Tag: Great Barrier Reef

Australian Government has given the green light to the expansion of the Abbot Point Coal Terminal near Bowen in north Queensland. There have been a number environmental concerns with the port's expansion, particularly surrounding its location and the proximity to the Great Barrier Reef.

  Figure 1: The IMO-adopted ships’ routeing systems in the Coral SeaThe Australia Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued a Marine Notice to advise mariners, shipowners, ship operators and agents that the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has adopted two new two-way routes and an associated area to be avoided (ATBA) in the Coral Sea (Figure 1). These measures come into effect at 0000 hours UTC on 1 January 2016. The routeing systems will serve as associated protective measures for the recently-extended Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait Particularly Sensitive Sea Area in the Coral Sea. Regulation V/10 of SOLAS (Ships’ routeing) provides for IMO-adopted ships’ routeing systems that may be recommended for use by some or all ships.Two-way routesThe five mile wide, two-way routes aim to separate opposing streams of traffic and keep ships clear of the shoals, reefs and islands that lie in close proximity. The 60 nautical mile (nm) route in Diamond Passage aligns with the existing traffic pattern (Figure 2). The 53 nm route west of Holmes Reefs provides a routeing measure for ships navigating west of the ATBA (Figure 3).Figure 2: The two-way route in Diamond PassageFigure 3: The two-way route west of Holmes Reef Area to be avoidedThe ATBA aims to ...

 The UOW Global Challenges-funded project examines the effect of anchors and anchor chains on the ocean floor near Australia’s busiest ports, including Port Kembla, Newcastle, Port Dampier in Western Australia’s Pilbara region, and Townsville on the edge of the Great Barrier Reef.Marine biologist Professor Andy Davis said preliminary mapping and 3D imagery of the sea floor three nautical miles from Port Kembla had revealed the anchor chains of more than 250 metres in length and with individual links up to 200 kilograms, are dragging across seafloor habitat.“Preliminary mapping has confirmed anchoring is occurring on reef near Port Kembla. This may well have damaging environmental impacts on important habitat-forming marine species, with implications for fish populations. We will now seek to identify areas of high conservation value, then identify how these areas may best be conserved.”Professor Davis, a member of the Centre for Sustainable Ecosytem Solutions at UOW (University of Wollongog), said the project is the first of its kind to research the impact of anchors on the marine environment, with the aim of creating sustainable anchoring practices throughout the world and working closely with the shipping Industry to achieve this goal.“There is a huge knowledge gap in the impact of deep-water ...

  Authorities are investigating 14 possible sources of an oil spill near the Great Barrier Reef, The Brisbane Times reports Fourteen ships have been identified as possible sources of a film of oil stretching, in broken sections, 30 kilometres long and five kilometres wide south of Townsville, Patrick Quirk, general manager of Maritime Services Queensland said on Saturday July 18, 2015. An oil slick was confirmed 18 nautical miles (33 kilometres) NNE of Cape Upstart on Friday evening, but was broken up into metre-sized blotches of oily film by the weather. "We know the ships that went past the area," Mr Quirk said. "There are 14 ships that we consider are possible sources of oil and we plan to take oil samples from all of those ships," he said.Advertisement "We already have samples from five ships in Australian ports and when the others port in Australia or overseas we will get samples."   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cvjLUTjdgs Townsville water Police took samples from the oily film confirmed last week, after an 800-metre diameter slick it was reported by a fisherman to Townsville's Coast Guard on Friday (July 17) morning.  In the beginning, I was forthright with you propecia before and after has changed ...

  The Australian Maritime Safety Authority has successfully prosecuted the master and owners of the Hong Kong registered bulk carrier ANL Kardinia for illegally dumping garbage in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. One Armania Shipping Ltd and the master of ANL Kardinia were found guilty on July 20 in the Townsville Magistrates Court on one charge each of illegally disposing of garbage under the Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983. The illegal discharge took place on 13 February 2015 and was detected by an AMSA Inspector during a routine Port State Control inspection in Brisbane on 16 February 2015. The AMSA Inspector examined ANL Kardinia’s Garbage Record Book and discovered an entry for a discharge of food waste within the prohibited discharge area of the Great Barrier Reef. One Armania Shipping Ltd was fined $4,000 and the master was fined $300 for the illegal discharge. AMSA Chief Executive Officer Mick Kinley said masters and owners of vessels should be warned that the illegal discharge of ships’ waste would not be tolerated in Australian waters. “Australia has a robust Port State Control regime, designed to ensure ship owners and their masters are following the rules ...

  The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has prosecuted two shipping companies and their masters for two separate marine pollution incidents within the Great Barrier Reef. Tokyo based Perses Maritima Ltd and the master of its Japan registered vehicle carrier Asteria Leader were found guilty on May 18 in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on one charge each of illegally discharging garbage under the Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983. A routine Port State Control inspection conducted by an AMSA marine surveyor at Fisherman Island in the Port of Brisbane revealed a record of the discharge of 0.03m3 of food waste within the Great Barrier Reef on October 8, 2014. Perses Maritima Ltd was fined $5000 for the illegal discharge and the master of the ship was fined $500. Hong Kong based company Seaspan Corporation and the master of its Hong Kong registered container ship CSCL Brisbane were found guilty of illegally discharging garbage on August 6 last year within the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. The illegal discharge was also discovered by an AMSA marine surveyor during a routine PSC inspection at Fisherman Island. It was also found that the ship’s passage plan did not take into ...

AMSA: Coastal Pilotage within Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait

Court date set for the owners of the Chinese- registered bulk carrier Shen Neng 1

  IMO MEPC 68 has approved Australia's proposal to extend the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) into the South West Coral Sea.This extension will see an additional 565,000 square kilometres of the Coral Sea protected, more than doubling the size of the existing area -—a 140% increase on the current 403,000 square kilometres! Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Warren Truss said the adoption of the new PSSA will better protect this beautiful and unique oceanic region. “The Coral Sea is one of the world's most distinctive and undisturbed marine ecosystems,” Mr Truss said. “It behoves us to do all we can to reasonably and responsibly protect one of our greatest natural resources. “Our new measures enhance protection for the Coral Sea—as well as the adjacent Great Barrier Reef World Heritage area—by helping ships traverse the region safely and avoid potentially hazardous areas. “This is a concrete example of the Australian Government taking the necessary steps to protect the Great Barrier Reef, implementing measures outlined in the North East Shipping Management Plan released in October 2014.” Designation as a PSSA helps to protect seas where significant ecological, socio-economic or scientific ...

  The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) met for its 68th session from 11 to 15 May 2015.     The MEPC adopted the environmental requirements of the Polar Code and associated MARPOL amendments to make the Code mandatory; adopted amendments to MARPOL related to tanks for oil residues; designated an extension to the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Strait Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA); and furthered its work on implementation of air pollution and energy efficiency measures and the Ballast Water Management Convention.     Polar Code environmental requirements adopted    The MEPC adopted the environmental requirements of the International Code for ships operating in polar waters (Polar Code), and the associated MARPOL amendments to make the Code mandatory, following the adoption of the safety part of the Code by the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) in November 2014. The Polar Code is expected to enter into force on 1 January 2017.    The newly-adopted environmental provisions cover:     • Prevention of pollution by oil: discharge into the sea of oil or oily mixtures from any ship is prohibited. Oil fuel tanks must  be separated from outer shell;  • Prevention of pollution by ...