Tag: Pacific

The crew of the USCG Cutter 'Forward' offloaded approximately 34,780 pounds of cocaine, Tuesday in Port Everglades, worth an estimated $466 million wholesale seized during patrols in international waters in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. The drugs were interdicted off the coasts of Mexico, and Central and South America.

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Mellon (WHEC 717) continue their South Pacific patrol in support of counter-Illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing and global security missions. Mellon’s crew is helping the Commission enforce its regulations on the tuna fishing industry, a $5 billion per year fishery that is essential to economies in the South Pacific.

Singapore-based shipping owner Quantum Pacific Shipping has secured a US$40m Green Loan from the bank giant BNP Paribas, to finance the purchase and installation of scrubbers for its fleet. The signing of this agreement is considered as the first green loan issued to a shipping company in Asia Pacific.

Maritime officers from seven states around the Pacific have gathered in Wellington, New Zealand, this week, studying how to prepare their countries for audit by IMO. The training course, being delivered by the IMO, is an opportunity to improve maritime safety standards across the Pacific, according to Maritime NZ‘s Chief Executive, Keith Manch.

Four weeks after the cleaning System 001 was first deployed in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP), the largest accumulation of ocean plastic, The Ocean Cleanup informed of some problems in the operation. The plastic is exiting the system once it is collected, so the Foundation is currently working on causes and solutions to remedy this.  

The University of the South Pacific and the China Navigation Company, will conduct feasibility studies for the design of a new generation ships for the Pacific region which will be committed to low carbon sea transport. The Project Cerulean aspires to develop a new class of small cargo freighter.

On the 13th East Asia Summit at Singapore in mid-November, the Quad countries, namely India, US, Japan and Australia, are expected to revitalise the conversation concerning the maritime security and disaster relief initiatives as well as economic development projects in the critical Indo-Pacific region.

USCG has conducted three operations in the Eastern Pacific, Puerto Rico and Caribbean, where it seized 1,300 pounds of cocaine, 2,324 pounds of cocaine and 3,516 pounds of cocaine along with 50 pounds of marijuana respectively. Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Basin, which are known drug transit zones.

Shortly after the Ocean Cleanup completed cleanup trials in the Pacific, the NGO conducted a meeting on Tuesday evening to fully evaluate the current situation. After two hours of evaluation and discussion, it was concluded that System 001 shall continue to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

The Ocean Cleanup announced that it has the 'go' to continue its journey to the the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and start cleaning plastics, after two weeks of tests in the Pacific. The system did not sustain any significant damage and is now able to proceed to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.