making that determination and 

2 shall ensure that the determination, the 

3 reasons for the determination, and the no4 tice are recorded in the vessel’s ballast 

5 water record book; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) undertake ballast water ex7 change— 

8 ‘‘(I) in an alternative area that 

9 may be designated by the Secretary, 

10 after consultation with the Undersec11 retary, and other appropriate Federal 

12 agencies as determined by the Sec13 retary, and representatives of States 

14 the waters of which may be affected 

15 by the discharge of ballast water; or 

16 ‘‘(II) undertake discharge of bal17 last water in accordance with para18 graph (6) if safety or stability con19 cerns prevent undertaking ballast 

20 water exchange in the alternative 

21 area. 

22 ‘‘(D) REVIEW OF CIRCUMSTANCES.—If the 

23 master of a vessel conducts a ballast water dis24 charge under the provisions of this paragraph, 

25 the Secretary shall review the circumstances to 


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1 determine whether the discharge met the re2 quirements of this paragraph. The review under 

3 this clause shall be in addition to any other en4 forcement authority of the Secretary. 

5 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE UNDER WAIVER.— 

6 ‘‘(A) SUBSTANTIAL BUSINESS HARDSHIP

7 WAIVER.—If, because of the short length of a 

8 voyage, the operator of a vessel is unable to dis9 charge ballast water in accordance with the re10 quirements of paragraph (3)(B) without sub11 stantial business hardship, as determined under 

12 regulations prescribed by the Secretary, the op13 erator shall request a waiver from the Secretary 

14 and discharge the ballast water in accordance 

15 with paragraph (6). A request for a waiver 

16 under this subparagraph shall be submitted to 

17 the Secretary at such time and in such form 

18 and manner as the Secretary may require. 

19 ‘‘(B) SUBSTANTIAL BUSINESS HARD20 SHIP.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), the 

21 factors taken into account in determining sub22 stantial business hardship shall include wheth23 er— 

24 ‘‘(i) compliance with the requirements 

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1 ciently great change in routing or sched2 uling of service as to compromise the eco3 nomic or commercial viability of the trade 

4 or business in which the vessel is operated; 

5 or 

6 ‘‘(ii) it is reasonable to expect that the 

7 trade or business or service provided will 

8 be continued only if a waiver is granted 

9 under subparagraph (A). 

10 ‘‘(6) PERMISSABLE DISCHARGE.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The discharge of 

12 unexchanged ballast water shall be considered 

13 to be carried out in accordance with this para14 graph if it is— 

15 ‘‘(i) in an area designated for that 

16 purpose by the Secretary, after consulta17 tion with the Undersecretary and other ap18 propriate Federal agencies as determined 

19 by the Secretary and representatives of 

20 any State that may be affected by dis21 charge of ballast water in that area; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) into a reception facility described 

23 in subsection (f)(2). 

24 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON VOLUME.—The vol25 ume of any ballast water discharged under the 


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1 provisions of this paragraph may not exceed the 

2 volume necessary to ensure the safe operation 

3 of the vessel. 

4 ‘‘(7) PARTIAL COMPLIANCE.—The operator of a 

5 vessel that is unable to comply fully with the re6 quirements of paragraph (3)— 

7 ‘‘(A) shall nonetheless conduct ballast 

8 water exchange to the maximum extent feasible 

9 in compliance with those paragraphs; and 

10 ‘‘(B) may conduct a partial ballast water 

11 exchange under this paragraph only to the ex12 tent that the ballast water in an individual bal13 last tank can be completely exchanged in ac14 cordance with the provisions of paragraph 

15 (1)(A). 

16 ‘‘(8) CERTAIN GEOGRAPHICALLY LIMITED

17 ROUTES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (3)(B) of this 

18 subsection, the operator of a vessel is not required 

19 to comply with the requirements of this subsection— 

20 ‘‘(A) if the vessel operates exclusively— 

21 ‘‘(i) within Lake Superior, Lake 

22 Michigan, Lake Huron, and Lake Erie and 

23 the connecting channels; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) between or among the main 

25 group of the Hawaiian Islands; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) if the vessel operates exclusively with2 in any area with respect to which the Secretary 

3 has determined, after consultation with the Un4 dersecretary, the Administrator, and represent5 atives of States the waters of which would be 

6 affected by the discharge of ballast water, that 

7 the risk of introducing aquatic nuisance species 

8 through ballast water discharge in the areas in 

9 which the vessel operates is insignificant. 

10 ‘‘(9) MARINE SANCTUARIES AND OTHER PRO11 HIBITED AREAS.—A vessel may not conduct ballast 

12 water exchange or discharge unexchanged ballast 

13 water under this subsection within a marine sanc14 tuary designated under title III of the National Ma15 rine Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.) or in 

16 any other waters designated by the Secretary after 

17 consultation with the Undersecretary and the Ad18 ministrator. 

19 ‘‘(10) REGULATIONS DEADLINE.—The Sec20 retary shall issue a final rule for regulations re21 quired by this subsection within 1 year after the 

22 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Management 

23 Act of 2007. 

24 ‘‘(11) VESSELS OPERATING IN THE GREAT

25 LAKES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) REGULATIONS.—Until such time as 

2 regulations are promulgated to implement the 

3 amendments made by the Ballast Water Man4 agement Act of 2007, regulations promulgated 

5 to carry out this Act shall remain in effect until 

6 revised or replaced pursuant to the Ballast 

7 Water Management Act of 2007. 

8 ‘‘(B) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PRO9 GRAMS.—On promulgation of regulations re10 quired under this Act to implement a national 

11 mandatory ballast management program that is 

12 at least as comprehensive as the Great Lakes 

13 program (as determined by the Secretary, in 

14 consultation with the Governors of Great Lakes 

15 States)— 

16 ‘‘(i) the program regulating vessels 

17 and ballast water in Great Lakes under 

18 this section shall terminate; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) the national program shall apply 

20 to such vessels and ballast water. 

21 ‘‘(12) VESSELS WITH NO BALLAST ON

22 BOARD.—Not later than 180 days after the date of 

23 enactment of the Ballast Water Management Act of 

24 2007, the Secretary shall promulgate regulations to 

25 minimize the discharge of invasive species from ships 


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1 entering a United States port or place from outside 

2 the United States exclusive economic zone that claim 

3 no ballast on board, or that claim to be carrying 

4 only unpumpable quantities of ballast, including, at 

5 a minimum, a requirement that— 

6 ‘‘(i) such a ship shall conduct salt7 water flushing of ballast water tanks— 

8 ‘‘(I) outside the exclusive eco9 nomic zone; or 

10 ‘‘(II) at a designated alternative 

11 exchange site; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) before being allowed entry into 

13 the Great Lakes beyond the St. Lawrence 

14 Seaway, the master of such a ship shall 

15 certify that the ship has complied with 

16 each applicable requirement under this 

17 subsection. 

18 ‘‘(f) BALLAST WATER TREATMENT REQUIRE19 MENTS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.—A vessel to 

21 which this section applies shall conduct ballast water 

22 treatment in accordance with the requirements of 

23 this subsection before discharging ballast water so 

24 that the ballast water discharged will contain— 


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1 ‘‘(A) less than 1 living organism per 10 

2 cubic meters that is 50 or more micrometers in 

3 minimum dimension; 

4 ‘‘(B) less than 1 living organism per 10 

5 milliliters that is less than 50 micrometers in 

6 minimum dimension and more than 10 microm7 eters in minimum dimension; 

8 ‘‘(C) concentrations of indicator microbes 

9 that are less than— 

10 ‘‘(i) 1 colony-forming unit of 

11 toxicogenic Vibrio cholera (serotypes O1 

12 and O139) per 100 milliliters, or less than 

13 1 colony-forming unit of that microbe per 

14 gram of wet weight of zoological samples; 

15 ‘‘(ii) 126 colony-forming units of esch16 erichia coli per 100 milliliters; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) 33 colony-forming units of intes18 tinal enterococci per 100 milliliters; and 

19 ‘‘(D) concentrations of such additional in20 dicator microbes as may be specified in regula21 tions promulgated by the Administrator, after 

22 consultation with the Secretary and other ap23 propriate Federal agencies as determined by the 

24 Secretary, that are less than the amount speci25 fied in those regulations. 


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1 ‘‘(2) RECEPTION FACILITY EXCEPTION.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) does 

3 not apply to a vessel that discharges ballast 

4 water into a facility for the reception of ballast 

5 water that meets standards prescribed by the 

6 Administrator. 

7 ‘‘(B) PROMULGATION OF STANDARDS.— 

8 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of 

9 the Ballast Water Management Act of 2007, 

10 the Administrator, in consultation with the Sec11 retary other appropriate Federal agencies as de12 termined by the Administrator, shall promul13 gate standards for— 

14 ‘‘(i) the reception of ballast water 

15 from vessels into reception facilities; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) the disposal or treatment of such 

17 ballast water in a way that does not impair 

18 or damage the environment, human health, 

19 property, or resources. 

20 ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE.—Para21 graph (1) applies to vessels in accordance with the 

22 following schedule: 

23 ‘‘(A) FIRST PHASE.—Beginning January 

24 1, 2011, for vessels constructed on or after that 


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1 date with a ballast water capacity of less than 

2 5,000 cubic meters. 

3 ‘‘(B) SECOND PHASE.—Beginning January 

4 1, 2013, for vessels constructed on or after that 

5 date with a ballast water capacity of 5,000 

6 cubic meters or more. 

7 ‘‘(C) THIRD PHASE.—Beginning January 

8 1, 2013, for vessels constructed before January 

9 1, 2011, with a ballast water capacity of 1,500 

10 cubic meters or more but not more than 5,000 

11 cubic meters. 

12 ‘‘(D) FOURTH PHASE.—Beginning Janu13 ary 1, 2015, for vessels constructed— 

14 ‘‘(i) before January 1, 2011, with a 

15 ballast water capacity of less than 1,500 

16 cubic meters or 5,000 cubic meters or 

17 more; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) on or after January 1, 2011, and 

19 before January 1, 2013, with a ballast 

20 water capacity of 5,000 cubic meters or 

21 more. 

22 ‘‘(4) TREATMENT SYSTEM APPROVAL RE23 QUIRED.—The operator of a vessel may not use a 

24 ballast water treatment system to comply with the 

25 requirements of this subsection unless the system is 


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1 approved by the Secretary, in consultation with the 

2 Administrator. The Secretary shall promulgate regu3 lations establishing a process for such approval, 

4 after consultation with the Administrator and other 

5 appropriate Federal agencies as determined by the 

6 Secretary, within 1 year after the date of enactment 

7 of the Ballast Water Management Act of 2007. 

8 ‘‘(5) FEASIBILITY REVIEW.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not less than 2 years 

10 before the date on which paragraph (1) applies 

11 to vessels under each subparagraph of para12 graph (3), or as that date may be extended 

13 under this paragraph, the Secretary, in con14 sultation with the Administrator, shall complete 

15 a review to determine whether appropriate tech16 nologies are available to achieve the standards 

17 set forth in paragraph (1) for the vessels to 

18 which they apply under the schedule set forth 

19 in paragraph (3). In reviewing the technologies 

20 the Secretary, after consultation with the Ad21 ministrator and other appropriate Federal 

22 agencies as determined by the Secretary, shall 

23 consider— 

24 ‘‘(i) the effectiveness of a technology 

25 in achieving the standards; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) feasibility in terms of compat2 ibility with ship design and operations; 

3 ‘‘(iii) safety considerations; 

4 ‘‘(iv) whether a technology has an ad5 verse impact on the environment; and 

6 ‘‘(v) cost effectiveness. 

7 ‘‘(B) DELAY IN SCHEDULED APPLICA8 TION.—If the Secretary determines, on the 

9 basis of the review conducted under subpara10 graph (A), that compliance with the standards 

11 set forth in paragraph (1) in accordance with 

12 the schedule set forth in any subparagraph of 

13 paragraph (3) is not feasible for any class of 

14 vessels, the Secretary shall require use of the 

15 best performing technology available that 

16 meets, at a minimum, the applicable ballast 

17 water discharge standard of the International 

18 Maritime Organization. If the Secretary finds 

19 that no technology exists that will achieve either 

20 the standards set forth in paragraph (1) or the 

21 standards of the International Maritime Orga22 nization, then, the Secretary shall— 

23 ‘‘(i) extend the date on which that 

24 subparagraph first applies to vessels for a 

25 period of not more than 24 months; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) recommend action to ensure that 

2 compliance with the extended date schedule 

3 for that subparagraph is achieved. 

4 ‘‘(C) HIGHER STANDARDS; EARLIER IM5 PLEMENTATION.— 

6 ‘‘(i) STANDARDS.—If the Secretary 

7 determines that ballast water treatment 

8 technology exists that exceeds the perform9 ance standards required under this sub10 section, the Secretary shall, for any class 

11 of vessels, revise the performance stand12 ards to incorporate the higher performance 

13 standards. 

14 ‘‘(ii) IMPLEMENTATION.—If the Sec15 retary determines that technology that 

16 achieves the applicable performance stand17 ards required under this subsection can be 

18 implemented earlier than required by this 

19 subsection, the Secretary shall, for any 

20 class of vessels, accelerate the implementa21 tion schedule under paragraph (3). If the 

22 Secretary accelerates the implementation 

23 schedule pursuant to this clause, the Sec24 retary shall provide at least 24 months noVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 tice before such accelerated implementation 

2 goes into effect. 

3 ‘‘(iii) DETERMINATIONS NOT MUTU4 ALLY EXCLUSIVE.—The Secretary shall 

5 take action under both clause (i) and 

6 clause (ii) if the Secretary makes deter7 minations under both clauses. 

8 ‘‘(6) DELAY OF APPLICATION FOR VESSEL PAR9 TICIPATING IN PROMISING TECHNOLOGY EVALUA10 TIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a vessel participates 

12 in a program approved by the Secretary to test 

13 and evaluate promising ballast water treatment 

14 technologies that are likely to result in treat15 ment technologies achieving a standard that is 

16 the same as or more stringent than the stand17 ard that applies under paragraph (1) before the 

18 first date on which paragraph (1) applies to 

19 that vessel, the Secretary shall allow the vessel 

20 to use that technology for a 10-year period and 

21 such vessel shall be deemed to be in compliance 

22 with the requirements of paragraph (1) during 

23 that 10-year period. 

