The invasion had begun at the bottom of the waves---ballast water shakes the silence of the sea (February 2004)

The invasion had begun at the bottom of the waves---ballast water shakes the silence of the sea (February 2004)
February 2004 The International Maritime Organization adopted the Ballast Water Management Convention.

This was the moment when the international community finally took a step forward in response to the invisible invasion that had been spreading around the world as a byproduct of international navigation - the destruction of ecosystems caused by microscopic organisms contained in ballast water. This was the moment when the international community finally took a step forward.

The seawater loaded in one port and discharged in another contains invisible eggs, plankton, and sometimes even pathogens.

As these organisms leave their natural habitat and spread into foreign waters, native species are eradicated, fisheries suffer, and the coastal balance is destroyed.

In fact, in North America and Australia, fishing grounds have been devastated by the establishment of alien starfish and shellfish.

The risk of red tide and the spread of cholera bacteria was also a reality.

In Japan, the proliferation of red jellyfish was also reported, and it was no longer a matter of concern for others.

The Convention obliges all vessels to install treatment equipment and maintain sterilization records prior to discharge.

The Convention also imposes monitoring and responsibility on port of call and flag states, and calls for a sense of shared ownership of the seas.

But the ambiguity of the public space of the sea has allowed this problem to linger.

Humanity is only now beginning to realize the changes that have begun beneath the waves.

The silent invasion is still going on without a sound.