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Species Invasions in Large Ecosystems Ballast-mediated Animal Introductions in the Laurentian Great Lakes: Retrospective and Prospective Analyses - Grigorovich, I.A., R.I. Colautti, E.L. Mills, K. Holeck, A.G. Ballert, and H.J. MacIsaac. 2003 Presented by: Kamto Chung, Marianne Fernandez & Carrie Kwok

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Outline of Presentation Introduction Key definitions Background information Summary of Grigorovich et al. paper Critique of paper Findings from other studies Current Canadian Ballast Water Management Regulations Current BWM regulations of other countries Discussion

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Key Definitions Invasive Species Also referred to as non-indigenous species (NIS) BOB/NOBOB Ballast on Board (BOB) No Ballast on Board (NOBOB) Ballast Water Exchange (BWE) Propagule Pressure Hypothesis

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Laurentian Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway Source: http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/greatlk.htm

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Objectives What was examined: 1) Retrospective analysis of non-indigenous species (NIS) in the Great Lakes 2) Patterns of shipping activities and ballast water discharge 3) Emerging invasion patterns 4) Forecasting ballast-mediated introductions Ballast-mediated Animal Introductions in the Laurentian Great Lakes: Retrospective and Prospective Analyses Grigorovich et al. 2003

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Methods 1. Historical and emerging patterns of introduction - Comprehensive inventory of NIS from 1959-1999 - Regression line slopes - Information for each NIS: 1. Date of first appearance 2. Locality 3. Native range 4. Most plausible mechanism of introduction - Invasion hotspots (>1 NIS per 1000 km 2 water)

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Methods 2. Shipping activities and ballast water exchange - Comprehensive database developed using annual reports from the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, US Custom forms, etc. - Inferred ballasting and de-ballasting operations by the type of transaction recorded at each port

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Methods 3. Forecasting introductions - Developed a qualitative risk-screening framework Sampling of ballast tanks revealed that 80-100% of organisms loaded abroad were eliminated during transoceanic transit by open-ocean ballast exchange

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Method Limitations Historic NIS records may not fully represent the rate of invasions Species introduced to previously uncolonized sites within the basin are not considered invasive When no entry mechanism was indicated in the original record of a species, assumed the vector based on other studies findings Some ballast statuses of incoming transoceanic vessels were unobtainable

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Results 43 aquatic animal and protist species introduced into the Great Lakes since 1959 Rusty crayfish Eurasian ruffe Zebra mussels Round goby Sea lamprey Spiny water flea

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67% of these were attributed to ballast water discharge

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Results Since 1959, over 90% of incoming vessels have NOBOB status NOBOB vessels favour invasion of species capable of diapause or resistant life stages

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Results NOBOB ships have residual ballast water and can still facilitate invasions

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Results 4 invasion hotspots, comprising 5.6% of total Great Lakes water surface area Account for 53.5% of NIS recorded since 1959 Generally correspond to the major areas of ballast water discharge

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Results Forecasted future introductions: 26 species are high-risk invaders 10 currently existing in the Great Lakes 16 yet to be reported in the Great Lakes 37 species are low-risk invaders 6 currently existing in the Great Lakes 31 yet to be reported in the Great Lakes The extent of ballast-mediated invasions are not correlated with the quantities of ballast water discharge and do not follow the Propagule Pressure Hypothesis

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Critique of Paper Criticisms: Meta-study Lack recommendations and application what to do with the findings? Inaccurate predictive model: Several taxa are poorly differentiated morphologically (cryptic invaders that were introduced before 1959, but remained undetected for an extended time) Some species posing a risk of invasion cannot be predicted because certain ports of ballast origin were not considered

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Since the paper New studies were done Ballast Water Control and Management Regulations in 2006, 2011

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Johengen et al. 2005 Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory Assessment of Transoceanic NOBOB Vessels and Low-Salinity Ballast Water as Vectors for Non- indigenous Species Introductions to the Great Lakes

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Main Findings In order to lower the risk of NIS, you need conscientious and consistent application of good management practices Flushing NOBOB tanks with saltwater Salinity tests using density meter to ensure salt content >30ppt

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Main Findings sampled over 80 individual NOBOB ballast tanks and developed detailed biological and physical characterizations of the residual water and sediment in those tanks Three on-board experiments suggest that use of ballast water exchange, while clearly imperfect, can be a beneficial management practice

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Main Findings Regular flushing was associated with less residual mud, along with raising salinity Effectiveness of salinity shock in killing freshwater-tolerant organisms varied according to species

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Main Findings To assure maximum protection, new and highly effective methods to reliably treat ballast water and/or ballast residuals to significant and scientifically defensible biological endpoints are required Basically corroborated Grigorovichs earlier study despite high compliance of these guidelines, NIS still exist, indicating that the current ballast management strategy is not fool-proof

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Ricciardi, A. 2006. Patterns of invasion in the Laurentian Great Lakes in relation to changes in vector activity positive correlation between # of NIS and shipping activity/ decade

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Surprisingly, not a single non-indigenous species ever established in the Great Lakes basin is known to have disappeared Accumulation may lead to a greater frequency of synergistic disruption (ie.quagga mussels and round gobies cause outbreaks of avian botulism in Lake Erie)

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Conclusion Consensus among the scientific community that ballast water still serves as a vector of NIS introductions, even after BWE guidelines. Severity and timing Amount of NIS spp. vary ~170 Timing Historical reports Ongoing Status?

