Tag: Japan

Anti-Piracy Operations to counter piracy in the Gulf of Aden India, China and Japan have started implementing a new mechanism to coordinate the movement of their warships in the Gulf of Aden to provide protection to cargo vessels from sea brigands. The three countries operate independently in the Gulf of Aden to provide protection to cargo ships from pirates and are not part of the two groupings deployed there-- the European EUNAVFOR and the US-led Task Force 151."Earlier what was happening was that the convoys of all these three countries would be spaced by few hours and there would be long hours in a day when no convoy was available for escorting the vessels," Indian Navy's Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Foreign Cooperation and Naval Intelligence) Rear Admiral Monty Khanna told reporters here.The officer was holding a briefing on the 'Milan' naval exercise, which started in Port Blair Wednesday. He said now the three countries have "evolved a mechanism under which it will be ensured that there is enough gap between the Indian, Chinese and the Japanese convoy and they are well-displaced" to be able to escort a greater number of ships in a day. Khanna was replying to a ...

Koji Sekimizu, eighth Secretary-General of IMO Japan's Koji Sekimizu, who took office as the new Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) last Jan. 1, 2012 has announced a number of changes in the structure of IMO Secretariat "to improve delivery mechanism" in the Secretariat.Sekimizu, the eighth Secretary-General of IMO, announced that IMO assistant secretary-general Andrew Winbow has been named as the new director of Maritime Safety. Winbow was with the Organization's Administrative Division prior to his new post. Jo-Espinosa-Ferrey of the Marine Environment Division has been named head of the Administrative Division as its new director, while Stefan Micallef now takes over as the new Marine Environment director.In a statement Sekimizu said, "The biggest challenge I see in the coming years, in terms of management of the Organizaton, is how to improve the delivery mechanism in the Secretariat, to address the 'demanding' issues we face, such as 'anti-piracy measures,' the introduction of the Mandatory Member State Audit Scheme (MMSAS) and our ever-increasing workload.""To address this will require effective human resources' deployment and redeployment', the creation of new ways of handling our work and improvements to our working methods," he said, adding. "It will also require close co-operation between the ...

Co-operative Mechanism on Safety of Navigation and Environmental Protection Singapore and Japan should cooperate in anti-piracy activities off the coast of Somalia.That's the view of Mr Norifumi Idee, the Policy Adviser to Japan's Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.He is in Singapore under the Maritime and Port Authority's (MPA) Distinguished Visitors Programme.On Wednesday, Mr Idee called on Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew and also met with MPA's senior management.They discussed key maritime issues of mutual interest, such as the Co-operative Mechanism on Safety of Navigation and Environmental Protection in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore, piracy and armed robbery, as well as matters relating to the International Maritime Organization.CEO of MPA Lam Yi Young said: "Japan is a notable player in the international maritime community and a vital strategic maritime partner to Singapore."Mr. Idee's visit underscores the close bilateral maritime relations that Singapore and Japan enjoy and the good co-operation in maritime matters between the two nations both bilaterally and at the IMO."Mr Idee said he's impressed with the advanced traffic control system and port facilities which supported Singapore's position as the leading global hub port and acknowledged Singapore's leadership in the anti-piracy efforts in the Straits of Malacca ...

Bits and Pieces of People's Lives Bits and pieces of people's lives, that is what one reporter said; we are not to think of the Japan tsunami debris as litter when it begins to wash up on our shores in 2013, but rather as bits and pieces of people's lives. But is it already washing up on our shores?2011 ended with a wave of sensationalized headlines from British Columbia, Alaska and Washington, reporting sightings of debris from the Japan tsunami already reaching shore on the West Coast; setting off a contentious debate between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and a few independent oceanographers and flotsam trackers. Waiting for word on the other side of the Pacific, are the people of Japan whose missing families and friends are symbolically represented in the bits and pieces of debris.While painting a picture of 20 million tons of plastic and paper and metal and wood stretching a thousand miles across the Pacific Ocean, some news stories are also raising fear of radiation as a result of the Fukushima meltdown, and others even speak of the possibility of macabre scenes of body parts washing up on our beaches as severed feet in tennis ...