24 ‘‘(B) VESSEL DIVERSITY.—The Sec25 retary— 


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1 ‘‘(i) shall seek to ensure that a wide 

2 variety of vessel types and voyages are in3 cluded in the program; but 

4 ‘‘(ii) may not grant a delay under this 

5 paragraph to more than 5 percent of the 

6 vessels to which subparagraph (A), (B), 

7 (C), or (D) of paragraph (3) applies. 

8 ‘‘(C) TERMINATION OF GRACE PERIOD.— 

9 The Secretary may terminate the 10-year grace 

10 period of a vessel under subparagraph (A) if 

11 participation of the vessel in the program is ter12 minated without the consent of the Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(D) ANNUAL RE-EVALUATION; TERMI14 NATION.—The Secretary shall establish an an15 nual evaluation process to determine whether 

16 the performance of an approved technology is 

17 sufficiently effective and whether it is causing 

18 harm to the environment. If the Secretary de19 termines that an approved technology is insuffi20 ciently effective or is causing harm to the envi21 ronment, the Secretary shall revoke the ap22 proval granted under subparagraph (A). 

23 ‘‘(7) REVIEW OF STANDARDS.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In December, 2014, 

25 and in every third year thereafter, the AdminisVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 trator, in consultation with the Secretary, shall 

2 review ballast water treatment standards to de3 termine, after consultation with the Undersecre4 tary and other appropriate Federal agencies as 

5 determined by the Secretary, if the standards 

6 under this subsection should be revised to re7 duce the amount of organisms or microbes al8 lowed to be discharged, taking into account im9 provements in the scientific understanding of 

10 biological processes leading to the spread of 

11 aquatic nuisance species and improvements in 

12 ballast water treatment technology. The Admin13 istrator shall revise by regulation the perform14 ance standard required under this subsection as 

15 necessary. 

16 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION OF ADJUSTED STAND17 ARDS.—In the regulations, the Secretary shall 

18 provide for the prospective application of the 

19 adjusted standards prescribed under this para20 graph to vessels constructed after the date on 

21 which the adjusted standards apply and for an 

22 orderly phase-in of the adjusted standards to 

23 existing vessels. 

24 ‘‘(8) INSTALLED EQUIPMENT.—If ballast water 

25 treatment technology used for purposes of complying 


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1 with the regulations under this subsection is in2 stalled on a vessel, maintained in good working 

3 order, and used by the vessel, the vessel may use 

4 that technology for the shorter of— 

5 ‘‘(A) the 10-year period beginning on the 

6 date of initial use of the technology; or 

7 ‘‘(B) the life of the ship on which the tech8 nology is used. 

9 ‘‘(9) HIGH-RISK VESSELS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) VESSEL LIST.—Within 1 year after 

11 the date of enactment of the Ballast Water 

12 Management Act of 2007, the Secretary shall 

13 publish and regularly update a list of vessels 

14 identified by States that, due to factors such as 

15 the origin of their voyages, the frequency of 

16 their voyages, the volume of ballast water they 

17 carry, the biological makeup of the ballast 

18 water, and the fact that they frequently dis19 charge unexchanged ballast water pursuant to 

20 an exception under subsection (e), pose a rel21 atively high risk of introducing aquatic nuisance 

22 species into the waters of those States. 

23 ‘‘(B) INCENTIVE PROGRAMS.—The Sec24 retary shall give priority to vessels on the list 

25 for participation in pilot programs described in 


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1 paragraph (6). Any Federal agency, and any 

2 State agency with respect to vessels identified 

3 by such State to the Secretary for inclusion on 

4 the list pursuant to subparagraph (A), may de5 velop technology development programs or other 

6 incentives (whether positive or negative) to such 

7 vessels in order to encourage the adoption of 

8 ballast water treatment technology by those ves9 sels consistent with the requirements of this 

10 section on an expedited basis. 

11 ‘‘(10) EXCEPTION FOR VESSELS OPERATING

12 EXCLUSIVELY IN DETERMINED AREA.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) does 

14 not apply to a vessel that operates exclusively 

15 within an area if the Secretary has determined 

16 through a rulemaking proceeding, after con17 sultation with the Undersecretary and other ap18 propriate Federal agencies as determined by the 

19 Secretary, and representatives of States the wa20 ters of which could be affected by the discharge 

21 of ballast water, that the risk of introducing 

22 aquatic nuisance species through ballast water 

23 discharge from the vessel is insignificant. 

24 ‘‘(B) CERTAIN VESSELS.—A vessel con25 structed before January 1, 2001, that operates 


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1 exclusively within Lake Superior, Lake Michi2 gan, Lake Huron, and Lake Erie and the con3 necting channels shall be presumed not to pose 

4 a significant risk of introducing aquatic nui5 sance species unless the Secretary finds other6 wise in a rulemaking proceeding under subpara7 graph (A). 

8 ‘‘(C) BEST PRACTICES.—The Secretary 

9 shall develop, and require vessels exempted 

10 from complying with the requirements of para11 graph (1) under this paragraph to follow, best 

12 practices, developed in consultation with the 

13 Governors or States that may be affected, to 

14 minimize the spreading of aquatic nuisance spe15 cies in its operating area. 

16 ‘‘(11) LABORATORIES.—The Secretary may use 

17 any Federal or non-Federal laboratory that meets 

18 standards established by the Secretary for the pur19 pose of evaluating and certifying ballast water treat20 ment technologies and equipment under this sub21 section. 

22 ‘‘(g) WARNINGS CONCERNING BALLAST WATER UP23 TAKE.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall notify 

25 vessel owners and operators of any area in waters 


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1 subject to the jurisdiction of the United States in 

2 which vessels may not uptake ballast water due to 

3 known conditions. 

4 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The notice shall include— 

5 ‘‘(A) the coordinates of the area; and 

6 ‘‘(B) if possible, the location of alternative 

7 areas for the uptake of ballast water. 

8 ‘‘(h) SEDIMENT MANAGEMENT.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The operator of a vessel to 

10 which this section applies may not remove or dispose 

11 of sediment from spaces designed to carry ballast 

12 water except— 

13 ‘‘(A) in accordance with this subsection 

14 and the ballast water management plan re15 quired under subsection (c); and 

16 ‘‘(B) more than 200 nautical miles from 

17 the nearest point of land or into a reception fa18 cility that meets the requirements of paragraph 

19 (3). 

20 ‘‘(2) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) NEW VESSELS.—After December 31, 

22 2008, it shall be unlawful to construct a vessel 

23 in the United States to which this section ap24 plies unless that vessel is designed and con25 structed, in accordance with regulations preVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 scribed under subparagraph (C), in a manner 

2 that— 

3 ‘‘(i) minimizes the uptake and entrap4 ment of sediment; 

5 ‘‘(ii) facilitates removal of sediment; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(iii) provides for safe access for sedi8 ment removal and sampling. 

9 ‘‘(B) EXISTING VESSELS.—Every vessel to 

10 which this section applies that was constructed 

11 before January 1, 2009, shall be modified be12 fore January 1, 2009, to the extent practicable, 

13 to achieve the objectives described in clauses (i), 

14 (ii), and (iii) of subparagraph (A). 

15 ‘‘(C) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall 

16 promulgate regulations establishing design and 

17 construction standards to achieve the objectives 

18 of subparagraph (A) and providing guidance for 

19 modifications and practices under subparagraph 

20 (B). The Secretary shall incorporate the stand21 ards and guidance in the regulations governing 

22 the ballast water management plan. 

23 ‘‘(3) SEDIMENT RECEPTION FACILITIES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) STANDARDS.—The Secretary, in con25 sultation with other appropriate Federal agenVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 cies as determined by the Secretary, shall pro2 mulgate regulations governing facilities for the 

3 reception of vessel sediment from spaces de4 signed to carry ballast water that provide for 

5 the disposal of such sediment in a way that 

6 does not impair or damage the environment, 

7 human health, or property or resources of the 

8 disposal area. 

9 ‘‘(B) DESIGNATION.—The Administrator, 

10 in consultation with the Secretary and other ap11 propriate Federal agencies as determined by the 

12 Administrator, shall designate facilities for the 

13 reception of vessel sediment that meet the re14 quirements of the regulations promulgated 

15 under subparagraph (A) at ports and terminals 

16 where ballast tanks are cleaned or repaired. 

17 ‘‘(i) EXAMINATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) INITIAL EXAMINATION.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

20 examine vessels to which this section applies to 

21 determine whether— 

22 ‘‘(i) there is a ballast water manage23 ment plan for the vessel that meets the re24 quirements of this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the equipment used for ballast 

2 water and sediment management in ac3 cordance with the requirements of this sec4 tion and the regulations promulgated here5 under is installed and functioning properly. 

6 ‘‘(B) NEW VESSELS.—For vessels con7 structed in the United States on or after Janu8 ary 1, 2011, the Secretary shall conduct the ex9 amination required by subparagraph (A) before 

10 the vessel is placed in service. 

11 ‘‘(C) EXISTING VESSELS.—For vessels con12 structed before January 1, 2011, the Secretary 

13 shall— 

14 ‘‘(i) conduct the examination required 

15 by subparagraph (A) before the date on 

16 which subsection (f)(1) applies to the ves17 sel according to the schedule in subsection 

18 (f)(3); and 

19 ‘‘(ii) inspect the vessel’s ballast water 

20 record book required by subsection (d). 

21 ‘‘(D) FOREIGN VESSELS.—In the case of a 

22 foreign vessel (as defined in section 2101(12) of 

23 title 46, United States Code), the Secretary 

24 shall perform the examination required by this 


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1 paragraph the first time the vessel enters a 

2 United States port. 

3 ‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT EXAMINATIONS.—The Sec4 retary shall examine vessels no less frequently than 

5 once each year to ensure vessel compliance with the 

6 requirements of this section. 

7 ‘‘(3) INSPECTION AUTHORITY.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

9 carry out inspections of any vessel to which this 

10 section applies at any time, including the taking 

11 of ballast water samples, to ensure the vessel’s 

12 compliance with this Act. The Secretary shall 

13 use all appropriate and practical measures of 

14 detection and environmental monitoring, and 

15 shall establish adequate procedures for report16 ing violations and accumulating evidence. 

17 ‘‘(B) INVESTIGATIONS.—Upon receipt of 

18 evidence that a violation has occurred, the Sec19 retary shall cause the matter to be investigated. 

20 In any investigation under this section the Sec21 retary may issue subpoenas to require the at22 tendance of any witness and the production of 

23 documents and other evidence. In case of re24 fusal to obey a subpoena issued to any person, 

25 the Secretary may request the Attorney General 


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1 to invoke the aid of the appropriate district 

2 court of the United States to compel compli3 ance. 

4 ‘‘(4) REQUIRED CERTIFICATE.—If, on the basis 

5 of an initial examination under paragraph (1) the 

6 Secretary finds that a vessel complies with the re7 quirements of this section and the regulations pro8 mulgated hereunder, the Secretary shall issue a cer9 tificate under this paragraph as evidence of such 

10 compliance. The certificate shall be valid for a period 

11 of not more than 5 years, as specified by the Sec12 retary. The certificate or a true copy shall be main13 tained on board the vessel. 

14 ‘‘(5) NOTIFICATION OF VIOLATIONS.—If the 

15 Secretary finds, on the basis of an examination 

16 under paragraph (1) or (2), sampling under para17 graph (3), or any other information, that a vessel is 

18 being operated in violation of the requirements of 

19 this section or the regulations promulgated here20 under, the Secretary shall— 

21 ‘‘(A) notify in writing— 

22 ‘‘(i) the master of the vessel; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the captain of the port at the 

24 vessel’s next port of call; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) take such other action as may be ap2 propriate. 

3 ‘‘(6) COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall by 

5 regulation establish sampling and other proce6 dures to monitor compliance with the require7 ments of this section and any regulations pro8 mulgated under this section. 

9 ‘‘(B) USE OF MARKERS.—The Secretary 

10 may verify compliance with treatment standards 

11 under this section and the regulations through 

12 identification of markers associated with a 

13 treatment technology’s effectiveness, such as 

14 the presence of indicators associated with a cer15 tified treatment technology. 

16 ‘‘(7) EDUCATION AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

17 PROGRAMS.—The Secretary may carry out education 

18 and technical assistance programs and other meas19 ures to promote compliance with the requirements 

20 issued under this section. 

21 ‘‘(j) DETENTION OF VESSELS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, by notice to 

23 the owner, charterer, managing operator, agent, 

24 master, or other individual in charge of a vessel, 


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1 may detain that vessel if the Secretary has reason2 able cause to believe that— 

3 ‘‘(A) the vessel is a vessel to which this 

4 section applies; and 

5 ‘‘(B) the vessel does not comply with the 

6 requirements of this section or of the regula7 tions issued hereunder or is being operated in 

8 violation of such requirements. 

9 ‘‘(2) CLEARANCE.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A vessel detained 

11 under paragraph (1) may obtain clearance 

12 under section 4197 of the Revised Statutes (46 

13 U.S.C. App. 91) only if the violation for which 

14 it was detained has been corrected. 

15 ‘‘(B) WITHDRAWAL.—If the Secretary 

16 finds that a vessel detained under paragraph 

17 (1) has received a clearance under section 4197 

18 of the Revised Statutes (46 U.S.C. App. 91) be19 fore it was detained under paragraph (1), the 

20 Secretary shall withdraw, withhold, or revoke 

21 the clearance. 

22 ‘‘(k) SANCTIONS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any person who vio24 lates a regulation promulgated under this section 

25 shall be liable for a civil penalty in an amount not 


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1 to exceed $32,500. Each day of a continuing viola2 tion constitutes a separate violation. A vessel oper3 ated in violation of this section or the regulations is 

4 liable in rem for any civil penalty assessed under 

5 this subsection for that violation. 

6 ‘‘(2) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—Any person who 

7 knowingly violates the regulations promulgated 

8 under this section is guilty of a class C felony. 

9 ‘‘(3) REVOCATION OF CLEARANCE.—Except as 

10 provided in subsection (j)(2), upon request of the 

11 Secretary, the Secretary of the Treasury shall with12 hold or revoke the clearance of a vessel required by 

13 section 4197 of the Revised Statutes (46 U.S.C. 

14 App. 91), if the owner or operator of that vessel is 

15 in violation of this section or the regulations issued 

16 under this section. 

