Background

The language for SERC’s Ballast Water Management Act came from Oregon’s 2001 Senate Bill 895, with very few changes. The penalties in Section 9 were strengthened using language from 1999 California AB 703, sponsored by Assembly Member Lempert.

Under Oregon SB 895, which achieved bipartisan support and passed unanimously, owners or operators of vessels regulated must submit a ballast management report to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). The state Environmental Quality Commission is given authority to adopt rules on the reporting process. The bill also charges the DEQ with establishing a task force to review the state program, evaluate regional and federal regulations, and recommend research needs for ballast water treatment technology. This Governor-appointed body would include membership from state and federal agencies, ports, industry interests, environmental groups, and academic institutions.

Similar legislation has been enacted in California, Maryland, and Washington, requiring commercial ships over 300 gross tons to conduct an open sea exchange before discharging ballast contents into state waters. Specifically, the Washington law finds that some non-indigenous species have the potential to cause economic and environmental damage to the state. It also finds that current efforts to stop the introduction of non-indigenous species from shipping vessels do not adequately reduce the risk of new introductions into Washington waters. Thus, it mandates commercial ships to replace ballast water in an area hundreds of nautical miles from any shore.