Bryant’s Maritime Blog – 6 May 2010

Headlines: Mobile – vessel and facility reporting; LMR – vessel cleaning stations; GIWW – vessel cleaning station; Gulf of Mexico oil spill – photo release; FMC – monitoring potential impacts of Gulf of Mexico oil spill; DHS – timeline of oil spill response efforts; USCG – cascading of OSRO resources in support of oil spill; USCG – fraudulent TWIC card issues; Humboldt Bay – USCG vessel escorts Army LCU into port; TRB – conference on transforming the Marine Transportation System; USCG – members sought for Pittsburgh Area Maritime Security Committee; Massachusetts – incidental taking of marine mammals; Senate – bills introduced re oil spill liability; Indian Ocean – tanker hijacked by pirates, freed by warship; Indian Ocean – ship evades piratical attack; Somali Basin – pirate action group detained; EMSA – pollution preparedness and response services; EC – reasoned opinion to Malta re port state control; and EC – closing discrimination case against Spain.

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Mobile – vessel and facility reporting

USCG Sector Mobile issued a vessel assessment reporting form for use by arriving vessels. This form is to be completed and submitted for every arriving vessel, whether or not it has been impacted by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Sector Mobile also issued an industry data sheet for use by maritime facilities within the Sector that have been adversely impacted by the oil spill. Completed forms should be submitted promptly. (5/4/10). Note: This item was brought to my attention by my good friend Sean Duffy of the Gulf States Maritime Association.

LMR – vessel cleaning stations

The US Coast Guard issued a bulletin advising that vessel cleaning stations have been established on the Lower Mississippi River (LMR) near “The Jump” at Venice, Louisiana and at Boothville in the vicinity of Fort Jackson. Arriving vessels should proceed to one of the cleaning stations if there is a visible sheen emanating from the ship’s hull. (5/2/10).

GIWW – vessel cleaning station

The US Coast Guard issued a bulletin advising that a vessel cleaning station has been established on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) at approximately Mile 34 EHL in the vicinity of Rabbit Island. Arriving vessels should proceed to the cleaning station of there is a visible sheen emanating from the ship’s hull. (5/4/10).

Gulf of Mexico oil spill – photo release

The Unified Command issued a photo release showing cofferdam being loaded for transport to the offshore oil spill and, in a separate photo, a controlled burn of contained oil. (5/5/10).

FMC – monitoring potential impacts of Gulf of Mexico oil spill

The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) issued a news release stating that it is monitoring the potential effects of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill on shipping lines, rates, schedules, ports, and terminals. (5/5/10).

DHS – timeline of oil spill response efforts

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) posted a timeline of the response efforts following the recent explosion, fire, and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. (5/5/10).

USCG – cascading of OSRO resources in support of oil spill

The US Coast Guard issued a notice stating that a large quantity of oil spill response resources have been diverted for involvement in the response to the Deepwater Horizon/Mississippi Canyon 252 oil spill. Most of those resources are from various Captain of the Port (COTP) zones on the Gulf of Mexico. As discussed in the notice, the major oil spill removal organizations (OSROs) notified the Coast Guard when they diverted resources to respond to the recent spill. They have submitted cascade plans to the Coast Guard explaining how they will backfill for those diverted resources in the event of a worse case discharge (WCD) or maximum most probable discharge (MMPD) within the affected zones. Spill response plan holders (vessel and facility), though, are responsible for ensuring that the OSRO(s) designated in their plans are capable of responding to covered discharges. Guidance to vessel and facility response plan holders in relation to the cascading of OSRO resources is provided in NVIC 01-07. (4/30/10). Note: This item is repeated from yesterday, but (at the request of a long-suffering reader) I have added a link to the relevant NVIC.

USCG – fraudulent TWIC card issues

The US Coast Guard issued a bulletin discussing fraudulent use of Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) cards. Recently, an individual successfully gained access to the secure area of an MTSA-regulated facility using a fraudulent TWIC card. Superficially, the card that was used looked authentic, but it lacked numerous security features that should have been detected. In other instances, individuals have been presenting photocopies of their own TWIC cards in an attempt to reduce the risk of damage or loss of their real TWIC card. A truck driver was recently arrested for using his friend’s TWIC card to gain access to a facility. All CSOs, VSOs, and FSOs with a HOMEPORT account have access to the TWIC Security Features document. Individuals with security duties should be familiar with this document to ensure that they are properly inspecting TWIC cards prior to granting unescorted access to MTSA-regulated vessels or facilities. (5/3/10). Note: This item was brought to my attention by my good friend John Bennett of Maritime Protective Services.

