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MERC – DRAFT Test Plan
4
is not a source of mortality (data available upon request). The test ballast tank will also drained
and manually rinsed/cleaned prior to conducting the first evaluation trial, and rinsed/flushed with
20 – 30 m
3
of potable water and drained completely between trials, to avoid the possibility of
residual live organisms in the bottom of the empty test tank influencing results.
MERC will conduct a maximum of four new test trials of the MSI filtration + UV system
onboard the
Cape Washington
in 2009 to determine its ability to meet IMO D2 ballast water
discharge standards. The inability to successfully complete (without interruption) an individual
test trial, or to meet D2 discharge standards for a particular test trial, will be considered a
“failure”. If a failure is determined to be a result of problems associated with the MERC test
system or process (e.g., problem with ship’s ballast system), the test trial will be discarded and
repeated. If the failure is determined to be a result of the MSI treatment (e.g., a mechanical
failure in the MSI system resulting in an interruption of treatment during a test run or a failure to
meet D2 standard for one or more parameters), the results will be noted and included in the final
report. Depending on the nature of the failure, one failure on the part of the MSI treatment
system may result in the termination of testing prior to the maximum of four test trials. This
decision will be made by MERC Senior Management in consultation with MSI staff.
This evaluation will be based on physical and biological characterization of water upon
ballasting (uptake of water) and comparisons of organisms in control versus treated water after a
five-day, in-tank holding time for the different D2 biological categories. Results will also be
presented as concentration of viable organisms per biological category in treated water upon
discharge versus IMO D2 standards.
Sampling Design:
Five sequential samples will be taken for each of the following: (A) initial/intake
conditions, just prior to the split of control and treated water, (B) initial conditions just
downstream of the MSI system during filling of test tank, (C) control water upon discharge after
a five-day holding time, and (D) treated water upon discharge after a five-day holing time.
Sample volumes and details of the physical, chemical, and biological analyses for each sample
are described below.
A detailed drawing of the MERC
Cape Washington
test setup and
sampling design is available on page 15.
All samples collected to quantify live organisms or water quality will be taken by inline
sampling of ballast water during the initial filling or during discharge of water from the ship’s
tanks by sample ports place in appropriate filling or discharge pipes. All sample ports include a
valve and sample tube with a 90
o
bend towards the direction of flow, placed in the center of the
piping system (based on the design developed and validated by the US Naval Research
Laboratory, Key West Florida).
A total of 10 identical conical bottom mesocosms (shown below) have been installed on
the
Cape Washington
to allow for precise and controlled sampling during each test trial. Five
replicate mesocosms are used to sample initial, challenge conditions at the start of each trial,
prior to the split in water to control and test tanks. The second five mesocosm are used to sample
after water has passed through the MSI treatment during the initial filling of the test tank. At the
end of each trial (after five-days), five mesocosms are used for sampling water from the control
tank, and the second five mesocosm for water from the test tank. At each sampling time (initial
and after holding time), the designated five mesocosms will be filled to approximately 1.05 m
3
in
sequence over 75 to 80 minutes of the 90 minutes required to fill or drain the ship’s ballast tanks
(i.e., sampling takes place > 80% of the time during filling or draining of tanks). Immediately