Electronic Ballast Water Reporting Form (eBWRF) for Slovenia

INSTRUCTIONS

ContentseBWRF for Slovenia................................................................................................................................1

BWRF file format and functionalities......................................................................................................3

Filling in the eBWRF................................................................................................................................3

Opening the file..................................................................................................................................3

Saving the file and file name..............................................................................................................4

Submitting the form...........................................................................................................................4

eBWRF contents.....................................................................................................................................4

Section 1. VESSEL INFORMATION.......................................................................................................4

Section 2. VOYAGE INFORMATION.....................................................................................................5

Section 3. BALLAST WATER CAPACITY AND USAGE............................................................................5

Section 4. CARGO OPERATIONS..........................................................................................................5

Section 5. BALLAST WATER HISTORY..................................................................................................5

Section 6. BALLAST WATER HISTORY..................................................................................................6

Section 7. RESPONSIBLE OFFICER’S (OR MASTER’S) NAME AND TITLE:..............................................7

Section 8. NOTES:...............................................................................................................................7

Disclaimer...............................................................................................................................................8

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eBWRF for Slovenia

The electronic ballast water reporting form (eBWRF) for Slovenia is an upgraded version of the BWRF (Figure 1), which was introduced by the Slovenian Maritime Administration. The current form (eBWRF - Figure 2) is a slightly modified version of the previous one (BWRF - Figure 1), where some information have been updated. The changes made were aimed at adjusting the form to the concepts proposed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in its International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004 (BWM Convention).

The main improvement is that data included in the submitted eBWRF can be semi automatically stored in a digital database for the purpose of ballast water decision support system.

Last but not least, the eBWRF includes functionalities (dropdown lists, additional info…), which makes filling in the fields less clear than in the previous form.

The adjustments of the previous form thus result in an eBWRF that is in better accord with the concepts and terminology of the BWM Convention, provides easier data access for decision making regarding ballast water management.

Figure 1: Previous BWRF.

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Figure 2: Section of the new electronic ballast water reporting form (eBWRF).

The transformation of the previous form into the current eBWRF and its development was executed within the BALMAS project (Ballast water management system for Adriatic Sea protection) of the IPA Adriatic Cross-Border Cooperation Programme, funded by the European Union and the Republic of Slovenia.

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BWRF file format and functionalities

The electronic BWRF was developed in MS Office Excel 2013. The form is stored in an .xlsx Excel spreadsheet file format (used from Excel 2007 onward). eBWRF functionalities provide a user-friendly interface and are further described below.

Several functionalities are incorporated in the eBWRF to provide a user-friendly interface:

Built-in instructions: Short descriptions of several questions are built into the form, to help the users fill in specific fields.

Dropdown lists: Several questions are equipped with dropdown lists, so that the user selects a value from the predefined set. Some dropdown lists are also equipped with the search function, to search the list (lists of countries).

Data validation: Some validation rules have been set, so that the user cannot enter not logical data (for example: the weight of loaded cargo cannot be higher than vessel DWT).

Autochanging form: The form changes automatically regarding the input data (ex. if the user selects that no ballast water will be discharged, the whole section 6 is “greyed out”).

Filling in the eBWRF

The following chapters explain how to open, fill in, save and submit the electronic ballast water reporting form for the Republic of Slovenia.

Opening the fileThe eBWRF file received from the Slovenian Maritime Administration (eBWRF_Slovenia.xlsx) should be opened in MS Excel versions 2007 to 2013. For other versions, the file has not been tested.

Before editing, an Excel popup questions may appear. When running a file from an unauthorised source, the following will appear (Figure 3).

Figure 3: “Enable Editing” popup.

Click the “Enable Editing” button to start editing the form. You can also permanently disable File Blocking in Excel settings (In Excel 2013: File tab/Options/Trust Center/Trust Center Settings/File Block Settings/Open selected file types in Protected View and allow editing).

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After that, the user can start filling in the form. Where applied, dropdown lists should be used. There are several data checking rules included in the form, to check for possible typing errors and some fields include additional information to help in specifying the correct data.

In the chapter “eBWRF contents” the detailed instructions of what is to be specified in every field of the eBWRF is clearly presented.

Saving the file and file nameAfter the form is filled in, it should be saved with the file name structured as:

ArrivalPort_yyyy_mm_dd_IMOnumber.xlsx, where yyyy_mm_dd stands for date of arrival.