Humboldt Bay – USCG vessel escorts Army LCU into port

The US Coast Guard issued a news release stating that an Army landing craft utility (LCU) transiting from Vallejo to Tacoma started taking on water while in the North Pacific Ocean south of Cape Mendocino. A Coast Guard vessel was dispatched to escort the LCU into port at Humboldt Bay. (5/4/10).

TRB – Conference on Transforming the Marine Transportation System

The Transportation Research Board (TRB) and Marine Board of the National Academies are sponsoring a conference titled: Transforming the Marine Transportation System: A Vision for Research and Development. The conference will be held in Irvine, California on Jun 29-July 1. (5/5/10).

USCG – members sought for Pittsburgh Area Maritime Security Committee

The US Coast Guard invites individuals interested in serving on the Pittsburgh Area Maritime Security Committee (AMSC) to submit their applications by June 7. 75 Fed. Reg. 24961 (May 6, 2010).

Massachusetts – incidental taking of marine mammals

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a notice stating that it received an application for an Incidental Harassment Authorization (IHA) to take marine mammals, by harassment, incidental to the commissioning and operation of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) deepwater port (DWP) in federal waters off the coast of Massachusetts. Comments on the application should be submitted by June 7. 75 Fed. Reg. 24906 (May 6, 2010).

Senate – bills introduced re oil spill liability

Senator Menendez (D-NJ) introduced two bills relating to oil spill liability. The first (S. 3305) is intended to amend the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to require oil polluters to pay the full cost of oil spills, and for other purposes. The second (S. 3306) is intended to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to require polluters to pay the full cost of oil spills, and for other purposes. Official text of the two bills is not yet available. (May 4, 2010).

Indian Ocean – tanker hijacked by pirates, freed by warship

The EU Maritime Security Centre-Horn of Africa (MSC-HOA) issued a press release stating that an oil tanker was hijacked by pirates in the Indian Ocean approximately 350 nautical miles east of Socotra. The vessel, which has a crew of 23 Russian citizens, was not registered with the MSC-HOA for its recent transit of the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC), but it had reported to UKMTO. A second press release states that a Russian warship sent its helicopter to the hijacked vessel. The pirates fired on the helicopter. Upon learning that the crew was in a “safe room”, the helicopter returned fire. The pirates surrendered. The crew is safe and back in control of the vessel. (5/5/10).

Indian Ocean – ship evades piratical attack

The EU Maritime Security Centre-Horn of Africa (MSC-HOA) issued a press release stating that a ship transiting the Indian Ocean approximately 200 nautical miles northwest of the Comoros Islands successfully evaded a piratical attack. (5/5/10).

Somali Basin – pirate action group detained

The EU Maritime Security Centre-Horn of Africa (MSC-HOA) issued a press release stating that a pirate action group, consisting of a mother ship and two skiffs, was intercepted by an EU warship in the Somali Basin approximately 400 nautical miles northwest of the Seychelles. When one of the skiffs tried to flee, a marksman on the warship stopped it with disabling fire that destroyed both of the outboard engines. All twelve suspected pirates are being detained on the warship. (5/5/10).

EMSA – pollution preparedness and response services

The European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) posted a Fact Sheet summarizing pollution preparedness and response services in Europe. (5/5/10).

EC – reasoned opinion to Malta re port state control

The European Commission (EC) issued a press release stating that it sent a reasoned opinion to the Maltese authorities for failure to implement properly the EU directive on port state control. During an inspection of Maltese practices, Malta failed to provide information requested (number of ship calls and number of inspectors) and failed to impose penalties. (5/5/10).

EC – closing discrimination case against Spain

The European Commission (EC) issued a press release stating that it has closed its legal case against Spain for discriminating against workers on the basis of nationality in accessing jobs on ships flying the Spanish flag. The decision to close the case follows Spain’s action to bring its legislation into line with EU law. (5/5/10).

If you have questions regarding the above items, please contact the editor:

Dennis L. Bryant

Bryant’s Maritime Consulting

4845 SW 91^st Way
Gainesville, FL 32608-8135

USA

1-352-692-5493
dennis.l.bryant@gmail.com

http://brymar-consulting.com

© Dennis L. Bryant – May 2010

Redistribution permitted with attribution