• The water that ships carry as ballast may be polluted.ship image by jimcox40 from Fotolia.com
  
  Oceangoing ships carry water to use as ballast to keep the ship upright and at the proper depth. This water can become infested with marine pests from outside Australian waters. Australia has rules about when, or if, this water can be dumped from the ship. There are different rules controlling water brought into Australian waters from outside the territorial limits and water carried between Australian ports.
  
  

Australian Federal Government Rules

• The federal government handles water brought into Australian territorial waters by ships at sea. It considers the ocean out to 12 miles from its shores to be Australian territory. It prohibits all discharge of salt water within its territorial waters. The rules allow for some exceptions, where there is little chance that the water has been contaminated. Fresh water, water obtained from a ship in which the water has been approved, and water taken from deep in the ocean or within territorial waters is considered safe enough to be allowed in Australian waters. The federal government requires all vessels carrying water which might be contaminated to submit a Quarantine Pre-Arrival Report which lists vessel identification and description, any health problems with the crew or passengers, any animals or birds on board, and any visits by the vessel to places of concern to the government. If a ship fails to submit this information in advance, it will be held in quarantine until the government is satisfied that no danger exists.
  
  

State Government Rules

• The state of Victoria abides by federal rules governing sea water and has created additional rules controlling the discharge of water taken up within territorial waters. No other state in Australia has implemented its own laws concerning ballast water. Victoria contains the city of Melbourne, is the second most populated state, and the most densely populated. Victoria state rules require a ballast-water risk assessment for each voyage, in which the captain must declare whether the ballast water on his ship is high or low risk and prove it by giving information on the origin of the water and how it has been handled. Whether the ballast water is high or low risk, the captain is required to treat it as if it were high-risk while on his ship.
  
  

Some Ships Don't Discharge Ballast Water

• Ships that don't plan on discharging any ballast water in Australian waters don't need to have a ballast-water management plan or file any papers with the state or federal government. However, if an emergency arises and water that comes from a high-risk environment needs to be discharged, the vessel's captain will have to ask for permission from the harbormaster. The Australian government recommends that all vessels enter territorial waters with ballast water that is already clean from pests.