Marine species carried by ship’s ballast waters represent a potentially serious environmental problem. Many strategies are adopted to minimise the transfer of invasive or pathogen marine species among different aquatic ecosystems. A possible solution is ballast water treatment using biocides, but it is necessary to consider that the biocide could represent a danger to native organisms once the ballast water is discharged. Chemical treatments such as chlorination and addition of gluteraldehyde could present some problems related to toxicity and application costs. The search for new effective molecules with a low environmental impact is very pressing. In the present paper, data from a preliminary efficacy screening of a promising molecule derived from alkylated naphtoquinones, on a battery of ballast water model organisms, are presented. Results show that this new molecule is very effective in absence of light, and is extremely photodegradable (Half-Life < 3 h), so it can be easily degraded when released in the environment. Furthermore, the compound is not expensive to be produced and can be easily used aboard ocean-going ships.
A new photodegradable molecule as a low impact ballast water biocide: efficacy screening on marine organisms from different trophic levels
MARIOTTINI, GIAN LUIGI;PANE, LUIGI
2004-01-01
Abstract
Marine species carried by ship’s ballast waters represent a potentially serious environmental problem. Many strategies are adopted to minimise the transfer of invasive or pathogen marine species among different aquatic ecosystems. A possible solution is ballast water treatment using biocides, but it is necessary to consider that the biocide could represent a danger to native organisms once the ballast water is discharged. Chemical treatments such as chlorination and addition of gluteraldehyde could present some problems related to toxicity and application costs. The search for new effective molecules with a low environmental impact is very pressing. In the present paper, data from a preliminary efficacy screening of a promising molecule derived from alkylated naphtoquinones, on a battery of ballast water model organisms, are presented. Results show that this new molecule is very effective in absence of light, and is extremely photodegradable (Half-Life < 3 h), so it can be easily degraded when released in the environment. Furthermore, the compound is not expensive to be produced and can be easily used aboard ocean-going ships.
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