Technical Papers Environment, Health & Safety

• Consensus forecasting for oil spill response

  Edition 45 - Environment, Health & Safety

  In August 2009, the Montara wellhead platform in the Timor Sea suffered a blowout. Oil leaked continuously at the seabed for the next three months. Australia’s national oil spill response plan was activated immediately, triggering the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), an agency of the Australian government, to mobilize. AMSA, supported by the marine modeling company Applied Science Associates (ASA), provided metocean data analysis, integration of remotely-sensed oil observations and oil spill trajectory forecasts on a daily basis.

• Environmental impacts from dredging operations

  Edition 45 - Environment, Health & Safety

  Australia has seen an explosion in port and harbor infrastructure projects due to the country’s growth in ore mining, natural gas development and other exports. Dredging operations and sediment displacement are often necessary for port and harbor development, maintenance and creation of shipping channels, and offshore infrastructure projects.

• Oil spill mapping with a portable multispectral aerial system

  Edition 45 - Environment, Health & Safety

  Accurate knowledge of the spatial extents and thickness distributions of an at-sea oil spill is of utmost importance for efficient response. The need to know the locations of the spilled oil is obvious. Just as important, however, is knowledge of the oil film’s thickness variations. This is because most petroleum products spread rapidly on the water surface when released into the ocean, with the majority of the affected area becoming covered by very thin sheens. Although the sheens may ultimately affect very large regions, the total amount of oil they contain is small compared to areas covered by thicker oil accumulations. In an efficient spill response, available recovery resources such as booms and skimmers must be directed to the thicker portions of the oil slick.

• Mass oil spill recovery – sweeping arms proove to be the best tool

  Edition 45 - Environment, Health & Safety

  In 1967, the grounding of the Torry Canyon tanker in the English Channel made the world aware of big oil pollution dangers from groundings and collisions of large tankers. At that time, oil spill response awareness had only started with collecting oil spills from incidents in harbours and estuaries placing oil booms around an oil spill. Stationary oil booms at that time were too inadequate to be used at sea.

• Hazardous and noxious substances – a port management perspective

  Edition 41 - Environment, Health & Safety

  As the chemicals industry continues to grow worldwide, the transport of chemicals classified as hazardous and noxious substances (HNS) in bulk, packaged and in containerised forms are also increasing. International conventions administered by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), has responded to this growth with strict guidelines for HNS storage, segregation, packaging and transport, such as the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code and the International Bulk Chemicals (IBC) Code.

• Sunken and submerged spilled oils

  Edition 41 - Environment, Health & Safety

  Despite stringent precautions, accidents can happen at sea, and at times oil may be spilled. Oil has the potential to cause significant environmental damage, especially if spilled near sensitive resources. Counter-pollution response measures are used where possible to minimise any damage that may be caused.

• Operation Big Tow confirms 99 per cent compliance of mariners properly licensed

  Edition 41 - Environment, Health & Safety

  The Eighth Coast Guard District recently completed Operation Big Tow, a three-month long effort designed as a result of a collision between a cargo vessel and a loaded oil barge on the Mississippi River that spilled more than 282,000 gallons of #6 fuel oil into the river. Operation Big Tow was designed to ensure vessel operators were properly licensed for their respective vessel’s size, type and route.

• European MarNIS Project gives Associated British Ports a new risk management tool

  Edition 41 - Environment, Health & Safety

  In June 2008, ABP Marine Environmental Research (ABPmer) successfully implemented an ABP Group wide Marine Safety and Management System using research carried out in the European Project ‘Maritime Navigation and Information Services’ (MarNIS). The focus of the new system is the implementation of a ‘Port Assessment Toolkit’ with adapted services to suit the needs of the ABP Port Group.

• Oil spill technology contains and controls

  Edition 41 - Environment, Health & Safety

  With Norway’s background as a major oil producer and the State Pollution Control Author ity’s very str ict regulatory framework both for preventing oil spills and respond to oil spills AllMaritim and its two manufacturers, NOFI Tromsø and NOREN Bergen, have been able to develop and test in real life conditions oil spill response equipment that is well recognised in the international market.

• Port of Oakland supports solar with public-private partnership

  Edition 41 - Environment, Health & Safety

  On a clear day, passengers flying over Oakland International Airport (OAK) can see the very first solar power system built alongside an airport runway in the United States. Shimmering panels are organised into sets of arrays that absorb sunlight and produce clean power. From the ground, it is one of the greenest methods of generating electricity. As we travel along the security fence of the runway at OAK, we see these sleek panels, silently doing their job of converting sunlight into electricity to help power Oakland International Airport.

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