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Other Findings Evaluation of the Great Lakes Ballast Water Management Program Bailey et al. 2011 Program is one of the most comprehensive globally Results: Risk of ship-mediated NIS introductions has been reduced No new species found in Great Lakes since 2006 BWE and tank flushing can effectively decrease the number of viable propagules in the ballast tank Need to maintain high inspection effort levels Program initiatives, while providing a robust defense against introductions, do not provide complete protection against NIS Although inspection programs can be expensive, cost of inaction is typically greater $1.6 million annual spending on inspections; cost of aquatic invasives are at least $200 million annually Transport Canada

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International Maritime Organization (IMO) An international conference held in 1948 adopted this convention to develop international regulations to improve safety at seas There are currently 170 States that have membership with the IMO; representatives meet once every two years.

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The purpose of the organization is: to provide machinery for cooperation among Governments in the field of governmental regulation and practices relating to technical matters of all kinds affecting shipping engaged in international trade; to encourage and facilitate the general adoption of the highest practicable standards in matters concerning maritime safety, efficiency of navigation and prevention and control of marine pollution from ships - IMO

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International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships Ballast Water and Sediment (BWM Convention) Adopted in February 2004 As of February 2015, 44 Member States have ratified the Convention and use their guidelines as part of their Ballast Water Management plans

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Main Practices of the BWM Convention: All ships in international traffic are required to manage their ballast water and sediments to the Regulation D1 Ballast Water Exchange Standard or Regulation D2 Ballast Water Performance Standard All ships must carry a ballast water record book and an international ballast water management certificate Highly recommend on-board ballast water treatment system, but in the meantime, mid-ocean BWE is acceptable

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Canadas BWM Regulations

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Exceptions to ballast water rules 1. Bad weather alternative exchange zones available 1. Accidents still need to minimize risks 2. Ships travelling within the Great Lakes Basin are not subject to BWM regulations

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Enforcement of Regulations No unmanaged ballast water permitted to enter the Great Lakes from the high seas Joint Canada-U.S. inspections to confirm salinity in ballast tanks DFO: random sampling and analysis report to Transport Canada

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BWM Regulations of Other Countries Australia Introduced in 2001 Signed IMO Convention in 2005 The requirements are consistent with the IMO Convention, but with a few refinements not covered by the IMO guidelines

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U.S.A. Member State of the IMO, but did not ratify the BWM Convention Regulations: Any vessel with ballast water entering U.S. waters from outside the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone must either: Conduct mid-ocean ballast water exchange Retain the vessels ballast water onboard Utilize an alternative control method approved by the U.S. Coast Guard

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Questions?

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Discuss! What recommendations can be made to enhance Grigorovich et al.s study? Do you think there could be other improvements or additions to Canadas current BWM regulations? Given the finding that no new species have been found in the Great Lakes since 2006, what should the concern of the Canadian government shift towards?

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Discuss! What do you think about physical alterations of the ecosystem in order to protect ecosystem integrity? How does the issue of invasive species rank as a priority against other ongoing conservation challenges in the Great Lakes?

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Literature Cited Australian Government. 2013. Australian Ballast Water Management Requirements (Version 5). Retrieved from http://www.agriculture.gov.au/SiteCollectionDocuments/aqis/airvesselmilitary/vessels/ballast/ballas t-water-mgmt-requirements-v5.pdf February 27, 2015. http://www.agriculture.gov.au/SiteCollectionDocuments/aqis/airvesselmilitary/vessels/ballast/ballas t-water-mgmt-requirements-v5.pdf Bailey, S.A., M.G. Deneau, L. Jean, C.J. Wiley, B. Leung, and H.J. MacIsaac. 2011. Evaluating Efficacy of an Environmental Policy to Prevent Biological Invasions. Journal of Environmental Science & Technology, 45: 2554-2561. Grigorovich, I.A., R.I. Colautti, E.L. Mills, K. Holeck, A.G. Ballert, and H.J. MacIsaac. 2003. Ballast-mediated animal introductions in the Laurentian Great Lakes: retrospective and prospective analyses. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science, 60. Groom, M.J., G.K. Meffe, and C.R. Carroll. 2006. Principles of Conservation Biology 3 rd edition. Sunderland: Sinauer Associates, Inc. International Maritime Organization. 2015. Ballast Water Management. Retrieved from http://www.imo.org/OurWork/Environment/BallastWaterManagement/Pages/Default.aspx February 27, 2015. http://www.imo.org/OurWork/Environment/BallastWaterManagement/Pages/Default.aspx Johengen, T.H., D.F. Reid, and P.T. Jenkins. 2005. Great Lakes NOBOB assessment: final briefing. U.S. Coast Guard Marine Community Day.

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Literature Cited NOAA. 2015. Ballast Water: U.S. Federal Management. Retrieved from: http://www.gc.noaa.gov/gcil_ballast_federal.html February 27, 2015. http://www.gc.noaa.gov/gcil_ballast_federal.html Ricciardi, A. 2006. Patterns of invasion in the Laurentian Great Lakes in relation to changes in vector activity. Diversity and Distributions, 12.4: 425-433. Transportation Research Board. 2008. Committee on the St. Lawrence Seaway: Options to Eliminate Introduction of Non-indigenous Species into the Great Lakes, Phase 2.