17 ‘‘(4) EXCEPTION TO SANCTIONS.—This sub18 section does not apply to a discharge pursuant to 

19 subsection (b)(3), (e)(5), or (e)(7). 

20 ‘‘(l) ENFORCEMENT.— 

21 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS.—If the Sec22 retary finds, after notice and an opportunity for a 

23 hearing, that a person has violated any provision of 

24 this section or any regulation promulgated here25 under, the Secretary may assess a civil penalty for 


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1 that violation. In determining the amount of a civil 

2 penalty, the Secretary shall take into account the 

3 nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the 

4 prohibited acts committed and, with respect to the 

5 violator, the degree of culpability, any history of 

6 prior violations, and such other matters as justice 

7 may require. 

8 ‘‘(2) CIVIL ACTIONS.—At the request of the 

9 Secretary, the Attorney General may bring a civil 

10 action in an appropriate district court of the United 

11 States to enforce this section, or any regulation pro12 mulgated hereunder. Any court before which such an 

13 action is brought may award appropriate relief, in14 cluding temporary or permanent injunctions and 

15 civil penalties. 

16 ‘‘(m) CONSULTATION WITH CANADA, MEXICO, AND

17 OTHER FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.—In developing the 

18 guidelines issued and regulations promulgated under this 

19 section, the Secretary is encouraged to consult with the 

20 Government of Canada, the Government of Mexico, and 

21 any other government of a foreign country that the Sec22 retary, after consultation with the Task Force, determines 

23 to be necessary to develop and implement an effective 

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1 troduction and spread of aquatic nuisance species through 

2 ballast water. 

3 ‘‘(n) INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION.—The Sec4 retary, in cooperation with the Undersecretary, the Sec5 retary of State, the Administrator, the heads of other rel6 evant Federal agencies, the International Maritime Orga7 nization of the United Nations, and the Commission on 

8 Environmental Cooperation established pursuant to the 

9 North American Free Trade Agreement, is encouraged to 

10 enter into negotiations with the governments of foreign 

11 countries to develop and implement an effective inter12 national program for preventing the unintentional intro13 duction and spread of aquatic nuisance species through 

14 ballast water. The Secretary is particularly encouraged to 

15 seek bilateral or multilateral agreements with Canada, 

16 Mexico, and other nations in the Wider Caribbean (as de17 fined in the Convention for the Protection and Develop18 ment of the Marine Environment of the Wider Caribbean 

19 (Cartagena Convention) under this section. 

20 ‘‘(o) NON-DISCRIMINATION.—The Secretary shall en21 sure that vessels registered outside of the United States 

22 do not receive more favorable treatment than vessels reg23 istered in the United States when the Secretary performs 

24 studies, reviews compliance, determines effectiveness, esVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00047 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 tablishes requirements, or performs any other responsibil2 ities under this Act. 

3 ‘‘(p) SUPPORT FOR FEDERAL BALLAST WATER DEM4 ONSTRATION PROJECT.—In addition to amounts other5 wise available to the Maritime Administration, the Na6 tional Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, 

7 and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for the 

8 Federal Ballast Water Demonstration Project, the Sec9 retary shall provide support for the conduct and expansion 

10 of the project, including grants for research and develop11 ment of innovative technologies for the management, 

12 treatment, and disposal of ballast water and sediment, for 

13 ballast water exchange, and for other vessel vectors of 

14 aquatic nuisance species such as hull-fouling. There are 

15 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $5,000,000 

16 for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2011 to carry out 

17 this subsection. 

18 ‘‘(q) CONSULTATION WITH TASK FORCE.—The Sec19 retary shall consult with the Task Force in carrying out 

20 this section. 

21 ‘‘(r) RISK ASSESSMENT.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Within 2 years after the 

23 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Management 

24 Act of 2007, the Administrator, in consultation with 

25 the Secretary and other appropriate Federal agenVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 cies, shall conduct a risk assessment of vessel dis2 charges other than aquatic nuisance species that are 

3 not required by the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 

4 1251 et seq.) to have National Pollution Effluent 

5 Discharge Standards permits under section 122.3(a) 

6 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations. The risk 

7 assessment shall include— 

8 ‘‘(A) a characterization of the various 

9 types of discharges by different classes of ves10 sels; 

11 ‘‘(B) the average volume of such dis12 charges for individual vessels and by class of 

13 vessel in the aggregate; 

14 ‘‘(C) conclusions as to whether such dis15 charges pose a risk to human health or the en16 vironment; and 

17 ‘‘(D) recommendations as to steps, includ18 ing regulations, that are necessary to address 

19 such risks. 

20 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Administrator 

21 shall cause a draft of the risk assessment to be pub22 lished in the Federal Register for public comment, 

23 and shall develop a final risk assessment report after 

24 taking into accounts any comments received during 

25 the public comment period. 


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1 ‘‘(3) FINAL REPORT.—The Administrator shall 

2 transmit a copy of the final report to the Senate 

3 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor4 tation and the House of Representatives Committee 

5 on Transportation and Infrastructure. 

6 ‘‘(s) OTHER SOURCES OF VESSEL-BORNE NUISANCE

7 SPECIES.— 

8 ‘‘(1) HULL-FOULING AND OTHER VESSEL

9 SOURCES.— 

10 ‘‘(A) REPORT.—Within 180 days after the 

11 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Man12 agement Act of 2007, the Commandant of the 

13 Coast Guard shall transmit a report to the Sen14 ate Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

15 Transportation and the House of Representa16 tives Committee on Transportation and Infra17 structure on vessel-borne vectors of aquatic nui18 sance species and pathogens other than ballast 

19 water and sediment, including vessel hulls, an20 chors, and equipment. 

21 ‘‘(B) MANAGEMENT.—Within 1 year after 

22 the date of enactment of the Ballast Water 

23 Management Act of 2007, the Secretary shall 

24 develop a strategy to address such other vessel 

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1 duce the introduction of invasive species into 

2 and within the United States from vessels. The 

3 strategy shall include— 

4 ‘‘(i) designation of geographical loca5 tions for update and discharge of un6 treated ballast water, as well as measures 

7 to address non-ballast vessel vectors of 

8 aquatic invasive species; 

9 ‘‘(ii) necessary modifications of exist10 ing regulations; 

11 ‘‘(iii) best practices standards and 

12 procedures; and 

13 ‘‘(iv) a timeframe for implementation 

14 of those standards and procedures by ves15 sels, in addition to the mandatory require16 ments set forth in this section for ballast 

17 water. 

18 ‘‘(C) REPORT.—The Secretary shall trans19 mit a report to the Committees describing the 

20 strategy, proposed regulations, best practices, 

21 and the implementation timeframe, together 

22 with any recommendations, including legislative 

23 recommendations if appropriate, the Secretary 

24 deems appropriate. 


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1 ‘‘(D) STANDARDS FOR VESSELS OF THE

2 UNITED STATES.—The strategy shall include 

3 requirements to ensure the consistent applica4 tion of best practices to all vessels owned or op5 erated by a Federal agency. 

6 ‘‘(2) TRANSITING VESSELS.—Within 180 days 

7 after the date of enactment of the Ballast Water 

8 Management Act of 2007, the Commandant of the 

9 Coast Guard shall transmit a report to the Senate 

10 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor11 tation and the House of Representatives Committee 

12 on Transportation and Infrastructure containing— 

13 ‘‘(A) an assessment of the magnitude and 

14 potential adverse impacts of ballast water oper15 ations from foreign vessels designed, adapted, 

16 or constructed to carry ballast water that are 

17 transiting waters subject to the jurisdiction of 

18 the United States; and 

19 ‘‘(B) recommendations, including legisla20 tive recommendations if appropriate, of options 

21 for addressing ballast water operations of those 

22 vessels. 

23 ‘‘(t) REGULATIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, after con25 sultation with other appropriate Federal agencies, 


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1 shall issue such regulations as may be necessary ini2 tially to carry out this section within 1 year after the 

3 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Management 

4 Act of 2007. 

5 ‘‘(2) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 

6 ‘‘(A) 120-DAY RULE.—An interested per7 son may bring an action for review of a final 

8 regulation promulgated under this section by 

9 the Secretary of the department in which the 

10 Coast Guard is operating in the United States 

11 Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia 

12 Circuit. Any such petition shall be filed within 

13 120 days after the date on which notice of the 

14 promulgation appears in the Federal Register, 

15 except that if the petition is based solely on 

16 grounds arising after the 120th day, then any 

17 petition for review under this subsection shall 

18 be filed within 120 days after those grounds 

19 arise. 

20 ‘‘(B) REVIEW IN ENFORCEMENT PRO21 CEEDINGS.—A regulation for which review 

22 could have been obtained under subparagraph 

23 (A) of this paragraph is not subject to judicial 

24 review in any civil or criminal proceeding for 

25 enforcement. 


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1 ‘‘(u) SAVINGS CLAUSE.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this section 

3 shall be construed to preempt the authority of any 

4 State or local government to impose penalties or fees 

5 for acts or omissions that are violations of this Act, 

6 or to provide incentives under subsection (f)(9)(B). 

7 ‘‘(2) RECEPTION FACILITIES.—The standards 

8 prescribed by the Secretary or other appropriate 

9 Federal agencies under subsection (f)(2) do not su10 persede any more stringent standard under any oth11 erwise applicable Federal, State, or local law. 

12 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION WITH OTHER STATUTES.— 

13 This section provides the sole Federal authority for 

14 preventing the introduction of species through the 

15 control and management of vessel ballast water or 

16 sediment or other vessel-related vectors.’’. 

17 (b) DEFINITIONS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1003 of the Non19 indigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control 

20 Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4702) is amended— 

21 (A) by redesignating paragraph (1) as 

22 paragraph (1A); 

23 (B) by inserting before paragraph (1A), as 

24 redesignated, the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) ‘Administrator’ means the Administrator 

2 of the Environmental Protection Agency;’’; 

3 (C) by striking paragraph (3) and insert4 ing the following: 

5 ‘‘(3) ‘ballast water’— 

6 ‘‘(A) means water taken on board a vessel 

7 to control trim, list, draught, stability, or 

8 stresses of the vessel, including matter sus9 pended in such water; and 

10 ‘‘(B) any water placed into a ballast tank 

11 during cleaning, maintenance, or other oper12 ations; but 

13 ‘‘(C) does not include water taken on 

14 board a vessel and used for a purpose described 

15 in subparagraph (A) that, at the time of dis16 charge, does not contain aquatic nuisance spe17 cies;’’; 

18 (D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(3A) ‘ballast water capacity’ means the total 

21 volumetric capacity of any tanks, spaces, or com22 partments on a vessel that is used for carrying, load23 ing, or discharging ballast water, including any 

24 multi-use tank, space, or compartment designed to 

25 allow carriage of ballast water; 


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1 ‘‘(3B) ‘ballast water management’ means me2 chanical, physical, chemical, and biological processes 

3 used, either singularly or in combination, to remove, 

4 render harmless, or avoid the uptake or discharge of 

5 aquatic nuisance species and pathogens within bal6 last water and sediment; 

7 ‘‘(3C) ‘constructed’ means a state of construc8 tion of a vessel at which— 

9 ‘‘(A) the keel is laid; 

10 ‘‘(B) construction identifiable with the spe11 cific vessel begins; 

12 ‘‘(C) assembly of the vessel has begun 

13 comprising at least 50 tons or 1 percent of the 

14 estimated mass of all structural material of the 

15 vessel, whichever is less; or 

16 ‘‘(D) the vessel undergoes a major conver17 sion;’’; 

18 (E) by inserting after paragraph (10) the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(10A) ‘major conversion’ means a conversion 

21 of a vessel, that— 

22 ‘‘(A) changes its ballast water carrying ca23 pacity by at least 15 percent; 

24 ‘‘(B) changes the vessel class; 


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1 ‘‘(C) is projected to prolong the vessel’s life 

2 by at least 10 years (as determined by the Sec3 retary); or 

4 ‘‘(D) results in modifications to the vessel’s 

5 ballast water system, except— 

6 ‘‘(i) component replacement-in-kind; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(ii) conversion of a vessel to meet the 

9 requirements of section 1101(e);’’; 

10 (F) by inserting after paragraph (12), as 

11 redesignated, the following: 

12 ‘‘(12A) ‘saltwater flushing’ means the process 

13 of— 

14 ‘‘(A) adding midocean water to a ballast 

15 water tank that contains residual quantities of 

16 ballast waters; 

17 ‘‘(B) mixing the midocean water with the 

18 residual ballast water and sediment in the tank 

19 through the motion of a vessel; and 

20 ‘‘(C) discharging the mixed water so that 

21 the salinity of the resulting residual ballast 

22 water in the tank exceeds 30 parts per thou23 sand; 

24 ‘‘(12B) ‘sediment’ means matter that has set25 tled out of ballast water within a vessel;’’; 


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1 (G) by redesignating paragraph (15) as 

2 paragraph (16A) and moving it to follow para3 graph (16); 

4 (H) by inserting after paragraph (17) the 

5 following: 

6 ‘‘(17A) ‘United States port’ means a port, 

7 river, harbor, or offshore terminal under the juris8 diction of the United States, including ports located 

9 in Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Marianas, and 

10 the United States Virgin Islands; 

11 ‘‘(17B) ‘vessel of the Armed Forces’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) any vessel owned or operated by the 

13 Department of Defense, other than a time or 

14 voyage chartered vessel; and 

15 ‘‘(B) any vessel owned or operated by the 

16 Department of Homeland Security that is des17 ignated by the Secretary of the department in 

18 which the Coast Guard is operating as a vessel 

19 equivalent to a vessel described in subparagraph 

20 (A); and 

21 ‘‘(17C) ‘waters subject to the jurisdiction of the 

22 United States’ means navigable waters and the terri23 torial sea of the United States, the exclusive eco24 nomic zone, and the Great Lakes.’’. 


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1 (2) STYLISTIC CONSISTENCY.—Section 1003 of 

2 the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and 

3 Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4702), as amended 

4 by paragraph (1), is further amended— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘As used in this Act, the 

6 term—’’ and inserting ‘‘In this Act:’’; 

7 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) 

8 through (17C) as paragraphs (1) through (27), 

9 respectively; and 

10 (C) by inserting a heading after the des11 ignation of each existing paragraph, in a form 

12 consistent with the form of the paragraphs 

13 added by paragraph (1) of this subsection, con14 sisting of the term defined in such paragraph 

15 and ‘‘The term’’. 