For example, if a vessel with IMO number of 9999999 would be arriving at port of Koper on 3 rd of January 2015, the eBWRF should be named Koper_2015_01_03_9999999.xlsx .

Submitting the form.A properly filled in form with a properly structured file name is to be submitted to the Slovenian Maritime Administration’s information system (SI SSN) by a registered maritime agent.

eBWRF contentsThe form is composed of questions structured in seven sections. In the following chapters, every question is briefly addressed.

Section 1. VESSEL INFORMATION Vessel name: Enter the name of the vessel. For tug and barge combinations, please list both

vessel names, separated by a hyphen (-). IMO number: Fill in identification number of the vessel used by the International Maritime

Organization. For tug and barge combinations, please list both vessel numbers, separated by a hyphen (-).

Owner: Enter the name of the registered owner(s) of the vessel. If under charter, enter Operator name.

Type: List specific vessel type. Select a value from the dropdown list: bulk (BC), roro (RR), container (CS), oil tanker (OT), chemical tanker (CT), oil/bulk ore (OB), general cargo (GC), reefer (RF), barge (BA), passenger (PA), other (O).

DWT: Enter the maximum permissible Deadweight tonnage of the vessel. GT: Enter the Gross Tonnage of the vessel. Call sign: Enter the official call sign. Flag: Select the country under whose authority the ship is operating from the dropdown list

(you can also search the list by typing in the box).

Section 2. VOYAGE INFORMATION Arrival port: Enter the name of the destination port of this voyage in the Republic of

Slovenia. Koper is the default arrival port.

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Arrival date: Enter the arrival date to the arrival port. Use European date format (dd.mm.yyyy).

Agent: Fill in the name of the agent used for the “Arrival port”. Last port: Fill in the last port at which the vessel called. No abbreviations please. Country of last port: Fill in the country of "Last port". Select it from the dropdown list (you

can also search the list by typing in the box). Next port: Fill in the port at which the vessel will call immediately after departing the “Arrival

port”. No abbreviations please. If next port is not yet known, type in ‘unknown’. Country of next port: Fill in the country of "Next port" at which the vessel will call

immediately after departing the “Arrival port”. Use the dropdown list (you can also search the list by typing in the box). If next port is not yet known, please select ‘unknown’ from the list.

Section 3. BALLAST WATER CAPACITY AND USAGE Total ballast water capacity:

- No. of tanks: Count all tanks and holds that can carry ballast water (do not include tanks that carry potable water).

- Volume: Specify the total volume (in m3) of all the ballast water tanks on board (maximum ballast water volume).

Ballast water on board:- No. of tanks: Count the number of ballast tanks and holds with ballast water as

vessel arrives into the "Arrival port".- Volume: Enter the total volume of ballast water (in m3) on board upon arrival into

the "Arrival port". Do not count potable water. Ballast water pump(s) max capacity [m3/h]: Specify the maximum capacity of ballast water

pumps in specified units. If several pumps are installed, specify the total capacity (sum of all pump capacities).

Ship service speed [knots]: Specify ship service speed in knots. TPC on arrival draft [mt/cm]: Specify TPC on arrival draft in mt/cm. TPC on summer draft [mt/cm]: Specify TPC on summer draft in mt/cm.

Section 4. CARGO OPERATIONS Cargo to be loaded: specify the type and tonnage of cargo to be loaded in the “Arrival port”.

If several cargo types are to be loaded, please specify all of them. In this case, type in the total loaded tonnage (sum of weights per cargo types).

Cargo to be unloaded: specify the type and tonnage of cargo to be unloaded in the “Arrival port”. If several cargo types are to be unloaded, please specify all of them. In this case, type in the total unloaded tonnage (sum of weights per cargo types).

Section 5. BALLAST WATER HISTORY Ballast Management Plan on board? Is there a written document on board, specific to your

vessel, describing the procedure for ballast management? This should include safety and exchange procedures (usually provided by vessel’s owner or operator). Select YES or NO.

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Management Plan implemented? Do you follow the above management plan? Select YES or NO.

Ballast water management system (BWMS) on board? Is the vessel equipped with a ballast water management system (BWMS) approved by IMO or respective administration? Select YES or NO.

Is it used to treat all ballast water? Is the installed BWMS used to treat all ballast water before it is discharged? Select YES or NO.

