As part of the Scapa Flow Ballast Water Management Policy the Orkney Harbour collects ballast water samples from all visiting vessels wishing to discharge ballast water into Scapa Flow.
As part of the Scapa Flow Ballast Water Management Policy (available online at www.orkneyharbours.com) the Orkney Harbour collects ballast water samples from all visiting vessels wishing to discharge ballast water into Scapa Flow. Prior to arrival vessels are required to exchange and / or treat their ballast water and submit the relevant IMO forms. The position and track of the vessels are also checked before arrival.
Samples collected from the ballast tanks of the vessels follow guidelines provided by IMO and have been developed by the Harbour Authority’s in-house science team over the last five years. Salinity and bacteria samples are analysed in-house as soon as possible, plankton samples are preserved and sent to a specialist laboratory for full analysis. Results are stored in a database and reported to senior management. Results are kept strictly commercial in confidence “