16 (c) REPEAL OF SECTION 1103.—Section 1103 of the 

17 Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control 

18 Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4713) is repealed. 

19 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 Section 1301(a) of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nui21 sance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 

22 4741(a)) is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

24 paragraph (4)(B); 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘1102(f).’’ in paragraph (5)(B) 

2 and inserting ‘‘1102(f); and’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(6) $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

5 through 2012 to the Secretary to carry out section 

6 1101.’’. 

7 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

8 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ballast Water Manage9 ment Act of 2007’’. 

10 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

11 Section 1002(a) of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nui12 sance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 

13 4701(a)) is amended— 

14 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (14) and (15) 

15 as paragraphs (15) and (16); 

16 (2) by inserting after paragraph (13) the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(14) aquatic nuisance species may be intro19 duced by other vessel conduits, including the hulls of 

20 ships; 

21 (3) by striking ‘‘inland lakes and rivers by rec22 reational boaters, commercial barge traffic, and a va23 riety of other pathways; and’’ in paragraph (15), as 

24 redesignated, and inserting ‘‘other areas of the United 

25 States, including coastal areas, inland lakes, and rivVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 ers by recreational boaters, commercial traffic, and a 

2 variety of other pathways;’’; 

3 (4) by inserting ‘‘nongovernmental entities, in4 stitutions of higher education, and the private sector,’’ 

5 after ‘‘governments,’’ in paragraph (16), as redesig6 nated; 

7 (5) by striking ‘‘technologies.’’ in paragraph 

8 (16), as redesignated, and inserting ‘‘technologies;’’; 

9 and 

10 (6) adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(17) in 2004, the International Maritime Orga12 nization agreed to a Convention, which the United 

13 States played an active role in negotiating, to pre14 vent, minimize, and ultimately eliminate the transfer 

15 of aquatic nuisance species through the control and 

16 management of ballast water and sediments; 

17 ‘‘(18) the International Maritime Organization 

18 agreement specifically recognizes that countries can 

19 take more stringent measures than those of the Con20 vention with respect to the control and management 

21 of ships’ ballast water and sediment; and 

22 ‘‘(19) due to the interstate nature of maritime 

23 transportation and the ways by which aquatic nui24 sance species may be transferred by vessels, a com25 prehensive and uniform national approach for adVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00061 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 dressing vessel-borne aquatic nuisance species is need2 ed to address this issue effectively.’’. 

3 SEC. 3. MANAGEMENT OF VESSEL-BORNE AQUATIC NUI4 SANCE SPECIES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1101 of the Nonindigenous 

6 Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16 

7 U.S.C. 4711) is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 1101. MANAGEMENT OF VESSEL-BORNE AQUATIC NUI9 SANCE SPECIES. 

10 ‘‘(a) STATEMENT OF PURPOSE; VESSELS TO WHICH

11 THIS SECTION APPLIES.— 

12 ‘‘(1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to 

13 provide an effective, comprehensive, and uniform na14 tional approach for addressing the introduction and 

15 spread of aquatic nuisance species from ballast water 

16 and other ship-borne vectors, and, in furtherance of 

17 that purpose— 

18 ‘‘(A) to require, as part of that approach, 

19 mandatory treatment technology, with the ulti20 mate goal of achieving zero discharge of aquatic 

21 nuisance species; 

22 ‘‘(B) to create incentives for the development 

23 of ballast water treatment technologies; 

24 ‘‘(C) to implement the International Con25 vention for the Control and Management of 


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1 Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, adopted by 

2 the International Maritime Organization in 

3 2004; and 

4 ‘‘(D) to establish a management approach 

5 for other ship-borne vectors of aquatic nuisance 

6 species. 

7 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para8 graphs (3), (4), (5), and (6) this section applies to a 

9 vessel that is designed, constructed, or adapted to 

10 carry ballast water; and 

11 ‘‘(A) is a vessel of United States registry or 

12 nationality, or operated under the authority of 

13 the United States, wherever located; or 

14 ‘‘(B) is a foreign vessel that— 

15 ‘‘(i) is en route to a United States port 

16 or place; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) has departed from a United 

18 States port or place and is within waters 

19 subject to the jurisdiction of the United 

20 States. 

21 ‘‘(3) PERMANENT BALLAST WATER VESSELS.— 

22 Except as provided in paragraph (6), this section 

23 does not apply to a vessel that carries all of its per24 manent ballast water in sealed tanks and is not sub25 ject to discharge. 


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1 ‘‘(4) ARMED FORCES VESSELS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) EXEMPTION.—Except as provided in 

3 subparagraph (B) and paragraph (6), this sec4 tion does not apply to a vessel of the Armed 

5 Forces. 

6 ‘‘(B) BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT PRO7 GRAM.—The Secretary and the Secretary of De8 fense, after consultation with each other and 

9 with the Under Secretary of Commerce for 

10 Oceans and Atmosphere, the Administrator of the 

11 Environmental Protection Agency, and other ap12 propriate Federal agencies as determined by the 

13 Secretary, shall implement a ballast water man14 agement program, including the promulgation of 

15 standards for ballast water exchange and treat16 ment and for sediment management, for vessels 

17 of the Armed Forces under their respective juris18 dictions designed, constructed, or adapted to 

19 carry ballast water that is— 

20 ‘‘(i) consistent with the requirements of 

21 this section, including the deadlines; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) at least as stringent as the re23 quirements promulgated for such vessels 

24 under section 312 of the Clean Water Act 

25 (33 U.S.C. 1322). 


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1 ‘‘(5) SPECIAL RULE FOR SMALL VESSELS.—In 

2 applying this section to vessels less than 50 meters in 

3 length that have a maximum ballast water capacity 

4 of 8 cubic meters, the Secretary may promulgate al5 ternative measures for managing ballast water in a 

6 manner that is consistent with the purposes of this 

7 Act. 

8 ‘‘(6) OTHER SOURCES OF VESSEL-BORNE AQUAT9 IC NUISANCE SPECIES.—Measures undertaken by the 

10 Secretary under subsection (s) shall apply to all ves11 sels (as defined in section 3 of title 1, United States 

12 Code). 

13 ‘‘(b) UPTAKE AND DISCHARGE OF BALLAST WATER OR

14 SEDIMENT.— 

15 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—The operator of a vessel to 

16 which this section applies may not conduct the uptake 

17 or discharge of ballast water or sediment except as 

18 provided in this section. 

19 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) does not 

20 apply to the uptake or discharge of ballast water or 

21 sediment in the following circumstances: 

22 ‘‘(A) The uptake or discharge is solely for 

23 the purpose of— 

24 ‘‘(i) ensuring the safety of the vessel in 

25 an emergency situation; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) saving a life at sea. 

2 ‘‘(B) The uptake or discharge is accidental 

3 and the result of damage to the vessel or its 

4 equipment and— 

5 ‘‘(i) all reasonable precautions to pre6 vent or minimize ballast water and sedi7 ment discharge have been taken before and 

8 after the damage occurs, the discovery of the 

9 damage, and the discharge; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) the owner or officer in charge of 

11 the vessel did not willfully or recklessly 

12 cause the damage. 

13 ‘‘(C) The uptake or discharge is solely for 

14 the purpose of avoiding or minimizing the dis15 charge from the vessel of pollution that would 

16 otherwise violate applicable Federal or State 

17 law. 

18 ‘‘(D) The uptake or discharge of ballast 

19 water and sediment occurs at the same location 

20 where the whole of that ballast water and that 

21 sediment originated and there is no mixing with 

22 ballast water and sediment from another area 

23 that has not been managed in accordance with 

24 the requirements of this section. 

25 ‘‘(c) VESSEL BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The operator of a vessel to 

2 which this section applies shall conduct all ballast 

3 water management operations of that vessel in ac4 cordance with a ballast water management plan de5 signed to minimize the discharge of aquatic nuisance 

6 species that— 

7 ‘‘(A) meets the requirements prescribed by 

8 the Secretary by regulation; and 

9 ‘‘(B) is approved by the Secretary. 

10 ‘‘(2) APPROVAL CRITERIA.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not 

12 approve a ballast water management plan unless 

13 the Secretary determines that the plan— 

14 ‘‘(i) describes in detail the actions to be 

15 taken to implement the ballast water man16 agement requirements established under this 

17 section; 

18 ‘‘(ii) describes in detail the procedures 

19 to be used for disposal of sediment at sea 

20 and on shore in accordance with the re21 quirements of this section; 

22 ‘‘(iii) describes in detail safety proce23 dures for the vessel and crew associated with 

24 ballast water management; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) designates the officer on board the 

2 vessel in charge of ensuring that the plan is 

3 properly implemented; 

4 ‘‘(v) contains the reporting require5 ments for vessels established under this sec6 tion and a copy of each form necessary to 

7 meet those requirements; 

8 ‘‘(vi) incorporates regulatory require9 ments, guidance, and best practices devel10 oped under subsection (s) for other vessel 

11 pathways by which aquatic nuisance species 

12 are transported; and 

13 ‘‘(vii) meets all other requirements pre14 scribed by the Secretary. 

15 ‘‘(B) FOREIGN VESSELS.—The Secretary 

16 may approve a ballast water management plan 

17 for a foreign vessel (as defined in section 

18 2101(12) of title 46, United States Code) on the 

19 basis of a certificate of compliance with the cri20 teria described in subparagraph (A) issued by 

21 the vessel’s country of registration in accordance 

22 with regulations promulgated by the Secretary. 

23 ‘‘(3) COPY OF PLAN ON BOARD VESSEL.—The 

24 owner or operator of a vessel to which this section ap25 plies shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) maintain a copy of the vessel’s ballast 

2 water management plan on board at all times; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(B) keep the plan readily available for ex5 amination by the Secretary at all reasonable 

6 times. 

7 ‘‘(d) VESSEL BALLAST WATER RECORD BOOK.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The owner or operator of a 

9 vessel to which this section applies shall maintain a 

10 ballast water record book in English on board the ves11 sel in which— 

12 ‘‘(A) each operation involving ballast water 

13 or sediment discharge is fully recorded without 

14 delay, in accordance with regulations promul15 gated by the Secretary; 

16 ‘‘(B) each such operation is described in de17 tail, including the location and circumstances of, 

18 and the reason for, the operation; and 

19 ‘‘(C) the exact nature and circumstances of 

20 any situation under which any operation was 

21 conducted under an exception set forth in sub22 section (b)(2) or (e)(3) is described. 

23 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The ballast water record 

24 book— 


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1 ‘‘(A) shall be kept readily available for ex2 amination by the Secretary at all reasonable 

3 times; and 

4 ‘‘(B) notwithstanding paragraph (1), may 

5 be kept on the towing vessel in the case of an un6 manned vessel under tow. 

7 ‘‘(3) RETENTION PERIOD.—The ballast water 

8 record book shall be retained— 

9 ‘‘(A) on board the vessel for a period of 3 

10 years after the date on which the last entry in 

11 the book is made; and 

12 ‘‘(B) under the control of the vessel’s owner 

13 for an additional period of 3 years. 

14 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—In the regulations pre15 scribed under this section, the Secretary shall require, 

16 at a minimum, that— 

17 ‘‘(A) each entry in the ballast water record 

18 book be signed and dated by the officer in charge 

19 of the ballast water operation recorded; 

20 ‘‘(B) each completed page in the ballast 

21 water record book be signed and dated by the 

22 master of the vessel; and 

23 ‘‘(C) the owner or operator of the vessel 

24 transmit such information to the Secretary reVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00070 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 garding the ballast operations of the vessel as the 

2 Secretary may require. 

3 ‘‘(5) ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF RECORD4 KEEPING.—The Secretary shall provide by regulation 

5 for alternative methods of recordkeeping, including 

6 electronic recordkeeping, to comply with the require7 ments of this subsection. Any electronic recordkeeping 

8 method authorized by the Secretary shall support the 

9 inspection and enforcement provisions of this Act and 

10 shall comply with applicable standards of the Na11 tional Institute of Standards and Technology and the 

12 Office of Management and Budget governing reli13 ability, integrity, identity authentication, and non14 repudiation of stored electronic data. 

15 ‘‘(e) BALLAST WATER EXCHANGE REQUIREMENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

17 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT.—Until a vessel is re18 quired to conduct ballast water treatment in ac19 cordance with subsection (f) of this section, the 

20 operator of a vessel to which this section applies 

21 may not discharge ballast water in waters sub22 ject to the jurisdiction of the United States ex23 cept after— 

24 ‘‘(i) conducting ballast water exchange 

25 as required by this subsection, in accordVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 ance with regulations prescribed by the Sec2 retary, in a manner that results in an effi3 ciency of at least 95 percent volumetric ex4 change of the ballast water for each ballast 

5 water tank; 

6 ‘‘(ii) using ballast water treatment 

7 technology that meets the performance 

8 standards of subsection (f); or 

9 ‘‘(iii) using alternative ballast water 

10 treatment technology, if the Secretary, in 

11 consultation with the Administrator, deter12 mines that such treatment technology is at 

13 least as effective as the ballast water ex14 change required by clause (i) in preventing 

15 and controlling the introduction of aquatic 

16 nuisance species, and will not have an ad17 verse impact on the environment. 

18 ‘‘(B) TECHNOLOGY EFFICACY.—For pur19 poses of this paragraph, a ballast water treat20 ment technology shall be considered to be at least 

21 as effective as the ballast water exchange re22 quired by clause (i) in preventing and control23 ling the introduction of aquatic nuisance species 

24 if preliminary experiments prior to installation 

25 of the technology aboard the vessel demonstrate 


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1 that the technology removed at least 98 percent 

2 of organisms larger than 50 microns. 

3 ‘‘(2) GUIDANCE; 5-YEAR USAGE.— 

4 ‘‘(A) GUIDANCE.—Within 1 year after the 

5 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Manage6 ment Act of 2007, after public notice and oppor7 tunity for comment, the Secretary shall develop 

8 guidance on technology that may be used under 

9 paragraph (1)(A)(iii). 

10 ‘‘(B) 5-YEAR USAGE.—The Secretary shall 

11 allow a vessel using environmentally-sound alter12 native ballast water treatment technology under 

13 paragraph (1)(A)(iii) to continue to use that 

14 technology for 5 years after the date on which the 

15 environmentally-sound alternative ballast water 

16 treatment technology was first placed in service 

17 on the vessel, or the date on which treatment re18 quirements under subsection (f) become applica19 ble, whichever is later. 

