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 Under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Vessel General Permit (VGP), New York State has included specific ballast water requirements.
After 1 January 2012, each ship that operates in New York waters must have a ballast water treatment system that meets a standard which is in effect 100 times greater tha n the IMO standard.
Every ship constructed after 1 January 2013 that then operates in New York waters must have a ballast water treatment system that is in effect 1000 times greater than the IMO standard. To our knowledge no such systems exist.
New York has included provisions that allow ship owners to submit an extension request. To view click here (see pages 94 and 95).
We offer a generic extension request for use by Members, which is based upon a generic letter initially prepared by the World Shipping Council (WSC). To view click here Members whose tankers will operate in New York waters, or who anticipate operating in New York waters, are encouraged to submit a specific extension request for their tankers to the New York State Department of Environment Conservation. This request must be submitted by 30 June 2010.
Furthermore, the following should be noted in relation to which vessels should be included in an extension request:
Any vessel that currently calls in New York ports regardless of whether they discharge ballast water in New York State waters;
Any vessel that may in the future call at a New York port (note the extension request opportunity expires on June 30, 2010 and if you have not included a vessel currently under your control by that time, you would arguably be prevented from doing so after that date although this is uncertain);
Any vessel that transits New York waters en route to a port in another state;
In the future should you purchase, charter or "otherwise control" a vessel constructed before 1 January 2013 such that you would need to file an ENOI under the EPA VGP programme, you should file an extension request for that vessel when it comes under your control.
Also in the EPA VGP, New York State has included requirements which prohibit the discharge of greywater within 3 miles of New York waters after 1 January 2012. This requirement would in effect require ships to retain all greywater on board while operating in New York waters. New York has also included provisions that allow ship owners to submit an extension request for this requirement by no later than 30 June 2010 (page 96 of the VGP).
In this regard, INTERTANKO Members may wish to submit an extension request. Such a request might be based on the ship not having a tank for retaining the greywater on board and on the fact that installation of a tank would be a major conversion. However, Members should recognise that this requirement does not become applicable until Jan 2012, which is more that 1.5 years from now, and New York authorities would most likely consider this more than sufficient time to install a holding tank.
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