scope:

This document provides guidance to ballast water sampling teams or other concerned parties on the selection and use of sampling apparatus needed to collect and process ballast water discharge samples aboard a ship from sample ports installed in accordance with ISO 11711-1. It includes an overview of the sampling process, discussion on design and maintenance of sample probes, necessary sample flow rates, sample collection devices that incorporate sample flow control to maintain representative sampling conditions, and handling of samples for subsequent analyses. The purpose and required statistical confidence of measurements will dictate sample collection timing (e.g. beginning, middle, end of the discharge), duration (i.e. collection time), volume collected, and volume analysed. Thus, these measurement requirements must be defined by the sampling team for each sampling event; this document defines the necessary parameters but does not specify their values. Specifically, this document defines appropriate sample probe and sample flow control to achieve representative sampling and minimize measurement uncertainty consistent with measurement requirements. Appropriate sample volumes and collection times provide statistical confidence for viable organism counts at the discharge limit. Regulation D-2 requires the measurement of two organism size classes: ≥ 10 and < 50 μm (<10 organisms ml−1) and ≥ 50 μm (<10 organisms m−3), and three indicator microbes: toxigenic Vibrio cholerae (serotypes O1 and O139, < 1 cfu 100 ml−1 or < 1 cfu g−1 wet weight zoopl.), Escherichia coli (<250 c fu 100 ml−1), and intestinal enterococci (<100 cfu 100 ml−1). Sampling approaches for each are provided, where both indicative and detailed analyses of viable organisms are supported, as defined by BWM.2-Circ.42/Rev.1, as may be amended, and considering the criteria in ISO 17025 for quality management, measurement uncertainty, and standardized procedures. Additional information on uncertainty will be available in Part 3 of 11711. ISO 11711 does not intend to add any requirements to the BWM Convention or related documents of IMO, but provides supplemental guidance for sampling of ballast water.