20 ‘‘(3) EXCHANGE AREAS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) VESSELS OUTSIDE THE UNITED

22 STATES EEZ.—The operator of a vessel en route 

23 to a United States port or place from a port or 

24 place outside the United States exclusive ecoVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 nomic zone shall conduct ballast water ex2 change— 

3 ‘‘(i) before arriving at a United States 

4 port or place; 

5 ‘‘(ii) at least 200 nautical miles from 

6 the nearest point of land; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) in water at least 200 meters in 

8 depth. 

9 ‘‘(B) COASTAL VOYAGES.—In lieu of using 

10 an exchange zone described in subparagraph 

11 (A)(ii) or (iii), the operator of a vessel origi12 nating from a port or place within waters sub13 ject to the jurisdiction of the United States, or 

14 from a port within 200 nautical miles of the 

15 United States in Canada, Mexico, or other ports 

16 designated by the Secretary for purposes of this 

17 section, and which does not voyage into waters 

18 described in subparagraph (A)(ii) or (iii), shall 

19 conduct ballast water exchange— 

20 ‘‘(i) at least 50 nautical miles from the 

21 nearest point of land; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) in water at least 200 meters in 

23 depth. 

24 ‘‘(4) SAFETY OR STABILITY EXCEPTION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) SECRETARIAL DETERMINATION.— 

2 Paragraph (3) does not apply to the discharge of 

3 ballast water if the Secretary determines that 

4 compliance with that paragraph would threaten 

5 the safety or stability of the vessel, its crew, or 

6 its passengers because of the design or operating 

7 characteristics of the vessel. 

8 ‘‘(B) MASTER OF THE VESSEL DETERMINA9 TION.—Paragraph (3) does not apply to the dis10 charge of ballast water if the master of a vessel 

11 determines that compliance with that paragraph 

12 would threaten the safety or stability of the ves13 sel, its crew, or its passengers because of adverse 

14 weather, equipment failure, or any other relevant 

15 condition. 

16 ‘‘(C) NOTIFICATION REQUIRED.—Whenever 

17 the master of a vessel is unable to comply with 

18 the requirements of paragraph (3) because of a 

19 determination made under subparagraph (B), 

20 the master of the vessel shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) notify the Secretary as soon as 

22 practicable thereafter but no later than 24 

23 hours after making that determination and 

24 shall ensure that the determination, the rea25 sons for the determination, and the notice 


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1 are recorded in the vessel’s ballast water 

2 record book; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) undertake ballast water ex4 change— 

5 ‘‘(I) in an alternative area that 

6 may be designated by the Secretary, 

7 after consultation with the Undersecre8 tary, and other appropriate Federal 

9 agencies as determined by the Sec10 retary, and representatives of States 

11 the waters of which may be affected by 

12 the discharge of ballast water; or 

13 ‘‘(II) undertake discharge of bal14 last water in accordance with para15 graph (6) if safety or stability concerns 

16 prevent undertaking ballast water ex17 change in the alternative area. 

18 ‘‘(D) REVIEW OF CIRCUMSTANCES.—If the 

19 master of a vessel conducts a ballast water dis20 charge under the provisions of this paragraph, 

21 the Secretary shall review the circumstances to 

22 determine whether the discharge met the require23 ments of this paragraph. The review under this 

24 clause shall be in addition to any other enforce25 ment authority of the Secretary. 


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1 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE UNDER WAIVER.— 

2 ‘‘(A) SUBSTANTIAL BUSINESS HARDSHIP

3 WAIVER.—If, because of the short length of a voy4 age, the operator of a vessel is unable to dis5 charge ballast water in accordance with the re6 quirements of paragraph (3)(B) without substan7 tial business hardship, as determined under reg8 ulations prescribed by the Secretary, the operator 

9 shall request a waiver from the Secretary and 

10 discharge the ballast water in accordance with 

11 paragraph (6). A request for a waiver under this 

12 subparagraph shall be submitted to the Secretary 

13 at such time and in such form and manner as 

14 the Secretary may require. 

15 ‘‘(B) SUBSTANTIAL BUSINESS HARDSHIP.— 

16 For purposes of subparagraph (A), the factors 

17 taken into account in determining substantial 

18 business hardship shall include whether— 

19 ‘‘(i) compliance with the requirements 

20 of paragraph (3)(B) would require a suffi21 ciently great change in routing or sched22 uling of service as to compromise the eco23 nomic or commercial viability of the trade 

24 or business in which the vessel is operated; 

25 or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) it is reasonable to expect that the 

2 trade or business or service provided will be 

3 continued only if a waiver is granted under 

4 subparagraph (A). 

5 ‘‘(6) PERMISSABLE DISCHARGE.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The discharge of 

7 unexchanged ballast water shall be considered to 

8 be carried out in accordance with this paragraph 

9 if it is— 

10 ‘‘(i) in an area designated for that 

11 purpose by the Secretary, after consultation 

12 with the Undersecretary and other appro13 priate Federal agencies as determined by 

14 the Secretary and representatives of any 

15 State that may be affected by discharge of 

16 ballast water in that area; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) into a reception facility described 

18 in subsection (f)(2). 

19 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON VOLUME.—The volume 

20 of any ballast water discharged under the provi21 sions of this paragraph may not exceed the vol22 ume necessary to ensure the safe operation of the 

23 vessel. 


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1 ‘‘(7) PARTIAL COMPLIANCE.—The operator of a 

2 vessel that is unable to comply fully with the require3 ments of paragraph (3)— 

4 ‘‘(A) shall nonetheless conduct ballast water 

5 exchange to the maximum extent feasible in com6 pliance with those paragraphs; and 

7 ‘‘(B) may conduct a partial ballast water 

8 exchange under this paragraph only to the extent 

9 that the ballast water in an individual ballast 

10 tank can be completely exchanged in accordance 

11 with the provisions of paragraph (1)(A). 

12 ‘‘(8) CERTAIN GEOGRAPHICALLY LIMITED

13 ROUTES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (3)(B) of this 

14 subsection, the operator of a vessel is not required to 

15 comply with the requirements of this subsection— 

16 ‘‘(A) if the vessel operates exclusively— 

17 ‘‘(i) within Lake Superior, Lake 

18 Michigan, Lake Huron, Lake Ontario, and 

19 Lake Erie and the connecting channels; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) between or among the main group 

21 of the Hawaiian Islands; or 

22 ‘‘(B) if the vessel operates exclusively within 

23 any area with respect to which the Secretary has 

24 determined, after consultation with the Undersec25 retary, the Administrator, and concurrence by 


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1 the State whose state waters would be affected by 

2 the discharge of ballast water, that the risk of in3 troducing aquatic nuisance species through bal4 last water discharge in the areas in which the 

5 vessel operates is insignificant. 

6 ‘‘(9) MARINE SANCTUARIES AND OTHER PROHIB7 ITED AREAS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A vessel may not dis9 charge ballast water or sediment containing 

10 aquatic nuisance species within— 

11 ‘‘(i) a marine sanctuary designated 

12 under title III of the National Marine 

13 Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.); 

14 ‘‘(ii) a national marine monument 

15 designated under the Antiquities Act of 

16 1906; or 

17 ‘‘(iii) an area designated by the Sec18 retary in any other waters, after consulta19 tion with the Undersecretary and the Ad20 ministrator and opportunity for public 

21 comment, that meet the criteria established 

22 pursuant to subparagraph (B) of this para23 graph. 

24 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL AREAS.—The Secretary 

25 shall, after consultation with the Undersecretary, 


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1 the Administrator and other appropriate Federal 

2 and State agencies, as determined by the Sec3 retary, and opportunity for public comment, es4 tablish criteria for designating additional areas 

5 in which, due to their sensitive ecological nature, 

6 restrictions on the discharge of vessel ballast 

7 water or sediment containing aquatic nuisance 

8 species are warranted. 

9 ‘‘(C) STATE WATERS.—The governor of any 

10 State may submit a written petition to the Sec11 retary to designate an area of State waters 

12 under subparagraph (A)(iii) that meets the cri13 teria established under subparagraph (B) of this 

14 paragraph. The petition shall include a detailed 

15 analysis as to how the area proposed to be des16 ignated meets those criteria. An area may not be 

17 designated under this paragraph until the Sec18 retary determines, based on evidence provided by 

19 the governor, that adequate alternative areas or 

20 reception facilities for discharging ballast water 

21 or sediment are available. Within 180 days after 

22 receiving such a petition, the Secretary shall— 

23 ‘‘(i) make a determination as to wheth24 er the proposal meets the requirements of 

25 this paragraph for designation, and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) either— 

2 ‘‘(I) publish a written notice of 

3 the petition and the proposed restric4 tions in the Federal Register; or 

5 ‘‘(II) notify the governor in writ6 ing that the area proposed for designa7 tion does not qualify for designation 

8 under this paragraph and include in 

9 the notice a detailed explanation of 

10 why the area does not qualify for des11 ignation under this paragraph. 

12 ‘‘(D) PROCEDURE; DEADLINE.—Before des13 ignating any area under subparagraph (A)(iii), 

14 whether on the Secretary’s initiative or in re15 sponse to a petition under subparagraph (C), the 

16 Secretary, after providing an opportunity for 

17 public comment, shall publish notice in the Fed18 eral Register of the proposed designation. The 

19 Secretary and the Undersecretary shall make 

20 such information available through other appro21 priate mechanisms, including a notice to mari22 ners and inclusion on nautical charts. The des23 ignation of an area by the Secretary under sub24 paragraph (A)(iii) may not take effect less than 

25 180 days after the publishing of such notice. 


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1 ‘‘(E) EFFECT ON STATE LAW.—Nothing in 

2 this paragraph supersedes any State law in ef3 fect as of January 1, 2007, that restricts the dis4 charge of ballast water or sediment in State wa5 ters and requires such discharges to be made into 

6 reception facilities. 

7 ‘‘(10) REGULATIONS DEADLINE.—The Secretary 

8 shall issue a final rule for regulations required by this 

9 subsection within 1 year after the date of enactment 

10 of the Ballast Water Management Act of 2007. 

11 ‘‘(11) VESSELS OPERATING IN THE GREAT

12 LAKES.— 

13 ‘‘(A) REGULATIONS.—Until such time as 

14 regulations are promulgated to implement the 

15 amendments made by the Ballast Water Manage16 ment Act of 2007, regulations promulgated to 

17 carry out this Act shall remain in effect until re18 vised or replaced pursuant to the Ballast Water 

19 Management Act of 2007. 

20 ‘‘(B) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PRO21 GRAMS.—On promulgation of regulations re22 quired under this Act to implement a national 

23 mandatory ballast management program that is 

24 at least as comprehensive as the Great Lakes 

25 program (as determined by the Secretary, in 


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1 consultation with the Governors of Great Lakes 

2 States)— 

3 ‘‘(i) the program regulating vessels and 

4 ballast water in Great Lakes under this sec5 tion shall terminate; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the national program shall apply 

7 to such vessels and ballast water. 

8 ‘‘(12) VESSELS WITH NO BALLAST ON BOARD.— 

9 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

10 of the Ballast Water Management Act of 2007, the 

11 Secretary shall promulgate regulations to minimize 

12 the discharge of invasive species from ships entering 

13 a United States port or place from outside the United 

14 States exclusive economic zone that claim no ballast 

15 on board, or that claim to be carrying only 

16 unpumpable quantities of ballast, including, at a 

17 minimum, a requirement that— 

18 ‘‘(i) such a ship shall conduct salt19 water flushing of ballast water tanks— 

20 ‘‘(I) outside the exclusive economic 

21 zone; or 

22 ‘‘(II) at a designated alternative 

23 exchange site; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) before being allowed entry into 

25 the Great Lakes beyond the St. Lawrence 


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1 Seaway, the master of such a ship shall cer2 tify that the ship has complied with each 

3 applicable requirement under this sub4 section. 

5 ‘‘(f) BALLAST WATER TREATMENT REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.—A vessel to 

7 which this section applies shall conduct ballast water 

8 treatment in accordance with the requirements of this 

9 subsection before discharging ballast water so that the 

10 ballast water discharged will contain— 

11 ‘‘(A) less than 1 living organism per 10 

12 cubic meters that is 50 or more micrometers in 

13 minimum dimension; 

14 ‘‘(B) less than 1 living organism per 10 

15 milliliters that is less than 50 micrometers in 

16 minimum dimension and more than 10 microm17 eters in minimum dimension; 

18 ‘‘(C) concentrations of indicator microbes 

19 that are less than— 

20 ‘‘(i) 1 colony-forming unit of 

21 toxicogenic Vibrio cholera (serotypes O1 and 

22 O139) per 100 milliliters, or less than 1 col23 ony-forming unit of that microbe per gram 

24 of wet weight of zoological samples; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) 126 colony-forming units of esch2 erichia coli per 100 milliliters; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) 33 colony-forming units of intes4 tinal enterococci per 100 milliliters; and 

5 ‘‘(D) concentrations of such additional indi6 cator microbes, and of viruses, as may be speci7 fied in regulations promulgated by the Adminis8 trator, after consultation with the Secretary and 

9 other appropriate Federal and State agencies as 

10 determined by the Administrator, that are less 

11 than the amount specified in those regulations. 

12 ‘‘(2) RECEPTION FACILITY EXCEPTION.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) does not 

14 apply to a vessel that discharges ballast water 

15 into a facility for the reception of ballast water 

16 that meets standards prescribed by the Adminis17 trator. 

18 ‘‘(B) PROMULGATION OF STANDARDS.— 

19 Within 1 year after the date of enactment of the 

20 Ballast Water Management Act of 2007, the Ad21 ministrator, in consultation with the Secretary 

22 and other appropriate Federal and State agen23 cies as determined by the Administrator, shall 

24 promulgate standards for— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the reception of ballast water from 

2 vessels into reception facilities; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) the disposal or treatment of such 

4 ballast water in a way that does not impair 

5 or damage the environment, human health, 

6 property, or resources. 

7 ‘‘(3) IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE.—Paragraph 

8 (1) applies to all vessels to which this section applies 

9 on January 1, 2012. Based on the outcome of the fea10 sibility review conducted under paragraph (5), the 

11 Secretary may require different classes of vessels to 

12 comply with paragraph (1) on a different schedule, 

13 and shall establish different classes of vessels for this 

14 purpose through regulations under this section. 

