The US Coast Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have proposed an alternative method for managing domestic ballast water discharged by vessels in port areas.
According to comments made by Denis Bryant from US law firm Holland and Knight's website the rules devised by the agencies would be more consistent with the IMO-sponsored International Convention for the Control and Management of Ship's Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004.
In effect, the US Government's agency rules would overturn the 2006 federal court decision on ballast water discharges, according to the Maritime Global Net Newsletter.
If enacted the proposal would largely pre-empt state governments from regulating ballast water issues concerning ships covered by the proposal, it said.
Mr Bryant said the proposal "may have room for improvement, but is significantly better than alternatives under consideration".
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