Bacterial communities in ballast water of cargo vessels. Bacterial communities in ballast water of cargo vessels

The ballast water sampling of was conducted onboard commercial vessels, i.e. bulk carriers and cargo ships. The studied vessels carried ballast water in the double bottom, wing, topside, forepeak or afterpeak tanks according to their constructive specificities. Before sampling, the background of the vessels was examined paying particular attention to the information on the previously visited ports