Managing biofouling in Australia

All vessels pose some risk to Australia’s marine biosecurity.

Biofouling occurs when organisms attach and grow on the submerged parts of a vessel like the hull, propellers, anchors, niche areas and fishing gear.

Vessel biofouling and a ship’s ballast water are major pathways for the introduction of foreign marine species into Australian waters. Once introduced they can spread, threaten healthy marine habitats, and have adverse economic and health effects, including to Australia’s important fisheries.

To manage this risk, the Department of Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry is working closely with Australian and international shipping industries and recreational vessel operators on a number of initiatives.

Mandatory biofouling management requirements for international vessels

New requirements for managing biofouling on international vessels arriving in Australia will begin on 15 June 2022.

Operators of all vessels subject to biosecurity control will be required to provide information on how biofouling has been managed prior to arriving in Australian territorial seas. This information will need to be reported through the department’s Maritime Arrivals Reporting System (MARS).

The department will use the information to target vessel interventions. This will allow more efficient use of resources and statutory powers to assess and inspect vessels, and more effective response to unacceptable biosecurity risks associated with biofouling.

Vessel operators will receive less intervention for biofouling if they comply with one of the following three accepted biofouling management practices:

1. Implementation of an effective biofouling management plan; or
2. Cleaned all biofouling within 30 days prior to arriving in Australian territory; or
3. Implementation of an alternative biofouling management method pre-approved by the department.

A vessel operator that has not applied one of the three accepted biofouling management practices will be subject to further questions and assessment of the biosecurity risk associated with biofouling on the vessel.

This new policy approach was approved on 30 November 2021 by the Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia and is consistent with the direction of the International Maritime Organization’s 2011 Guidelines for the Control and Management of Ships’ biofouling to Minimize the Transfer of Invasive Aquatic Species. The policy is also informed by the Review of National Marine Pest Biosecurity 2015 and the Australian biofouling management requirements for international vessel arrivals consultation regulation impact statement.

The Australian biofouling management requirements provide guidance on how vessel operators should manage biofouling when operating within Australian seas in order to comply with the Biosecurity Act 2015.

Timeframe for implementing the new requirements

The department will phase the introduction of new requirements. From 15 June 2022 to 15 December 2023 an education first approach will be taken for the Australian biofouling management requirements. However, powers under the Biosecurity Act 2015 will continue to be used to manage unacceptable biosecurity risk associated with biofouling.

For future updates on biofouling, please visit our subscription centre and select Import Industry Advice Notices under Import news.

Advice on biofouling management

The National Biofouling Management Guidelines are designed to help the maritime industry and vessel owners and operators to manage and control vessel biofouling.

Managing vessel biofouling not only reduces the risk of harmful plants and animals entering new waters, but also helps improve vessel performance and efficiency, reduces greenhouse and other emissions as well as maintenance costs.

Advice and guidelines are available to help you establish effective biofouling management practices on your vessel or in your industry:

• aquaculture industry
• commercial vessels
• commercial fishing vessels
• non-trading vessels
• petroleum production and exploration
• recreational vessels.

Anti-fouling and in water cleaning

The measures used to manage vessel biofouling can also threaten the health of marine waters.

The anti-fouling and in-water cleaning guidelines can help vessel owners manage risks associated with:

• anti-fouling coatings on the vessel’s hull including application, maintenance, removal and disposal at shore-based maintenance facilities
• biofouling organisms released during in-water cleaning operations.

We have developed the draft Australian In-water cleaning standards, which were available for public stakeholder consultation during October and November 2021. The next round of consultation will occur in the first quarter of 2022.

The Australian In-water cleaning standards will specify minimum requirements for in-water cleaning of biofouling from vessels in Australian territorial seas.

The standards seek to manage the biosecurity and chemical contamination risks associated with in-water cleaning to an acceptable level.

Managing the risks of marine pest incursions

We provide national leadership in the development and implementation of national marine pest biosecurity. We are also the lead agency in implementing Australian Government responsibilities under the Intergovernmental Agreement on Biosecurity and the National Environmental Biosecurity Response Agreement.

For future updates on biofouling, please visit our subscription centre and select Import Industry Advice Notices under Import news.

GloFouling

The GloFouling Partnerships project is an international collaboration between the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to address the transfer of aquatic species through biofouling in developing nations and small-island developing states. Australia is a strategic partner in the GloFouling Partnerships project and will work with our regional partners and the global community to support the uptake and implementation of the IMO biofouling guidelines for the control and management of ships’ biofouling.

The International Maritime Organization website has more information on the GloFouling Partnerships project.