Total no. of ballast water tanks to be deballasted: Count tanks and holds with ballast water to be discharged within the territorial waters of the Republic of Slovenia. Count all tanks and holds separately (e.g., port and starboard tanks should be counted separately). The inbuilt functionality disables selecting a number higher then specified under “Ballast water on board – No. of tanks”. If the list is empty, please check the specified number of tanks in ballast. If zero (0) is selected, the whole section 6 is “greyed out” and should be skipped.

Of tanks to be deballasted, how many underwent Exchange: Count all tanks that are to be discharged within the territorial waters of the Republic of Slovenia and underwent ballast water exchange according to IMO guidelines.

Of tanks to be deballasted, how many Underwent BWMS treatment? Count all tanks that are to be discharged in the territorial waters of the Republic of Slovenia and were treated with an approved ballast water management system (BWMS) on board.

If no ballast treatment conducted, state reason why: If any unexchanged and/or untreated ballast water is to be discharged in the territorial waters of the Republic of Slovenia, specify why no management (treatment) was executed.

Section 6. BALLAST WATER HISTORYIf the user selects zero (0) under “Total No. of Ballast Water Tanks to be deballasted”, the whole section 6 is “greyed out”. In such a case, the whole section 6 does not have to be filled out.

Tanks/Holds: Please list all tanks and holds that you plan to discharge into the territorial waters of the Republic of Slovenia. Follow each tank across the page listing all source(s), all management events, and all discharge events separately.Use codes: forepeak = FP, aftpeak = AP, double bottom = DB, wing = WT, topside = TS, cargo hold = CH, other = O.If multiple tanks contain ballast water from the same source, you can list them together in one row, specifying total volume. If a tank contains ballast water from several sources, list them all in one row by writing all sources in the “BW SOURCES” - “Port or lat. lon.” fields.To expand the table tick the “expand table” box below the table.

BW SOURCES:- Date: Record date of ballast water uptake. Use European format (dd.mm.yyyy).- Port or lat. lon.: Record location of ballast water uptake. No abbreviations for ports.

For latitude or longitude write degrees, minutes and seconds separately in the appropriate fields. You can specify latitude/longitude in decimal degrees as well (e.g. 45,8769°) by typing that into the degrees field.

- Volume: Record total volume of ballast water uptake per tank in m3.- Temp: Record water temperature at time of ballast water uptake in degrees Celsius.

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BW MANAGEMENT PRACTICES:- Date: Date of ballast water management practice. If exchanges occurred over

multiple days, list the day when exchanges were completed. Use European format (dd.mm.yyyy).

- Endpoint lat. lon.: Report location of ballast water management practice. If an exchange occurred over an extended distance, list the endpoint latitude and longitude. Write degrees, minutes and seconds separately in the appropriate fields. You can specify latitude/longitude in decimal degrees as well (e.g. 45,8769°) by typing that into the degrees field.

- Volume: Report total volume of ballast water moved (i.e., gravitated and pumped into tanks) during management practice in m3.

- % Exch.: (Note: for effective flow through exchange, this value should be at least 300%).

%Exchange= total volumeadded by empty /refil∨flow throughcapacity of ballast tank∨hold

∗100

- Method: Indicate management method using code (ER = empty/refill, FT = flow through, BWMS = ballast water management system).

- Sea Ht. (m): Estimate the sea height in meters at the time of the ballast water exchange if this method was used, using a number usually between 1 and 5. (Note: this is the combined height of the wind-seas and swell, and does not refer to water depth).

BW DISCHARGES:- Date: Date of ballast water discharge. Use European format (dd.mm.yyyy).- Port: Report location of ballast water discharge (default Koper).- Volume: Report volume of ballast water discharged in m3.- Salinity: Document salinity of ballast water at the time of discharge in sg (specific

gravity). Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the density of a liquid to the density of pure water and is thus a unitless number, although it is often reported in mt/m 3. It’s values vary around 1 and should be specified with three decimals (ex. 1,024).

Section 7. RESPONSIBLE OFFICER’S (OR MASTER’S) NAME AND TITLE: Responsible officer’s (or master’s) name and title: Write name and title of the responsible

officer or master.

Section 8. NOTES: Notes: Write any additional information regarding ballast water that you were unable to

write in the form.

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DisclaimerThis eBWRF has been produced with the financial assistance of the IPA Adriatic Cross-Border Cooperation Programme. The contents of this form are the sole responsibility of BALMAS project partner "Institute for Water of the Republic of Slovenia" and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the IPA Adriatic Cross-Border Cooperation Programme Authorities.

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