NBIC Frequently Asked Questions
Filling out the Ballast Water Reporting Form
General Questions
1. How do I know if my Form is an "Amended Form"?
2. What is meant by "Alternative Management"?
3. Can I report my BW volumes in gallons? --Updated
4. Should I include my unpumpable ballast water on the BW Reporting Form?
Section 5: Ballast Water History
5. I did not discharge some of my tanks in the Arrival Port. Should I still list them in Section 5?
6. Can I report multiple tanks on a single line in Section 5?
7. What do I enter if I filled my ballast tanks mid-ocean?
8. Can I enter a port name as the endpoint for my BW Exchange?
9. What am I supposed to enter in the "Sea Ht" field?
Submitting the Ballast Water Reporting Form
General Questions
10. What is the pre-arrival BW Reporting deadline?
11. Do I have to report to NBIC upon arrival into a non-U.S. port?
12. Do I have to report to NBIC every time I cross a COTP zone boundary? --New
13. I don't know how many tanks I will discharge yet, but I have to report now in order to meet the deadline. What do I do?
14. I sent in my BW Reporting Form via one method (e-mail, fax, or post). Should I also send it via another method to make sure it gets there?
15. I submitted a BW Report to NBIC. Do I still need to submit BW Reports to states such as California, Oregon, or Washington?
Electronic Submission
16. Which e-mail address should I use to submit BW Reports or ask questions?
17. How do I know if I have the latest version of an electronic Ballast Water Reporting Form?
18. What if I cannot fax or e-mail due to inclement weather or technical difficulties?
19. How do I sign a form that I will submit via e-mail or the web?
20. I sent in my BW Reporting Form via e-mail and have not yet received a receipt. Should I send it again? --Updated
Filling out the Ballast Water Reporting Form
General Questions
1. How do I know if my Form is an "Amended Form"?
If the information you are submitting is a correction or addition to information
you already submitted, then your Form is an Amended Form and you should
check "Yes" in response to the question, "Is This an Amended
Form?" Otherwise, you should check "No" in response to this
question.
2. What is meant by "Alternative Management"?
"Alternative Management" refers to actions other than Ballast Water
Exchange taken to reduce the risks associated with Ballast Water discharge,
such as holding Ballast Water onboard. It does NOT refer to standard Ballast
Water Exchange practices such as mid-ocean exchange, either Flow Through or Empty/Refill.
3. Can I report my BW volumes in gallons?
Yes. USCG MOC Policy Letter 04-06 (10 Aug 2004) states the following: "For volumes in reported in Sections 3 and 5, gallons may be substituted for cubic meters and metric tons. The abbreviation gal may be used."
4. Should I include my unpumpable ballast water on the BW Reporting Form?
No. Only list water that was discharged in the Arrival Port listed in Section
2. Since unpumpable water cannot be discharged, it should not be included.
Section 5: Ballast Water History
5. I did not discharge some of my tanks in the Arrival Port. Should I still list them in Section 5?
No. The only tanks that should be listed in Section 5 are those discharged
in the Arrival Port listed in Section 2.
6. Can I report multiple tanks on a single line in Section 5?
If the vessel has a pair of port/starboard tanks that share the same design and were treated in exactly
the same way (same BW Source, same BW Exchange, same BW Discharge), these
may be combined on one line. In that case, the Source, Exchange, and
Discharge volumes should represent the TOTAL COMBINED volume of the two
tanks. In all other cases, each tank must be listed on a separate line.
7. What do I enter if I filled my ballast tanks mid-ocean?
If the vessel took on water mid-ocean that was not part of an exchange,
this water should be listed in the "BW Sources" section, NOT
the "BW Management" section.
8. Can I enter a port name as the endpoint for my BW Exchange?
No. Ballast Water Exchange endpoints must be listed as latitude/longitude
coordinates.
9. What am I supposed to enter in the "Sea Ht" field?
"Sea Height" does NOT refer to the depth of the water where ballast
water exchange was performed. "Sea Height" is the combined height
of the wind-seas and swell at the time of exchange -- essentially the wave
height. Typical values might range from 1 m to 5 m.
Submitting the Ballast Water Reporting Form
General Questions
10. What is the pre-arrival BW Reporting deadline?
BW Reports must be submitted 24 hours prior to arrival in the port listed
in Section 2: Arrival Port. If your voyage will take less than 24 hours, a
BW Report must be submitted before you depart on the voyage.
11. Do I have to report to NBIC upon arrival into a non-U.S. port?
No. Only report to NBIC upon arrival into a port or place within the waters of the United
States of America.
12. Do I have to report go NBIC every time I cross a COTP zone boundary?
No. You must submit a BW Report to NBIC 24 hours before you arrive to a U.S. port or place
after crossing one or more Captain Of The Port (COTP) zone boundaries. It is not necessary to submit
a BW Report each time your vessel crosses into a different COTP zone unless you will
be arriving to a U.S. port or place.
13. I don't know how many tanks I will discharge yet, but I have to report now in order to meet the deadline. What do I do?
Send in a report now listing an estimate of the tanks you might discharge.
Before leaving port again, send in an Amended Form describing what actually
happened. In order to indicate that the second form is an amendment of
the first one, you should check "Yes" in response to the question, "Is
This an Amended Form?"
Important (for both original and Amended Forms):
- DO NOT leave "Section 5: BW Discharge" blank while filling in the
other two subsections (BW Source, BW Management Practices).
- DO NOT use language like "To Be Determined" in any section of the Form.
14. I sent in my BW Reporting Form via one method (e-mail, fax, or post). Should I also send it via another method to make sure it gets there?
No. Each BW Reporting Form should be submitted only ONCE. There is no need
to send multiple copies of the same Form via e-mail, fax, or post.
15. I submitted a BW Report to NBIC. Do I still need to submit BW Reports to states such as California, Oregon, or Washington?
Yes. Submitting a BW Report to NBIC does NOT fulfill state reporting requirements.
Submitting a BW Report to a State Agency does not fulfill the requirement to report to NBIC.
Electronic Submission
16. Which e-mail address should I use to submit BW Reports or ask questions?
nbic@ballastreport.org
There is no need to send e-mail to any other address.
17. How do I know if I have the latest version of an electronic Ballast Water Reporting Form?
Check our website for the release dates of the latest-version electronic Ballast
Water Reporting Forms. If you received your Form before the latest release date,
it is an old version and there is a newer version of the Form now available.
As of June 8, 2004, you can find the release date of an electronic Ballast Water
Reporting Form at the bottom of each page of the Form.
18. What if I cannot fax or e-mail due to inclement weather or technical difficulties?
In this case the vessel should transmit the BW data to the shipping agent.
The agent should then fill out the appropriate form and submit it to NBIC.
19. How do I sign a form that I will submit via e-mail or the web?
The typed name of the Responsible Officer is acceptable in lieu of a signature
for e-mail or web submissions.
20. I sent in my BW Reporting Form via e-mail and have not yet received a receipt. Should I send it again?
You should receive a receipt within 2 business days of submitting a BW
Reporting Form via e-mail. Please note that NBIC observes all U.S. federal holidays
and bear in mind that NBIC is in the GMT-5:00 time zone. Therefore, if you
submit a BW Reporting Form on a Friday, you may not receive a receipt until
Monday or Tuesday, depending on your local time zone.
In addition, please make sure that your e-mail service allows
you to receive messages from the address "nbic@ballastreport.org".