15 ‘‘(4) TREATMENT SYSTEM APPROVAL RE16 QUIRED.—The operator of a vessel may not use a bal17 last water treatment system to comply with the re18 quirements of this subsection unless the system is ap19 proved by the Secretary, in consultation with the Ad20 ministrator. The Secretary shall promulgate regula21 tions establishing a process for such approval, after 

22 consultation with the Administrator and other appro23 priate Federal agencies as determined by the Sec24 retary, within 1 year after the date of enactment of 

25 the Ballast Water Management Act of 2007. 


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1 ‘‘(5) FEASIBILITY REVIEW.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not less than 2 years 

3 before January 1, 2012, or as that date may be 

4 extended under this paragraph, the Secretary, in 

5 consultation with the Administrator, shall com6 plete a review to determine whether appropriate 

7 technologies are available to achieve the stand8 ards set forth in paragraph (1). In reviewing the 

9 technologies the Secretary, after consultation 

10 with the Administrator and other appropriate 

11 Federal agencies as determined by the Secretary, 

12 shall consider— 

13 ‘‘(i) the effectiveness of a technology in 

14 achieving the standards; 

15 ‘‘(ii) feasibility in terms of compat16 ibility with ship design and operations; 

17 ‘‘(iii) safety considerations; 

18 ‘‘(iv) whether a technology has an ad19 verse impact on the environment; and 

20 ‘‘(v) cost effectiveness. 

21 ‘‘(B) DELAY IN SCHEDULED APPLICA22 TION.—If the Secretary determines, on the basis 

23 of the review conducted under subparagraph (A), 

24 that technology that complies with the standards 

25 set forth in paragraph (1) in accordance with 


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1 the schedule set forth in paragraph (3), or as 

2 that date may be extended under this paragraph, 

3 is not available or cost-effective for any class of 

4 vessels, the Secretary shall require use of cost-ef5 fective technology that achieves the performance 

6 levels of the best performing technology available 

7 that meets, at a minimum, the applicable ballast 

8 water discharge standard of the International 

9 Maritime Organization. If the Secretary finds 

10 that no technology is available that will achieve 

11 either the standards set forth in paragraph (1) 

12 or the standards of the International Maritime 

13 Organization, then, the Secretary shall— 

14 ‘‘(i) extend the date on which that 

15 paragraph applies to vessels for a period of 

16 not more than 24 months; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) recommend action to ensure that 

18 compliance with the extended date schedule 

19 for that subparagraph is achieved. 

20 ‘‘(C) HIGHER STANDARDS; EARLIER IMPLE21 MENTATION.— 

22 ‘‘(i) STANDARDS.—If the Secretary de23 termines that ballast water treatment tech24 nology exists that exceeds the performance 

25 standards required under paragraph (1) of 


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1 this subsection, the Secretary shall, for any 

2 class of vessels, revise the performance 

3 standards to incorporate the higher per4 formance standards. 

5 ‘‘(ii) IMPLEMENTATION.—If the Sec6 retary determines that technology that 

7 achieves the applicable performance stand8 ards required under paragraph (1) of this 

9 subsection can be implemented earlier than 

10 required by this subsection, the Secretary 

11 shall, for any class of vessels, accelerate the 

12 implementation schedule under paragraph 

13 (3). If the Secretary accelerates the imple14 mentation schedule pursuant to this clause, 

15 the Secretary shall provide at least 24 

16 months notice before such accelerated imple17 mentation goes into effect. 

18 ‘‘(iii) DETERMINATIONS NOT MUTU19 ALLY EXCLUSIVE.—The Secretary shall take 

20 action under both clause (i) and clause (ii) 

21 if the Secretary makes determinations 

22 under both clauses. 

23 ‘‘(6) DELAY OF APPLICATION FOR VESSEL PAR24 TICIPATING IN PROMISING TECHNOLOGY EVALUA25 TIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a vessel participates 

2 in a program approved by the Secretary to test 

3 and evaluate promising ballast water treatment 

4 technologies that are likely to result in treatment 

5 technologies achieving a standard that is the 

6 same as or more stringent than the standard 

7 that applies under paragraph (1) before the first 

8 date on which paragraph (1) applies to that ves9 sel, the Secretary shall allow the vessel to use 

10 that technology for a 10 year period and such 

11 vessel shall be deemed to be in compliance with 

12 the requirements of paragraph (1) during that 

13 10-year period. 

14 ‘‘(B) VESSEL DIVERSITY.—The Secretary— 

15 ‘‘(i) shall seek to ensure that a wide 

16 variety of vessel types and voyages are in17 cluded in the program; but 

18 ‘‘(ii) may not grant a delay under this 

19 paragraph to more than 5 percent of the 

20 vessels to which subparagraph (A), (B), (C), 

21 or (D) of paragraph (3) applies. 

22 ‘‘(C) TERMINATION OF GRACE PERIOD.— 

23 The Secretary may terminate the 10-year grace 

24 period of a vessel under subparagraph (A) if 


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1 participation of the vessel in the program is ter2 minated without the consent of the Secretary. 

3 ‘‘(D) ANNUAL RE-EVALUATION; TERMI4 NATION.—The Secretary shall establish an an5 nual evaluation process to determine whether the 

6 performance of an approved technology is suffi7 ciently effective and whether it is causing harm 

8 to the environment. If the Secretary determines 

9 that an approved technology is insufficiently ef10 fective or is causing harm to the environment, 

11 the Secretary shall revoke the approval granted 

12 under subparagraph (A). 

13 ‘‘(7) REVIEW OF STANDARDS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In December, 2014, and 

15 in every third year thereafter, the Administrator, 

16 in consultation with the Secretary, shall review 

17 ballast water treatment standards to determine, 

18 after consultation with the Undersecretary and 

19 Federal and State agencies as determined by the 

20 Administrator, if the standards under this sub21 section should be revised to reduce the amount of 

22 organisms, microbes, or viruses allowed to be dis23 charged, taking into account improvements in 

24 the scientific understanding of biological proc25 esses leading to the spread of aquatic nuisance 


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1 species and improvements in ballast water treat2 ment technology. The Administrator shall revise 

3 by regulation the performance standard required 

4 under this subsection as necessary. 

5 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION OF ADJUSTED STAND6 ARDS.—In the regulations, the Secretary shall 

7 provide for the prospective application of the ad8 justed standards prescribed under this paragraph 

9 to vessels constructed after the date on which the 

10 adjusted standards apply and for an orderly 

11 phase-in of the adjusted standards to existing 

12 vessels. 

13 ‘‘(8) INSTALLED EQUIPMENT.—If ballast water 

14 treatment technology used for purposes of complying 

15 with the regulations under this subsection is installed 

16 on a vessel, maintained in good working order, and 

17 used by the vessel, the vessel may use that technology 

18 for the shortest of— 

19 ‘‘(A) the 10-year period beginning on the 

20 date of initial use of technology required by 

21 paragraph (1); 

22 ‘‘(B) and the 5-year period beginning on 

23 the date of initial use of technology that, at a 

24 minimum, meets International Maritime Orga25 nization standards; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) the life of the ship on which the tech2 nology is used. 

3 ‘‘(9) HIGH-RISK VESSELS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) VESSEL LIST.—Within 1 year after the 

5 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Manage6 ment Act of 2007, the Secretary shall publish a 

7 list of vessels identified by States that, due to 

8 factors such as the origin of their voyages, the 

9 frequency of their voyages, the volume of ballast 

10 water they carry, the biological makeup of the 

11 ballast water, or the fact that they frequently dis12 charge unexchanged ballast water pursuant to an 

13 exception under subsection (e), pose a relatively 

14 high risk of introducing aquatic nuisance species 

15 into the waters of those States. The Secretary 

16 shall update the list after any calendar quarter 

17 in which new vessels are identified by States 

18 under the preceding sentence. 

19 ‘‘(B) INCENTIVE PROGRAMS.—The Secretary 

20 shall give priority to vessels on the list for par21 ticipation in pilot programs described in para22 graph (6). Any Federal agency, and any State 

23 agency with respect to vessels identified by such 

24 State to the Secretary for inclusion on the list 

25 pursuant to subparagraph (A), may develop 


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1 technology development programs or other incen2 tives (whether positive or negative) to such ves3 sels in order to encourage the adoption of ballast 

4 water treatment technology by those vessels con5 sistent with the requirements of this section on 

6 an expedited basis. 

7 ‘‘(10) EXCEPTION FOR VESSELS OPERATING EX8 CLUSIVELY IN DETERMINED AREA.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) and 

10 subsection (h)(1) do not apply to a vessel that 

11 operates exclusively within a geographically lim12 ited area if the Secretary has determined through 

13 a rulemaking proceeding, after consultation with 

14 the Undersecretary and other appropriate Fed15 eral agencies as determined by the Secretary, 

16 and representatives of States the waters of which 

17 could be affected by the discharge of ballast water 

18 or sediment, that the risk of introducing and 

19 spreading aquatic nuisance species through bal20 last water or sediment discharge from the vessel 

21 is insignificant. 

22 ‘‘(B) CERTAIN VESSELS.—A vessel con23 structed before January 1, 2001, that operates 

24 exclusively within Lake Superior, Lake Michi25 gan, Lake Huron, and Lake Erie and the conVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00095 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 necting channels shall be presumed not to pose a 

2 significant risk of introducing aquatic nuisance 

3 species unless the Secretary finds otherwise in a 

4 rulemaking proceeding under subparagraph (A). 

5 ‘‘(C) BEST PRACTICES.—The Secretary 

6 shall develop, and require vessels exempted under 

7 subparagraph (A) to follow, best practices, devel8 oped in consultation with the Governors or 

9 States that may be affected, to minimize the 

10 spreading of aquatic nuisance species or infec11 tious diseases in its operating area. 

12 ‘‘(11) TESTING PROTOCOLS AND LABORA13 TORIES.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in con15 sultation with the Administrator, shall, no later 

16 than 90 days after the date of enactment of the 

17 Ballast Water Management Act of 2007 and 

18 without regard to chapter 5 of title 5, United 

19 States Code, issue interim protocols for verifying 

20 the performance of ballast water treatment tech21 nologies required by this Act, criteria for certi22 fying laboratories to evaluate such technologies, 

23 and procedures for approving treatment equip24 ment and systems for shipboard use. 


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1 ‘‘(B) PROTOCOLS AND PROCEDURES FOR

2 TREATMENT TECHNOLOGIES.—In developing pro3 tocols and procedures for verifying and approv4 ing treatment technologies, the Secretary, in con5 sultation with the Administrator, shall consider 

6 using existing protocols and procedures includ7 ing methods used as part of the Ballast Water 

8 Management Demonstration Program by the En9 vironmental Protection Agency as a part of its 

10 Environmental Testing & Verification Program, 

11 or by the Secretary as part of the Coast Guard’s 

12 Shipboard Technology Evaluation Program. 

13 ‘‘(C) LABORATORIES.—The Secretary shall 

14 utilize Federal or non-Federal laboratories that 

15 meet standards established by the Secretary for 

16 the purpose of evaluating and certifying ballast 

17 water treatment technologies and equipment 

18 under this subsection. 

19 ‘‘(D) REQUIREMENTS; UPDATES.—The Sec20 retary, in consultation with the Administrator, 

21 shall periodically review and, if necessary, revise 

22 the criteria, protocols, and procedures developed 

23 under this paragraph. 

24 ‘‘(g) WARNINGS CONCERNING BALLAST WATER UP25 TAKE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall notify 

2 vessel owners and operators of any area in waters 

3 subject to the jurisdiction of the United States in 

4 which vessels may not uptake ballast water due to 

5 known conditions. 

6 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The notice shall include— 

7 ‘‘(A) the coordinates of the area; 

8 ‘‘(B) if possible, the location of alternative 

9 areas for the uptake of ballast water; and 

10 ‘(C) the length of time that such warning 

11 shall remain in place. 

12 ‘‘(h) SEDIMENT MANAGEMENT.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The operator of a vessel to 

14 which this section applies may not remove or dispose 

15 of sediment from spaces designed to carry ballast 

16 water except— 

17 ‘‘(A) in accordance with this subsection and 

18 the ballast water management plan required 

19 under subsection (c); and 

20 ‘‘(B) more than 200 nautical miles from the 

21 nearest point of land or into a reception facility 

22 that meets the requirements of paragraph (3). 

23 ‘‘(2) DESIGN REQUIREMENTS.— 

24 ‘‘(A) NEW VESSELS.—After December 31, 

25 2011, it shall be unlawful to construct a vessel 


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1 in the United States to which this section applies 

2 unless that vessel is designed and constructed, in 

3 accordance with regulations prescribed under 

4 subparagraph (C), in a manner that— 

5 ‘‘(i) minimizes the uptake and entrap6 ment of sediment; 

7 ‘‘(ii) facilitates removal of sediment; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(iii) provides for safe access for sedi10 ment removal and sampling. 

11 ‘‘(B) EXISTING VESSELS.—Every vessel to 

12 which this section applies that was constructed 

13 before January 1, 2012, shall be modified before 

14 January 1, 2012, to the extent practicable, to 

15 achieve the objectives described in clauses (i), 

16 (ii), and (iii) of subparagraph (A). 

17 ‘‘(C) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall 

18 promulgate regulations establishing design and 

19 construction standards to achieve the objectives of 

20 subparagraph (A) and providing guidance for 

21 modifications and practices under subparagraph 

22 (B). The Secretary shall incorporate the stand23 ards and guidance in the regulations governing 

24 the ballast water management plan. 

25 ‘‘(3) SEDIMENT RECEPTION FACILITIES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) STANDARDS.—The Administrator, in 

2 consultation with other appropriate Federal 

3 agencies as determined by the Administrator, 

4 shall promulgate regulations governing facilities 

5 for the reception of vessel sediment from spaces 

6 designed to carry ballast water that provide for 

7 the disposal of such sediment in a way that does 

8 not impair or damage the environment, human 

9 health, or property or resources of the disposal 

10 area. 

11 ‘‘(B) DESIGNATION.—The Administrator, in 

12 consultation with the Secretary and other appro13 priate Federal agencies as determined by the Ad14 ministrator, shall designate facilities for the re15 ception of vessel sediment that meet the require16 ments of the regulations promulgated under sub17 paragraph (A) at ports and terminals where bal18 last tanks are cleaned or repaired. 

