Trevin Nairne, Contributor
Unlike the past, when rocks were used, commercial ships now use water as ballast because it is much easier to load and unload. - Norman Grindley /Deputy Chief Photographer
Ballast is any material used to weight and/or balance an object. For example, sandbags are normally carried on hot-air balloons, which can be discarded to lighten the balloon's load, allowing it to ascend. Ships have carried solid ballast in the form of rocks for years. However, in modern times, commercial ships use water as ballast. The problem is that ballast water can cause serious environmental and public health problems.
The reason commercial ships use water is it is much easier to load on and off a ship, and is therefore more efficient and economical than solid ballast. Ballast water is, therefore, water carried by ships to ensure stability, and structural integrity. So, when a ship is empty of cargo, it fills with ballast water. When it loads cargo, the ballast water is discharged.
Risky business
Ballast water poses tremendous risks and is considered as one of the greatest threats to the world's oceans, and can cause extremely severe environmental, economic, and public health impacts. In 1991, a cholera epidemic struck Peru, where millions were infected and more than 10,000 died. There were immense economic losses amounting to over US$200 billion in emergency response, loss of seafood exports, and loss of tourism. This type of cholera was traced back to ballast water carried from Bangladesh.
According to Dayne Buddoo of the Institute of Jamaica, "Jamaica is not excluded from this crisis." Mr. Buddoo claims that in 1998, the green mussel Perna viridis invaded the Kingston Harbour via ballast water. Mr. Buddoo also claims that "this mussel has reduced important species from mangrove areas by outcompeting them for space on mangrove roots that were once filled with a variety of organisms such as oysters, sponges, sea squirts, and worms."
The problem of green mussel
It is estimated that the green mussel has also increased the operational costs of the companies surrounding the harbour, who use the water from the harbour to cool their turbines. The green mussel occasionally clogs the pipelines and requires cleaning, which can run companies in the millions per annum. According to the International Maritime Organisation, marine invasive species are costing the world tens of billions of dollars annually.
With tourism being a major part of the Jamaican economy, it is important to protect our waters, as invasive species may be detrimental to the sustenance of a healthy tourism product. There is no question that the lack of regulation or control of ballast water is a biological time bomb liable to engender significant disease in vulnerable populations such as Jamaica, and therefore requires stringent regulations and monitoring through Jamaica's environmental protection agencies.
