Subject to Section 71203, the master, owner, operator, or person in charge of a vessel carrying, or capable of carrying, ballast water, that operates in the waters of the state shall do all of the following to minimize the uptake and the release of nonindigenous species:
(a) Discharge only the minimal amount of ballast water essential for vessel operations while in the waters of the state.
(b) Minimize the discharge or uptake of ballast water in areas within, or that may directly affect, marine sanctuaries, marine preserves, marine parks, or coral reefs.
(c) Minimize or avoid uptake of ballast water in all of the following areas and circumstances:
(1) Areas known to have infestations or populations of nonindigenous organisms and pathogens.
(2) Areas near a sewage outfall.
(3) Areas for which the master, owner, operator, or person in charge of a vessel has been informed of the presence of toxic algal blooms.
(4) Areas where tidal flushing is known to be poor or in turbid waters.
(5) In darkness when bottom-dwelling organisms may rise up in the water column.
(6) Areas where sediments have been disturbed, such as near dredging operations or where propellers may have recently stirred up the sediment.
(d) Clean the ballast tanks regularly in mid-ocean waters, or under controlled arrangements in port or in drydock, to remove fouling organisms and sediments, and dispose of those organisms and sediments in accordance with local, state, and federal law.
(e) Rinse anchors and anchor chains when retrieving the anchor to remove organisms and sediments at their place of origin.
(f) (1) Remove biofouling organisms from the hull, piping, propellers, sea chests, and other wetted portions of a vessel arriving at a California port or place, on a regular basis, and dispose of removed substances in accordance with local, state, and federal law.
(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), prior to and until the date that the regulations described in Section 71204.6 are adopted, “regular basis” means any of the following:
(A) No longer than by the date of expiration on the vessel’s full-term Safety Construction Certificate or an extension of that expiration date.
(B) No longer than by the date of expiration of the vessel’s full-term United States Coast Guard Certificate of Inspection or an extension of that expiration date by the United States Coast Guard.
(C) No longer than 60 months since the time of the vessel’s last out-of-water drydocking. The commission may approve a time extension to this period.
(3) Inwater cleaning that is performed on the wetted portions of a vessel while in the waters of the state shall be conducted using best available technologies economically achievable, and designed to minimize the release of coating and biological materials, cleaning agents, and byproducts of the cleaning process into the surrounding waters. The cleaning shall be performed in accordance with local, state, and federal law.
(g) Provide access to the commission, upon request, for sampling of ballast intake and discharge.
(h) Maintain a ballast water management plan that was prepared specifically for the vessel and that shall, upon request, be made available to the commission for inspection and review. This plan shall be specific to each vessel and shall provide, at a minimum, a description of the ballast water management strategy for the vessel that is sufficiently detailed to allow a master or other appropriate ship’s officer or crew member serving on that vessel to understand and follow the ballast water management strategy.
(i) Train the master, operator, person in charge, and those members of the crew who have responsibilities under the vessel’s ballast water management plan, on the application of ballast water and sediment management and treatment procedures, as well as procedures described in this section, in order to minimize other releases of nonindigenous species from vessels.
(Amended by Stats. 2012, Ch. 550, Sec. 3. (SB 935) Effective September 25, 2012.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018