An Analysis on Various Ballast Water Treatment Techniques for ORV Sagar Nidhi

Discharge of ballast water from ship is a major source of introduction of non-indigenous species to marine, estuarine, and freshwater ecosystems. Ships carry ballast water to have stability and maneuverability during Voyage. Transport of ballast water across the globe plays a major role in ecological imbalance as it carries organisms from oceanic to shallow areas, where they may start a new invasion. In 2004, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) initiated regulatory measures to minimize the species shift by adopting the International convention for the control and management of ship's ballast water and sediments. Since then, vessels have been increasingly practicing ballast water exchanges. To keep up with IMO requirements and also the stricter requirements stipulated by few ports around the world, ships need to have effective ballast water treatment system. An analysis is carried-out to optimize the selection of ballast treatment system for ORV Sagar Nidhi among the number of existing systems based on their compatibility and suitability. Sagar Nidhi is a state of art ice class ocean research vessel (ORV) of the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), carrying research at both Indian and Antarctic waters. Such vessels have limited options for treating ballast water, since a few treatment systems are designed specifically for their needs. Efficacy, residual toxicity, size, weight, electrical load requirement, and safety were the parameters considered while evaluating a ballast water system for Sager Nidhi. As a result of optimization, a ballast water treatment system with filtration and ultra violet treatment was chosen.