International Convention for the Control and Management of  Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments and US Ballast Water Management (BWM) Regulations (No.3) Background Members are referred to our previous Circulars  No.16-019  dated 16th January 2017 and  No.16-020  dated 17th February 2017 on the IMO’s International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments (the "Convention") that will enter into force on 8th September 2017, and the US Coast Guard (USCG) regulations requiring the installation on most vessels operating in US waters of a BWM system that meets the USCG’s stricter testing standards at the first scheduled dry docking after 1st January 2016.   On 7th July 2017, the 71st session of the IMO’s Marine Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC) reached agreement on a revised implementation schedule for the installation of a BWM system under the Convention. The revised schedule effectively postpones by two years the compliance deadline for installing an approved BWM system for ships constructed before 8th September 2017. It is important to note that this has no effect on the compliance dates with the USCG regulations. IMO BWM Convention – Revised implementation schedule Our previous Circular No.16-019 informed Members that, under the Convention, all ships in international trade are required to manage their ballast water and sediments to a certain standard, according to a ship-specific BWM plan. In addition, all ships are required to carry on board a ballast water record book and an international BWM certificate, with the current BWM standards being phased in over a period of time.  Our Circular No.16-019 also previously informed Members that, eventually, most ships would need to install an on-board ballast water treatment system that meets the IMO’s standards by the date of a vessel’s first International Oil Pollution Prevention (IOPP) renewal survey after the Convention enters into force on 8t