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Agencies Getting Tough with Ship Ballast Dumping
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) -- After decades of delay, government officials are beginning to crack down on cargo ships that allow foreign invasive species to hitchhike to U.S. waters.

Those species have turned ecosystems upside down and caused billions of dollars in economic losses.

Scientists say ballast is the biggest means of transport for the aquatic aliens.

Now, agencies are turning up the heat as companies report progress toward developing effective sterilization systems.

The U.S. Coast Guard says it will release final regulations by April limiting the number of live organisms in ballast water and let shippers decide how to comply.

The Environmental Protection Agency also has begun regulating discharges of ballast.

At least a dozen states also have ballast policies.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
02 07 11 by Newsroom
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