environment,” explains Benjamin Jeuthe, Head of Marketing for Germany’s Hamann AG, a leading manufacturer of sewage treatment plants for the marine industry.
Significant penalties accompanied severe restrictions on what could be discharged from vessels and where. The most important of these regulations is, of course, the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (a.k.a., MARPOL). Although originating from a series of tanker accidents, MARPOL focuses on several specific environmental threats.
Sewage was perhaps the most egregious contaminant of ports and waterways, and ships were an obvious source. As the maritime industry grew in size along with ever-larger vessels, the more obvious this pollution became. Hamann, as a pioneer in the industry, realized that addressing this issue was what Jeuthe calls “an obligation of the maritime industry towards society as a whole.” Since 1972, the company has supplied the industry with sewage- specific treatment equipment that not only complies with applicable regulations but, above all, respects the marine environment.
Wastewater treatment systems have been in marine applications for several decades now and are periodically subject to changing and updated regulatory requirements. As regulatory efforts encompass more types of discharge from vessels, companies providing treatment services and equipment continue to deliver innovative solutions.
Norwegian-based Scanship, a subsidiary of VOW ASA, started with comprehensive advanced wastewater purification (AWP) systems in the early 2000s. Since then, it’s set new standards of efficiency, reducing up to 90 percent of wastewater contaminants – among the very few suppliers achieving such results, according to Bjorn Bache, VOW’s Chief Commercial Officer.
(BWMS/BWTS), providing a mechanism by which biological contaminants in ballast water can be eliminated and creating options for vessels regardless of location.
Among the systems Damen Green Solutions offers is a modular, plug- and-play BWTS that’s the result of a partnership with Erma First. “Our client needed a temporary ballast water treatment solution,” explains Damen Sales Manager Rutger van Dam. The oneTANK system uses a chemical solution that is neutralized after use and is the world’s smallest BWTS system.
“For owners working with smaller vessels that aren’t dependent on frequent ballast operations,” he adds, “oneTANK is a great solution, portable enough to be housed in a twenty- foot container with straightforward installation and removal.”
BALLAST WATER DISCHARGES
A more recent development was the recognition that vessels transiting long distances inevitably introduced foreign organisms through their ballast water discharges, wreaking havoc on ecosystems. As a result, international regulatory bodies have focused more recent efforts on limiting ballast water exchange in order to mitigate the threat of invasive species.
Current guidelines call for vessels to undertake ballasting and deballasting at least 200 nautical miles from port and in water depths of at least 200 meters. While vessels don’t have to deviate from established routes in order to specifically meet these criteria, the guidelines still impact transit times and stability concerns and present operational restrictions.
These concerns resulted in the development of ballast water management/treatment systems
Another unique, but non-chemical approach to BWTS is Purestream™ from Atlantium Technologies, a global leader in water treatment. “The introduction of UV treatment was a significant milestone for the industry,” states Atlantium CTO Ytzhak Rozenberg. “We took it one step further with the introduction of our Hydro-Optic™ UV technology.”
Ultraviolet (UV) light has long been used in potable water applications. By applying it during ballasting, Purestream upends the ballasting/ deballasting process, adding flexibility to when and where such activities can take place and making the entire process more efficient.
PARADIGM SHIFT
Equipment and service providers see a paradigm shift among their clients and within the industry itself. According to VOW’s Bache, stricter regulation is forcing equipment manufacturers to not only comply with the rules but to anticipate what comes next. The focus is not strictly on meeting the letter of the law but also on protecting the ocean and environment, which requires disruptive thinking.
56 | The Report • June 2022 • Issue 100
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