Tracking Marine Debris from the Japanese Tsunami

Portions of houses, boats, ships, furniture, cars will be washing ashore Some debris from the March tsunami in Japan has reached the West Coast.The float was displayed at a Tuesday night presentation at Peninsula College by Seattle oceanographers Curtis Ebbesmeyer and Jim Ingraham, consultants who produce the "Beachcombers Alert" newsletter.Tons of debris from Japan will likely begin washing ashore in about a year, from California to southern Alaska, they said. Items that wash up may include portions of houses, boats, ships, furniture, portions of cars and just about anything else that floats, he said.That could include parts of human bodies, Ebbesmeyer said. Athletic shoes act as floats.Flotsam in a current travels an average of 7 mph, but it can move as much as 20 mph if it has a large area exposed to the wind, Ebbesmeyer said. The latest float sits well atop the water, has a shallow draft and is lightweight. Similar floats have been found on Vancouver Island in British Columbia.Models show currents could pull some Japanese tsunami debris into the Strait of Juan de Fuca as far as Port Townsend."All debris should be treated with a great reverence and respect," Ebbesmeyer said.If the debris has any kind ...

In response to strong pressure from domestic shipping firms The Japanese government has revised the nation's tonnage tax system in response to strong pressure from domestic shipping firms, which say the limited application of the tax has made them less competitive internationally.The tonnage tax system will be "expanded to cover foreign vessels that are owned by foreign subsidiaries of Japanese ocean-going shipping firms and also meet certain requirements," according to the written package of tax revisions. The revision, approved by Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's cabinet Saturday, is set to take effect in April."We are considering expanding the tax system to include flag-of-convenience vessels owned by Japanese companies in such countries as Panama," said an official of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.The official said, however, that it remains to be seen how many such vessels will actually be covered by the tax system. The ministry has yet to work out specific requirements that foreign-registered ships need to meet if they are to be covered by the tax system.JSA Chairman Akimitsu Ashida, who is also Mitsui O.S.K. Lines' chairman, issued a statement on Monday welcoming the government decision to revise the tonnage tax system as "a step toward leveling ...

Japan's whaling authorities said Friday they are suing militant environmentalist group Japan's whaling authorities said Friday they are suing militant environmentalist group Sea Shepherd and its head in the United States in a bid to stop them interfering in the annual whale hunt.It is the first time that Japan has attempted legal action abroad against anti-whaling campaigners, who have sometimes used extreme methods against ships involved in the hunt, carried out under rules that allow research whaling."Today, Kyodo Senpaku Kaisha and the Institute of CetaceanResearch along with research vessels' masters filed a lawsuit against the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) and Paul Watson," they said in a statement."The Institute of Cetacean Research and Kyodo Senpaku are seeking a court order in the US District Court in Seattle, Washington that prevents SSCS and its founder Paul Watson from engaging in activities at sea that could cause injuries to the crews and damage to the vessels."Kyodo Senpaku owns ships, while the cetacean institute operates the whaling programme under the authority of the Japanesegovernment.Sea Shepherd, based in Washington state, regularly sends vessels to harass the whalers. In previous years it has thrown stink bombs onto the decks of the Japanese fleet, while vessels ...

ClassNK Consulting Service ClassNK officially announced the establishment of a new wholly-owned subsidiary, ClassNK Consulting Service Co., Ltd., located in Tokyo. This new company, ClassNK's first ever subsidiary, heralds a new chapter in the long history of the Society.This exciting development was made possible by the Society's change in legal status to a general incorporated foundation under Japanese law on 1 April 2011, and promises much in terms of cultivating new areas of growth. This subsidiary in particular will allow ClassNK to broaden its activities in the field of maritime consulting.Speaking on this momentous occasion ClassNK Chairman and President, Mr. N. Ueda, said: "We firmly believe in developing new ways to advance the global maritime industry. This new subsidiary allows us to do just that by opening up new possibilities for ClassNK, possibilities to provide customers with a new range of services at the same high quality they associate with ClassNK".Source: ClassNK

Leaked about 45 tons of highly radioactive water Japan's crippled nuclear power plant leaked about 45 tons of highly radioactive water from a purification device over the weekend, its operator said, and some may have drained into the ocean.The leak is a reminder of the difficulties facing Tokyo Electric Power Co. as it tries to meet its goal of bringing the tsunami-damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant to a cold shutdown by year's end.A pool of radioactive water was discovered midday Sunday around a decontamination device, TEPCO said in a statement on its website. After the equipment was turned off, the leak appeared to stop. Later, workers found a crack in a concrete barrier leaking the contaminated water into a gutter that leads to the ocean.TEPCO estimated that about 300 liters leaked out before the crack was blocked with sandbags.Officials were checking whether any water had reached the nearby ocean.The leakage of radioactive water from the Fukushima plant into the Pacific Ocean in the weeks after the March 11 accident caused widespread concern that seafood in the coastal waters would be contaminated.The pooled water around the purification device was measured Sunday at 16,000 bequerels per liter of cesium-134, and 29,000 ...