Page 28: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (August 2014)

28 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News ? AUGUST 2014 CLEAN WATER TECH Global efforts to combat the spread of invasive species in ballast water are ham-pered by a leadership void so serious that in April the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) discouraged further ratiÞ cations of the International Maritime Organization?s (IMO) invasive species convention. Admiral Paul Zuku- nft, the new U.S. Coast Guard Comman-dant, could Þ ll that void and get those efforts onto the right track. The United States has been blessed with strong Coast Guard Commandants. Around the Gulf of Mexico, for instance, the quiet, serious demeanor of Admiral Thad Allen was crucial to recovery from Hurricane Katrina and efforts to end the BP Macondo oil well disaster. If any- one ever deserved a Congressional gold medal, it is Admiral Allen. Our nation?s newest Coast Guard Commandant, Admiral Paul F. Zukunft, took command on May 30. When Admi- ral Zukunft commanded the law enforce-ment-oriented Joint Interagency Task Force ? West (JIATF-West) in Hawaii, I had the privilege of working with him from my post as Deputy Assistant Secre- tary of Defense for Counter-narcotics in the Pentagon. Zukunft and Allen were cut from the same cloth.No American operational commander is responsible for ocean areas more vast than those within the JIATF-West com- mander?s portfolio. Admiral Zukunft?s duties as JIATF-West commander em- braced diplomacy and maritime law enforcement cooperation with the entire PaciÞ c Rim. Confronting bad actors of every stripe from pirates to trafÞ ckers, Zukunft and the Coast Guard wrote new chapters in the annals of international and interagency cooperation. That lead- ership ability and the Commandant?s established international presence are badly needed today to correct what a former ICS president called the ?chaotic Þ asco? of the international ballast water control effort. How do we state the problem simply? A seasoned maritime industry actor at- tributes turmoil in the ballast water Þ eld to ?haste to produce [the IMO invasive species convention] before the technol-ogy was ready.? There is international consensus over the existence, scope, and consequences of the invasive species problem, but it is difÞ cult to Þ nd consen- sus about much else, including standards on technology and sampling. Speaking for industry, the ICS pointed in April to a ?lack of robustness? with the IMO type-approval process for bal-last water control technology, and with determining ballast water sampling cri-teria to be used by governments which check ballast tanks of vessels calling at their ports. These gaps cause uncertain- ty for ship owners pressed to install cost-ly equipment which may later fail IMO scrutiny and facing a patchwork of water sampling standards at multiple ports on a single voyage. Chaos indeed.The ICS has also underscored an ur- gent need for ?grandfathering,? under all eventual standards, type-approved equipment already installed by ship owners trying valiantly to comply with unclear international norms in an uncer- tain regulatory environment. Is international consensus over tech-nology and sampling methodology achievable? Certainly. In aviation, for example, standardization of aircraft maintenance procedures, fuel sampling, and authentication of spare parts is wide-spread. Aircraft mechanics in Bishkek and New York working on a Boeing 777 are likely to understand each other?s du- ties well because of global application of FAA standards. In telecommunications, international rules on use of the electro-magnetic spectrum are observed across a diverse landscape of languages and Ballast Water Leadership Admiral Paul Zukunft, the new U.S. Coast Guard Commandant, could Þ ll the BWT leadership void. BY RICHARD J. DOUGLAS (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty OfÞ cer 2nd Class Patrick Kelley) Can new USCG Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft Þ ll the Ballast Water Leadership void? MR #8 (26-33).indd 28MR #8 (26-33).indd 288/4/2014 9:53:13 AM8/4/2014 9:53:13 AM