Recommended area for ships to avoid from 1 June 2013
To help protect the World Heritage-listed Ningaloo Coast in Western Australia’s north-west region, theAustralian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) will establish a recommended area for ships to avoid from 1June 2013.
A new AMSA Marine Notice will recommend ships keep at least two nautical miles from the edge ofNingaloo Reef at its narrowest part, and between eight and 12 nautical miles from the reef along theremainder of the Ningaloo Coast section to reduce the risk of shipping accidents and help protect theWorld Heritage listed region from ship-sourced pollution.
The Royal Australian Navy’s Australian Hydrographic Service – a Commonwealth Government agencyresponsible for the publication and distribution of nautical charts and other information required for thesafe navigation of ships in Australian waters – will depict the new area on navigational charts of theregion.
This new ship routing measure follows a review of maritime safety and environment protection measuresin the region by AMSA and Western Australia’s Department of Transport.This review was undertaken between 2010 and 2011 and involved consultation with relevant governmentand non-government organisations, industry and serving mariners.One of the review’s recommendations was to establish an International Maritime Organization (IMO)adopted area to be avoided for the Ningaloo Coast.
The IMO is the United Nations specialised agency,with responsibility for the safety and security of shipping, and the prevention of marine pollution by ships.AMSA Chief Executive Officer Graham Peachey said the new area to be avoided was approved by theIMO late last year.”The Ningaloo Coast lies along a major coastal shipping route and it is frequented by ships servicingAustralia’s North West Shelf oil and gas industry”, Mr Peachey said.”The Ningaloo Coast is designated as an Environmentally Sensitive Sea Area (ESSA) under theConvention on Biological Diversity.
“This identifies the area for protection and maintenance of its biological diversity.”The coastline’s length and remoteness pose challenges to any incident response, so it is important wedo what we can to protect the reef,” he said.Mr Peachey said the ship routing measure would have minimal impact on shipping when it comes intoeffect on 1 June this year.
Source: AMSA