19 ‘‘(i) EXAMINATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) INITIAL EXAMINATION.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ex22 amine vessels to which this section applies to de23 termine whether— 


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1 ‘‘(i) there is a ballast water manage2 ment plan for the vessel that meets the re3 quirements of this section; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) the equipment used for ballast 

5 water and sediment management in accord6 ance with the requirements of this section 

7 and the regulations promulgated hereunder 

8 is installed and functioning properly. 

9 ‘‘(B) NEW VESSELS.—For vessels con10 structed in the United States on or after Janu11 ary 1, 2011, the Secretary shall conduct the ex12 amination required by subparagraph (A) before 

13 the vessel is placed in service. 

14 ‘‘(C) EXISTING VESSELS.—For vessels con15 structed before January 1, 2011, the Secretary 

16 shall— 

17 ‘‘(i) conduct the examination required 

18 by subparagraph (A) before the date on 

19 which subsection (f)(1) applies to the vessel 

20 according to the schedule in subsection 

21 (f)(3); and 

22 ‘‘(ii) inspect the vessel’s ballast water 

23 record book required by subsection (d). 

24 ‘‘(D) FOREIGN VESSELS.—In the case of a 

25 foreign vessel (as defined in section 2101(12) of 


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1 title 46, United States Code), the Secretary shall 

2 perform the examination required by this para3 graph the first time the vessel enters a United 

4 States port. 

5 ‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT EXAMINATIONS.—The Sec6 retary shall examine vessels no less frequently than 

7 once each year to ensure vessel compliance with the 

8 requirements of this section. 

9 ‘‘(3) INSPECTION AUTHORITY.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

11 carry out inspections of any vessel to which this 

12 section applies at any time, including the taking 

13 of ballast water samples, to ensure the vessel’s 

14 compliance with this Act. The Secretary shall 

15 use all appropriate and practical measures of de16 tection and environmental monitoring, and shall 

17 establish adequate procedures for reporting viola18 tions and accumulating evidence. 

19 ‘‘(B) INVESTIGATIONS.—Upon receipt of 

20 evidence that a violation has occurred, the Sec21 retary shall cause the matter to be investigated. 

22 In any investigation under this section the Sec23 retary may issue subpoenas to require the at24 tendance of any witness and the production of 

25 documents and other evidence. In case of refusal 


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1 to obey a subpoena issued to any person, the Sec2 retary may request the Attorney General to in3 voke the aid of the appropriate district court of 

4 the United States to compel compliance. 

5 ‘‘(4) REQUIRED CERTIFICATE.—If, on the basis 

6 of an initial examination under paragraph (1) the 

7 Secretary finds that a vessel complies with the re8 quirements of this section and the regulations promul9 gated hereunder, the Secretary shall issue a certificate 

10 under this paragraph as evidence of such compliance. 

11 The certificate shall be valid for a period of not more 

12 than 5 years, as specified by the Secretary. The cer13 tificate or a true copy shall be maintained on board 

14 the vessel. 

15 ‘‘(5) NOTIFICATION OF VIOLATIONS.—If the Sec16 retary finds, on the basis of an examination under 

17 paragraph (1) or (2), sampling under paragraph (3), 

18 or any other information, that a vessel is being oper19 ated in violation of the requirements of this section or 

20 the regulations promulgated hereunder, the Secretary 

21 shall— 

22 ‘‘(A) notify in writing— 

23 ‘‘(i) the master of the vessel; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) the captain of the port at the ves25 sel’s next port of call; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) take such other action as may be ap2 propriate. 

3 ‘‘(6) COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall by 

5 regulation establish sampling and other proce6 dures to monitor compliance with the require7 ments of this section and any regulations pro8 mulgated under this section. 

9 ‘‘(B) USE OF MARKERS.—The Secretary 

10 may verify compliance with treatment standards 

11 under this section and the regulations through 

12 identification of markers associated with a treat13 ment technology’s effectiveness, such as the pres14 ence of indicators associated with a certified 

15 treatment technology. 

16 ‘‘(7) EDUCATION AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

17 PROGRAMS.—The Secretary may carry out education 

18 and technical assistance programs and other measures 

19 to promote compliance with the requirements issued 

20 under this section. 

21 ‘‘(8) REPORT.—Beginning 1 year after final reg22 ulations have been adopted pursuant to this section 

23 after its amendment by the Ballast Water Manage24 ment Act of 2007 and annually thereafter, the Sec25 retary shall prepare a report summarizing the results 


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1 of ballast water inspection and enforcement activities. 

2 The report shall, at a minimum, include information 

3 on the number of vessels inspected and the type of in4 spections, the status of implementation of treatment 

5 technologies, the number of exemptions claimed from 

6 ballast water exchange requirements, the number of 

7 violations, a summary of enforcement and regulatory 

8 actions, and overall compliance statistics. The report 

9 shall be made available on the National Ballast Infor10 mation Clearinghouse established under section 

11 1102(f). 

12 ‘‘(j) DETENTION OF VESSELS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, by notice to 

14 the owner, charterer, managing operator, agent, mas15 ter, or other individual in charge of a vessel, may de16 tain that vessel if the Secretary has reasonable cause 

17 to believe that— 

18 ‘‘(A) the vessel is a vessel to which this sec19 tion applies; and 

20 ‘‘(B) the vessel does not comply with the re21 quirements of this section or of the regulations 

22 issued hereunder or is being operated in viola23 tion of such requirements. 

24 ‘‘(2) CLEARANCE.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A vessel detained under 

2 paragraph (1) may obtain clearance under sec3 tion 4197 of the Revised Statutes (46 U.S.C. 

4 App. 91) only if the violation for which it was 

5 detained has been corrected. 

6 ‘‘(B) WITHDRAWAL.—If the Secretary finds 

7 that a vessel detained under paragraph (1) has 

8 received a clearance under section 4197 of the 

9 Revised Statutes (46 U.S.C. App. 91) before it 

10 was detained under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

11 shall withdraw, withhold, or revoke the clear12 ance. 

13 ‘‘(k) SANCTIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any person who violates 

15 a regulation promulgated under this section shall be 

16 liable for a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed 

17 $32,500. Each day of a continuing violation con18 stitutes a separate violation. A vessel operated in vio19 lation of this section or the regulations is liable in 

20 rem for any civil penalty assessed under this sub21 section for that violation. 

22 ‘‘(2) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.—Any person who 

23 knowingly violates the regulations promulgated under 

24 this section is guilty of a class C felony. 


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1 ‘‘(3) REVOCATION OF CLEARANCE.—Except as 

2 provided in subsection (j)(2), upon request of the Sec3 retary, the Secretary of the Treasury shall withhold 

4 or revoke the clearance of a vessel required by section 

5 4197 of the Revised Statutes (46 U.S.C. App. 91), if 

6 the owner or operator of that vessel is in violation of 

7 this section or the regulations issued under this sec8 tion. 

9 ‘‘(4) EXCEPTION TO SANCTIONS.—This subsection 

10 does not apply to a discharge pursuant to subsection 

11 (b)(2), (e)(5), or (e)(7). 

12 ‘‘(l) ENFORCEMENT.— 

13 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS.—If the Sec14 retary finds, after notice and an opportunity for a 

15 hearing, that a person has violated any provision of 

16 this section or any regulation promulgated hereunder, 

17 the Secretary may assess a civil penalty for that vio18 lation. In determining the amount of a civil penalty, 

19 the Secretary shall take into account the nature, cir20 cumstances, extent, and gravity of the prohibited acts 

21 committed and, with respect to the violator, the degree 

22 of culpability, any history of prior violations, and 

23 such other matters as justice may require. 

24 ‘‘(2) CIVIL ACTIONS.—At the request of the Sec25 retary, the Attorney General may bring a civil action 


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1 in an appropriate district court of the United States 

2 to enforce this section, or any regulation promulgated 

3 hereunder. Any court before which such an action is 

4 brought may award appropriate relief, including tem5 porary or permanent injunctions and civil penalties. 

6 ‘‘(m) CONSULTATION WITH CANADA, MEXICO, AND

7 OTHER FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.—In developing the guide8 lines issued and regulations promulgated under this section, 

9 the Secretary is encouraged to consult with the Government 

10 of Canada, the Government of Mexico, and any other gov11 ernment of a foreign country that the Secretary, after con12 sultation with the Task Force, determines to be necessary 

13 to develop and implement an effective international pro14 gram for preventing the unintentional introduction and 

15 spread of aquatic nuisance species through ballast water. 

16 ‘‘(n) INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION.—The Secretary, 

17 in cooperation with the Undersecretary, the Secretary of 

18 State, the Administrator, the heads of other relevant Federal 

19 agencies, the International Maritime Organization of the 

20 United Nations, and the Commission on Environmental 

21 Cooperation established pursuant to the North American 

22 Free Trade Agreement, is encouraged to enter into negotia23 tions with the governments of foreign countries to develop 

24 and implement an effective international program for pre25 venting the unintentional introduction and spread of 


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1 aquatic nuisance species through ballast water. The Sec2 retary is particularly encouraged to seek bilateral or multi3 lateral agreements with Canada, Mexico, and other nations 

4 in the Wider Caribbean (as defined in the Convention for 

5 the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment 

6 of the Wider Caribbean (Cartagena Convention) under this 

7 section. 

8 ‘‘(o) NON-DISCRIMINATION.—The Secretary shall en9 sure that vessels registered outside of the United States do 

10 not receive more favorable treatment than vessels registered 

11 in the United States when the Secretary performs studies, 

12 reviews compliance, determines effectiveness, establishes re13 quirements, or performs any other responsibilities under 

14 this Act. 

15 ‘‘(p) SUPPORT FOR FEDERAL BALLAST WATER DEM16 ONSTRATION PROJECT.—In addition to amounts otherwise 

17 available to the Maritime Administration, the National 

18 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Environ19 mental Protection Agency, and the United States Fish and 

20 Wildlife Service for the Federal Ballast Water Demonstra21 tion Project, the Secretary shall provide support, including 

22 grants, for research and development of innovative tech23 nologies for the management, treatment, and disposal of 

24 ballast water and sediment, for finalizing the validation 

25 testing of the verification protocol of the Environmental 


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1 Technology Verification Program, for ballast water ex2 change, and for other vessel vectors of aquatic nuisance spe3 cies such as hull-fouling. There are authorized to be appro4 priated to the Secretary $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

5 2008 through 2012 to carry out this subsection. 

6 ‘‘(q) CONSULTATION WITH TASK FORCE.—The Sec7 retary shall consult with the Task Force in carrying out 

8 this section. 

9 ‘‘(r) EVALUATION OF VESSEL DISCHARGES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Within 2 years after the date 

11 of enactment of the Ballast Water Management Act of 

12 2007, the Administrator, in consultation with the 

13 Secretary and other appropriate Federal agencies, 

14 shall conduct an evaluation of vessel discharges other 

15 than aquatic nuisance species, incidental to the nor16 mal operation of a vessel as defined in section 

17 312(a)(12)(A) of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 

18 1322(a)(12)(A)) that are not required by the Clean 

19 Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) to have National 

20 Pollution Effluent Discharge Standards permits 

21 under section 122.3(a) of title 40, Code of Federal 

22 Regulations. The evaluation shall include— 

23 ‘‘(A) a characterization of the various types 

24 of discharges by different classes of vessels; 


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1 ‘‘(B) the average volume of such discharges 

2 for individual vessels and by class of vessel in the 

3 aggregate; 

4 ‘‘(C) conclusions as to whether such dis5 charges pose a risk to human health or the envi6 ronment; and 

7 ‘‘(D) recommendations as to steps, includ8 ing regulations, that are necessary to address 

9 such risks. 

10 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Administrator 

11 shall cause a draft of the evaluation to be published 

12 in the Federal Register for public comment, and shall 

13 develop a final evaluation report after taking into ac14 counts any comments received during the public com15 ment period. 

16 ‘‘(3) FINAL REPORT.—The Administrator shall 

17 transmit a copy of the final report to the Senate 

18 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor19 tation and the House of Representatives Committee 

20 on Transportation and Infrastructure. 

21 ‘‘(s) OTHER SOURCES OF VESSEL-BORNE NUISANCE

22 SPECIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) HULL-FOULING AND OTHER VESSEL

24 SOURCES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) REPORT.—Within 180 days after the 

2 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Manage3 ment Act of 2007, the Commandant of the Coast 

4 Guard shall transmit a report to the Senate 

5 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor6 tation and the House of Representatives Com7 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure on 

8 vessel-borne vectors of aquatic nuisance species 

9 and pathogens other than ballast water and sedi10 ment, including vessel hulls, anchors, and equip11 ment. 

12 ‘‘(B) MANAGEMENT.—Within 1 year after 

13 the date of enactment of the Ballast Water Man14 agement Act of 2007, the Secretary shall develop 

15 a strategy to address such other vessel sources of 

16 aquatic nuisance species and to reduce the intro17 duction of invasive species into and within the 

18 United States from vessels. The strategy shall in19 clude— 

20 ‘‘(i) designation of geographical loca21 tions for update and discharge of untreated 

22 ballast water, as well as measures to ad23 dress non-ballast vessel vectors of aquatic 

24 invasive species; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) necessary modifications of exist2 ing regulations; 

3 ‘‘(iii) best practices standards and pro4 cedures; and 

5 ‘‘(iv) a timeframe for implementation 

6 of those standards and procedures by vessels, 

7 in addition to the mandatory requirements 

8 set forth in this section for ballast water. 

9 ‘‘(C) REPORT.—The Secretary shall trans10 mit a report to the Committees describing the 

11 strategy, proposed regulations, best practices, 

12 and the implementation timeframe, together with 

13 any recommendations, including legislative rec14 ommendations if appropriate, the Secretary 

15 deems appropriate. 

16 ‘‘(D) FEDERAL GOVERNMENT VESSELS.— 

17 The strategy shall include requirements to ensure 

18 the consistent application of best practices to all 

19 vessels owned or operated by any Federal agency 

20 or department and shall preempt any other re21 quirement of Federal, State, or local law with re22 spect to such vessel-borne vectors for those vessels. 

