The US Coast Guard has issued a type approval for Wärtsilä’s Aquarius UV (Ultra-Violet) ballast water management system (BWMS).
This is the company’s second type approval after it received one for the Aquarius EC (Electro-Chlorination) in August 2018.
In addition to the USCG approvals, both technologies have also been awarded type approvals by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Wärtsilä noted.
The Aquarius UV technology uses filtration and UV irradiation, while the Aquarius EC involves filtration and electro-chlorination across the full scope of a ship’s operating and environmental conditions.
The approval for Wärtsilä is the 18th US Coast Guard BWMS type approval certificate issued by the Coast Guard Marine Safety Center to date.
The Coast Guard is re-evaluating ballast water management systems following the recent signing into law of the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act (VIDA). If the USCG decides to accept the same testing principle used by IMO, suppliers of UV treatment systems are expected to be able to reapply for USCG type approval based on the IMO testing methodology.