Spotlight

IMO film wins top award at United Nations Documentary Film Festival

A documentary featuring tiny alien invaders transported in ballast water, which can cause havoc in local ecosystems, has won a top award at a major documentary film festival in New York.

The documentary film Invaders from the Sea won the gold award in the category of "Best United Nations Feature" at this year's "Stories from the Field", the third annual United Nations Documentary Film Festival, which took place in New York from 21 to 22 April 2007. The film was produced by IMO, the United Nations agency responsible for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution by ships, in co-operation with the BBC and the shipping industry.

"I am absolutely delighted that the IMO documentary has received such high recognition from a prestigious film festival that includes, among its organizers and judges, renowned filmmakers and producers from around the world", said Efthimios E. Mitropoulos, Secretary-General of IMO, adding: "Our film underlines the vital role of shipping to world trade and the global economy and IMO's permanent efforts to address, effectively and proactively, any problems arising from the operation of ships that may impact negatively on our mission to ensure safe, secure and efficient shipping on clean oceans. Winning this award will do much to make the general public appreciate even more the environmental work we carry out for the public good and for the achievement of Millennium Development Goals".

The film was one of 31, selected from more than 200 entries, screened at the festival. The key requirement for the festival was that films should reflect one or more of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. The finalists were selected by a screening committee of United Nations officials, representatives from the Media Communications Association International (MCAI), faculty members of the New School in New York (which hosted the event), and experts from the Mount Sinai global health centre. Selections were based on the films' topical relevance, artistic merit, and production values.

Invaders from the Sea shows how harmful organisms transported in ballast water by ships have caused biological and economic havoc around the world, largely due to expanded maritime trade and traffic volume over the last few decades. The effects in many areas of the world have been devastating. The film also highlights the progress made by IMO and the maritime industry in addressing this issue and the measures which can be taken to prevent the spread of harmful organisms.

The film captures the dramatic impact of this issue on the lives of millions of people, using examples of three harmful organisms, which have been transported to new areas in ships' ballast water:

North American comb jelly - has been transported to the Caspian Sea. This tiny ctenophore is a voracious predator and reproduces rapidly under favourable conditions. It feeds excessively on zooplankton, depleting stocks and altering the food web and ecosystem function. It contributed significantly to the collapse of fisheries in the Black and Azov Seas in the 1990s, with massive economic and social impact, and has now depleted stocks of the local kilka fish in the Caspian Sea. The impact on one Caspian fisherman and his family is highlighted in the documentary.

Golden mussel (Limnoperma fortunei) - a native to south eastern Asian rivers and creeks, which has been transported in larval form in ships' ballast water to South America. It travelled to Brazil up river from the coastline of Argentina and is a highly reproductive invasive species that clogs up water intake pipes for hydro-electric power stations and fouls up other structures. It affects the feeding patterns of local fish, causing fish stocks to fall. The film shows the devastating impact of the golden mussel on fishing and hydro-electric power stations and on the local ecosystem.

Toxic Algae (Red Tides) - various species, including toxic dinoflagellates, cause red tides to appear. Several species have been transferred to new areas in ships' ballast water. They may form harmful algae blooms and, depending on the species, can cause massive kills of marine life through oxygen depletion, release of toxins and/or mucus. They can foul beaches and impact on tourism and recreation, while some species may contaminate filter-feeding shellfish and cause fisheries to be closed. Consumption of contaminated shellfish by humans may cause severe illness and death. The film focuses on South Africa where there has been an increase in cases of paralytic shellfish poisoning, after people ate shellfish collected from beaches affected by red tides. Paralytic shellfish poisoning can cause tingling and numbness of the mouth, lips and fingers, difficulty in breathing, accompanied by general muscular weakness and lack of co-ordination, and can lead to paralysis and death if not treated.

Quantitative data show the rate of bio-invasions is continuing to increase, in many cases exponentially, and new areas are being invaded all the time. Volumes of seaborne trade continue to rise and the problem may not yet have reached its peak.

Ballast is crucial for the stability of a ship and it is estimated that about 3 to 10 billion tonnes of ballast water are transferred globally each year, potentially transferring, from one location to another, species of sea life that may prove harmful when released into a non-native environment.

In 2004, IMO adopted the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention), a new international treaty to prevent the potentially devastating effects of the spread of aquatic organisms inadvertently transported in this way. When in force, the BWM Convention will require all ships to implement a Ballast Water and Sediments Management Plan. All ships will have to carry a Ballast Water Record Book and will be required to carry out ballast water management procedures to a given standard. Existing ships will be required to do the same, but after a phase-in period. The IMO documentary is intended to raise public awareness of the issue and of the measures being taken by IMO and shipping to tackle it, and is an invitation to Governments to implement the BWM Convention properly and effectively.

Meanwhile, IMO is executing the Global Ballast Water Management Project (GloBallast) in partnership with the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to assist developing countries to reduce the transfer of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens in ships' ballast water and to build capacity for legal, policy and institutional reforms in line with the new international regulatory regime adopted by IMO.

The preparatory activities for the second phase of this Project - GloBallast Partnerships - were completed in early 2007. The GloBallast Partnerships is currently under GEF's consideration and incorporates a number of strategic partnerships, including with the private sector, to achieve its aims.

The IMO documentary features some of the solutions to preventing the spread of invasive species in ships' ballast water, including exchange of ballast water on the high seas and new technologies that are under development, such as flow-through systems to exchange ballast water continuously while the ship is sailing and methods to kill or render inactive microscopic life forms by, for example, using ozone or ultraviolet light. Different solutions may be required for different ships.

Filming for the documentary took place during 2005 and 2006, around the world, under the co ordination of a Steering Committee established by IMO at its Headquarters in London. The production enjoyed considerable sponsorship from Vela International Marine, BP Shipping and Wallenius-Alfa Laval Consortium, as well as from the Swedish International Development Co-operation Agency and support from the GloBallast pilot countries (Brazil, China, Iran, India, South Africa and Ukraine). IMO also provided expert advice on the ballast water problem during the filming. The film was produced by the BBC Natural History Unit and the Director was Sally Cryer.

DVD availability
Invaders from the Sea will be available from IMO Publishing in May 2007.

A companion DVD produced by IMO illustrates, in words and images, the many different ways in which the objectives of the organization - safe, secure and efficient shipping on clean oceans - are achieved. IMO: Safe, secure and efficient shipping on clean oceans (ISBN: 9280170023) is available from IMO Publishing now.

Stories from the Field, the Third Annual United Nations Documentary Film Festival - website -

World Maritime Day theme 2007: "IMO's response to current environmental challenges"