23 ‘‘(2) TRANSITING VESSELS.—Within 180 days 

24 after the date of enactment of the Ballast Water Man25 agement Act of 2007, the Commandant of the Coast 


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1 Guard shall transmit a report to the Senate Com2 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

3 and the House of Representatives Committee on 

4 Transportation and Infrastructure containing— 

5 ‘‘(A) an assessment of the magnitude and 

6 potential adverse impacts of ballast water oper7 ations from foreign vessels designed, adapted, or 

8 constructed to carry ballast water that are 

9 transiting waters subject to the jurisdiction of 

10 the United States; and 

11 ‘‘(B) recommendations, including legislative 

12 recommendations if appropriate, of options for 

13 addressing ballast water operations of those ves14 sels. 

15 ‘‘(t) RAPID RESPONSE PLAN.— 

16 ‘‘(1) PREPARATION.—The President shall pre17 pare and publish a national rapid response plan for 

18 killing, removing, or minimizing the spread of aquat19 ic nuisance species in the waters of the United States 

20 in accordance with this section. 

21 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The national rapid response plan 

22 shall provide for efficient, coordinated, and effective action 

23 to minimize damage from aquatic nuisance species in the 

24 navigable waters of the United States, including killing, 


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1 containing, and removal of the aquatic nuisance species, 

2 and shall include the following: 

3 ‘‘(A) Assignment of duties and responsibil4 ities among Federal departments and agencies in 

5 coordination with State and local agencies and 

6 port authorities and private entities. 

7 ‘‘(B) Identification, procurement, mainte8 nance, and storage of equipment and supplies 

9 needed to facilitate the killing, containment, and 

10 removal of aquatic nuisance species under this 

11 section. 

12 ‘‘(C) Establishment or designation of Fed13 eral aquatic nuisance species response teams, 

14 consisting of— 

15 ‘‘(i) trained personnel who shall be 

16 available to provide necessary services to 

17 carry out the national rapid response plan; 

18 ‘‘(ii) adequate equipment and material 

19 needed to facilitate the killing, containment, 

20 and removal of aquatic nuisance species 

21 under this section; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) a detailed plans to kill, contain, 

23 and remove aquatic nuisance species, in24 cluding measures to protect fisheries and 

25 wildlife. 


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1 ‘‘(D) A system of surveillance and notice de2 signed to safeguard against, as well as ensure 

3 earliest possible notice of, the introduction of 

4 aquatic nuisance species and imminent threats 

5 of such introduction to the appropriate State 

6 and Federal agencies. 

7 ‘‘(E) Establishment of a national center to 

8 provide coordination and direction for oper9 ations in carrying out the plan.— 

10 ‘‘(F) Procedures and techniques to be em11 ployed in identifying, containing, killing, and 

12 removing aquatic nuisance species in the waters 

13 of the United States. 

14 ‘‘(G) A schedule identifying— 

15 ‘‘(i) mitigating devices and substances, 

16 if any, that may be used in carrying out 

17 the plan; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the waters in which such miti19 gating devices and substances may be used; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(iii) the quantities of such mitigating 

22 device or substance which can be used safely 

23 in such waters. 


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1 ‘‘(H) A system whereby the State or States 

2 affected by an aquatic nuisance species may act 

3 where necessary to remove such species. 

4 ‘‘(I) Establishment of criteria and proce5 dures to ensure immediate and effective Federal 

6 identification of, and response to, an introduc7 tion of aquatic nuisance species. 

8 ‘‘(J) Designation of the Federal official who 

9 shall be the Federal on-scene coordinator for 

10 measures taken to kill, contain, and remove 

11 aquatic nuisance species under this section. 

12 ‘‘(K) A fish and wildlife response plan for 

13 the immediate and effective protection, rescue, 

14 and rehabilitation of, and the minimization of 

15 risk of damage to, fish and wildlife resources and 

16 their habitat that are harmed or that may be 

17 jeopardized by an introduction of an aquatic 

18 nuisance species. 

19 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL REMOVAL AUTHORITY.— 

20 ‘‘(A) REMOVAL REQUIREMENT.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The President shall 

22 ensure, in accordance with the national 

23 rapid response plan, effective and imme24 diate killing, containing, and removal of the 


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1 aquatic nuisance species in the waters of the 

2 United States. 

3 ‘‘(ii) DISCRETIONARY AUTHORITY.— 

4 Under the authority provided by clause (i), 

5 an aquatic nuisance species may be— 

6 ‘‘(I) killed, contained, or removed 

7 at any time; and 

8 ‘‘(II) all Federal, State, and pri9 vate actions to kill, contain, and re10 move the aquatic nuisance species may 

11 be directed or monitored. 

12 ‘‘(B) ACTIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH NA13 TIONAL RAPID RESPONSE PLAN.—Each Federal 

14 agency, State, owner or operator, or other person 

15 participating in efforts under this subsection 

16 shall act in accordance with the national rapid 

17 response plan or as directed to carry out the 

18 plan. 

19 ‘‘(u) REGULATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, after con21 sultation with other appropriate Federal agencies, 

22 shall issue such regulations as may be necessary ini23 tially to carry out this section within 1 year after the 

24 date of enactment of the Ballast Water Management 

25 Act of 2007. 


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1 ‘‘(2) JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 

2 ‘‘(A) 120-DAY RULE.—An interested person 

3 may bring an action for review of a final regula4 tion promulgated under this section by the Sec5 retary of the department in which the Coast 

6 Guard is operating in the United States Court 

7 of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. 

8 Any such petition shall be filed within 120 days 

9 after the date on which notice of the promulga10 tion appears in the Federal Register, except that 

11 if the petition is based solely on grounds arising 

12 after the 120th day, then any petition for review 

13 under this subsection shall be filed within 120 

14 days after those grounds arise. 

15 ‘‘(B) REVIEW IN ENFORCEMENT PRO16 CEEDINGS.—A regulation for which review could 

17 have been obtained under subparagraph (A) of 

18 this paragraph is not subject to judicial review 

19 in any civil or criminal proceeding for enforce20 ment. 

21 ‘‘(3) RIGHT OF ACTION.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

23 subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, the gov24 ernor of any State which is, or can be, adversely 

25 affected by any act or duty under this section 


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1 which is not discretionary, may bring an action 

2 on behalf of that State— 

3 ‘‘(i) against the Secretary where there 

4 is alleged a failure of the Secretary to per5 form an act or duty under this Act which 

6 is not discretionary; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) against the Administrator where 

8 there is alleged a failure of the Adminis9 trator to perform an act or duty under this 

10 Act which is not discretionary. 

11 ‘‘(B) CONDITIONS.—An action may not be 

12 commenced under subparagraph (A) of this 

13 paragraph prior to 60 days after the plaintiff 

14 has given notice, in writing and under oath, to 

15 the Secretary or Administrator, as appropriate. 

16 ‘‘(C) VENUE.—An action brought under this 

17 subsection shall be brought in the United States 

18 district court for the District of Columbia. 

19 ‘‘(v) STATE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Sec20 retary may enter into a cooperative management agreement 

21 with the governor of a State to implement provisions of this 

22 section within State waters. The agreement may include ar23 rangements for cooperative enforcement, inspection, re24 search, and other provisions included in this Act. The SecVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00120 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 retary may provide grants to States to implement the agree2 ments. 

3 ‘‘(w) SAVINGS CLAUSE.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this section shall 

5 preempt any State or local law related to aquatic 

6 nuisance species from vessel ballast water or sediment 

7 or other vessel-related vectors that— 

8 ‘‘(A) does not require exchange or treatment 

9 requirements substantively different from those 

10 required under subsections (e) and (f); and 

11 ‘‘(B) does not conflict with the requirements 

12 of this section; and 

13 ‘‘(C) does not pose an undue burden on 

14 interstate commerce. 

15 ‘‘(2) RECEPTION FACILITIES.—The standards 

16 prescribed by the Administrator under subsection 

17 (f)(2) do not supersede any more stringent standard 

18 under any otherwise applicable Federal, State, or 

19 local law. 

20 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION WITH OTHER STATUTES.— 

21 This section provides the sole Federal authority for 

22 preventing the introduction of aquatic nuisance spe23 cies through the control and management of vessel 

24 ballast water or sediment or other vessel-related vec25 tors.’’. 


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1 (b) DEFINITIONS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1003 of the Non3 indigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control 

4 Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4702) is amended— 

5 (A) by redesignating paragraph (1) as 

6 paragraph (1A); 

7 (B) by inserting before paragraph (1A), as 

8 redesignated, the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis10 trator’ means the Administrator of the Environ11 mental Protection Agency.’’; 

12 (C) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting 

13 the following: 

14 ‘‘(3) BALLAST WATER.—The term ‘ballast 

15 water’— 

16 ‘‘(A) means water taken on board a vessel 

17 to control trim, list, draught, stability, or 

18 stresses of the vessel, including matter suspended 

19 in such water; and 

20 ‘‘(B) any water placed into a ballast tank 

21 during cleaning, maintenance, or other oper22 ations; but 

23 ‘‘(C) does not include water taken on board 

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1 paragraph (A) that, at the time of discharge, 

2 does not contain aquatic nuisance species.’’; 

3 (D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(3A) BALLAST WATER CAPACITY.—The term 

6 ‘ballast water capacity’ means the total volumetric 

7 capacity of any tanks, spaces, or compartments on a 

8 vessel that is used for carrying, loading, or dis9 charging ballast water, including any multi-use tank, 

10 space, or compartment designed to allow carriage of 

11 ballast water. 

12 ‘‘(3B) BALLAST WATER MANAGEMENT.—The 

13 term ‘ballast water management’ means mechanical, 

14 physical, chemical, and biological processes used, ei15 ther singularly or in combination, to remove, render 

16 harmless, or avoid the uptake or discharge of aquatic 

17 nuisance species and pathogens within ballast water 

18 and sediment. 

19 ‘‘(3C) CONSTRUCTED.—The term ‘constructed’ 

20 means a state of construction of a vessel at which— 

21 ‘‘(A) the keel is laid; 

22 ‘‘(B) construction identifiable with the spe23 cific vessel begins; 

24 ‘‘(C) assembly of the vessel has begun com25 prising at least 50 tons or 1 percent of the estiVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:06 Mar 04, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00123 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1578.RS S1578

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1 mated mass of all structural material of the ves2 sel, whichever is less; or 

3 ‘‘(D) the vessel undergoes a major conver4 sion.’’; 

5 (E) by striking ‘‘Canandian’’ in paragraph 

6 (7) and inserting ‘‘Canadian’’; 

7 (F) by inserting after paragraph (10) the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(10A) MAJOR CONVERSION.—The term ‘major 

10 conversion’ means a conversion of a vessel, that— 

11 ‘‘(A) changes its ballast water carrying ca12 pacity by at least 15 percent; 

13 ‘‘(B) changes the vessel class; 

14 ‘‘(C) is projected to prolong the vessel’s life 

15 by at least 10 years (as determined by the Sec16 retary); or 

17 ‘‘(D) results in modifications to the vessel’s 

18 ballast water system, except— 

19 ‘‘(i) component replacement-in-kind; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) conversion of a vessel to meet the 

21 requirements of section 1101(e).’’; 

22 (G) by inserting after paragraph (12), as 

23 redesignated, the following: 

24 ‘‘(12A) SALTWATER FLUSHING.—The term ‘salt25 water flushing’ means the process of— 


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1 ‘‘(A) adding midocean water to a ballast 

2 water tank that contains residual quantities of 

3 ballast waters; 

4 ‘‘(B) mixing the midocean water with the 

5 residual ballast water and sediment in the tank 

6 through the motion of a vessel; and 

7 ‘‘(C) discharging the mixed water so that 

8 the salinity of the resulting residual ballast 

9 water in the tank exceeds 30 parts per thousand. 

10 ‘‘(12B) SEDIMENT.—The term ‘sediment’ means 

11 matter that has settled out of ballast water within a 

12 vessel.’’; 

13 (H) by inserting after paragraph (17) the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(17A) UNITED STATES PORT.—The term 

16 ‘United States port’ means a port, river, harbor, or 

17 offshore terminal under the jurisdiction of the United 

18 States, including ports located in Puerto Rico, Guam, 

19 the Northern Marianas, and the United States Virgin 

20 Islands. 

21 ‘‘(17B) VESSEL OF THE ARMED FORCES.—The 

22 term ‘vessel of the Armed Forces’ means— 

23 ‘‘(A) any vessel owned or operated by the 

24 Department of Defense, other than a time or voy25 age chartered vessel; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) any vessel owned or operated by the 

2 Department of Homeland Security that is des3 ignated by the Secretary of the department in 

4 which the Coast Guard is operating as a vessel 

5 equivalent to a vessel described in subparagraph 

6 (A). 

7 ‘‘(17C) WATERS SUBJECT TO THE JURISDICTION

8 OF THE UNITED STATES.—The term ‘waters subject to 

9 the jurisdiction of the United States’ means navigable 

10 waters and the territorial sea of the United States, the 

11 exclusive economic zone, and the Great Lakes.’’. 

12 (2) STYLISTIC CONSISTENCY.—Section 1003 of 

13 the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and 

14 Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4702), as amended by 

15 paragraph (1), is further amended— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘As used in this Act, the 

17 term—’’ and inserting ‘‘In this Act:’’; 

18 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) 

19 through (17C) as paragraphs (1) through (27), 

20 respectively; 

21 (C) by inserting a heading after the des22 ignation of each existing paragraph, in a form 

23 consistent with the form of the paragraphs added 

24 by paragraph (1) of this subsection, consisting of 


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127 

•S 1578 RS 

1 the term defined in such paragraph and ‘‘The 

2 term’’; and 

3 (D) by striking the semicolon at the end of 

4 each paragraph that ends with a semicolon, and 

5 the semicolon and ‘‘and’’ in paragraph (23) as 

6 redesignated, and inserting a period. 

7 (c) REPEAL OF SECTION 1103.—Section 1103 of the 

8 Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control 

9 Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4713) is repealed. 

10 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

11 Section 1301(a) of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nui12 sance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 

13 4741(a)) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon in 

15 paragraph (4)(B); 

16 (2) by striking ‘‘1102(f).’’ in paragraph (5)(B) 

17 and inserting ‘‘1102(f); and’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(6) $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2008 

20 through 2012 to the Secretary to carry out section 

21 1101, of which up to $10,000,000 shall be made avail22 able to States under subsection (v).’’. 


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Calendar No. 589 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1578 

[Report No. 110

–269] 

A BILL 

To amend the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance 

and for other purposes. vessel ballast water management requirements, Prevention and Control Act of 1990 to establish 

MARCH 3, 2008 

Reported with an amendment 


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