BILL ANALYSIS
AB 248
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Date of Hearing: March 24, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 248 (Bonnie Lowenthal) - As Introduced: February 10, 2009
SUBJECT : Ballast water management.
SUMMARY : Requires the person in charge of a vessel to maintain
and submit to the California State Lands Commission (SLC)
specified information relating to the vessel's ballast water
treatment system. Makes technical confirming changes.
Specifically, this bill :
1) Changes the title of the Division from "Ballast Water
Management for Control of Nonindigenous Species" to "Marine
Invasive Species Act."
2) Requires the master, owner, operator, agent, or person
in charge of a vessel to maintain on board the vessel and,
upon the vessel's departure from a California port or place
of call, provide to the SLC in electronic or written form
the following information:
a. The manufacturer and product name of the
ballast water treatment system on board the vessel;
and
b. The name of the organization that has approved
the ballast water treatment system and the approval or
certification number of the ballast water treatment
system technology, if applicable; and
c. The number of tanks and the volume of each
tank that is managed using the ballast water treatment
system.
3) Requires the person submitting the information to do so
using a form developed by the SLC.
EXISTING LAW:
1) Requires the master, owner, operator, agent, or person
in charge of a vessel carrying, or capable of carrying,
ballast water, to maintain on board the vessel specified
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information relating to ballast water and, upon the
vessel's departure from a port or place of call in
California, provide the information to the SLC in
electronic or written form. Requires the information to be
submitted on a form developed by the US Coast Guard.
2) Requires the SLC to adopt regulations to require an
owner or operator of a vessel carrying, or capable of
carrying, ballast water that operates in the waters of the
state to implement performance standards for the discharge
of ballast water according to a specified schedule.
FISCAL EFFECT : Likely minimal fiscal impact.
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COMMENTS :
AB 169 (Levine 2008) AB 248 is almost identical to AB 169
(Levine) of the 2007 - 2008 legislative session. AB 248 passed
the Assembly ESTM Committee 7 - 0, but was vetoed by the
Governor with the following message:
"The historic delay in passing the 2008-2009 State Budget
has forced me to prioritize the bills sent to my desk at
the end of the year's legislative session. Given the
delay, I am only signing bills that are the highest
priority for California. This bill does not meet that
standard and I cannot sign it at this time."
Purpose. According to the author's office, AB 248 "is
attempting to solve the lack of data available to the State
Lands Commission on the installation and usage of ballast water
treatment systems. Current law specifies that ships must record
and transmit to the State Lands Commission their ballast water
management activities, including retention on board the ship,
mid-ocean ballast exchanging, or discharging into treatment
facilities. They are not required to record or transmit
detailed information on any treatment systems they are using.
Beginning January 1, 2010, new ships under 5000 metric tons that
visit California ports will be required to meet California's
ballast water performance standards. Most vessels will need to
install ballast water treatment systems in order to meet the
performance standards. The State Lands Commission needs to
collect information about treatment installation and usage. The
State Lands Commission does not have the authority to alter the
existing ballast water management form to incorporate a section
on ballast water treatment systems because the form belongs to
the U.S. Coast Guard."
Ballast water and nonindigenous species : According to a SLC
report, in coastal environments, commercial shipping is the most
important vector for nonindigenous species invasion, accounting
for or contributing to 79.5% of introductions to North America.
Commercial ships transport organisms primarily through ballast
water and vessel fouling. Typically, a vessel takes on ballast
water after cargo is unloaded in one port to compensate for the
weight imbalance, and will later discharge the water when cargo
is loaded in another. This transfer of ballast water from
"source" to "destination" ports results in the movement of an
estimated 7000 species around the world on a daily basis. Once
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established, nonindigenous species can seriously impact human
health, the economy and the environment.
Related legislation :
1) AB 703 (Lempert) Chapter 849, Statutes of 1999. Enacted
the Ballast Water Management for Control of Nonindigenous
Species law. Established a general ballast water
management program under the direction of the SLC in
consultation with other state and federal agencies.
2) AB 433 (Nation) Chapter 491, Statutes of 2003. Cited
the Ballast Water Management for Control of Nonindigenous
Species law as the Marine Invasive Species Act, and revised
and recast the state's laws pertaining to control of
nonindigenous species and ballast water management.
Directed the SLC to recommend performance standards for the
discharge of ballast water.
3) SB 497 (Simitian) Chapter 292, Statutes of 2006.
Enacted the Coastal Ecosystems Protection Act, which
expanded the Marine Invasive Species Act and directed the
SLC to adopt the recommended performance standards and
implementation schedule for the discharge of ballast water.
4) AB 740 (Laird) Chapter 370, Statutes of 2007. Further
expanded the Marine Invasive Species Act to include hull
fouling. Required the SLC, by January 1, 2012, to adopt
regulations governing the management of hull fouling on
vessels arriving at a port or place in California.
5) SB 1781 (Committee on Environmental Quality) Chapter
696, Statutes of 2008. Delayed the initial implementation
of the ballast water performance standards from January 1,
2009, to January 1, 2010.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California State Lands Commission
Opposition
None on file.
AB 248
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Analysis Prepared by : Shannon McKinney / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965