Allan Schwartz News

A shipping company and chief officer have been convicted in Australia for dumping garbage near the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef system.Following a prosecution by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), on February 26, 2021, the chief officer and operator of Liberian-flagged bulk carrier Iron Gate were fined and convicted in the Brisbane Magistrates Court for dumping the equivalent of a 120-liter household garbage bin full of food waste into the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland.In 2018, Iron Gate was on a voyage between Brisbane and Gladstone when the chief officer approved the discharge of garbage overboard about 13 nautical miles southeast of Lady Elliot Island…

The master of a Sydney Harbor passenger vessel has pleaded guilty and been convicted of one count of unreasonably placing the safety of another person at risk in the Downing Centre Local Court on Monday, 22 February 2021.On behalf of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions laid charges against Paul Arthur Titze, master of the Lady Rose, for failing to comply with his general safety duties under the Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Act 2012.AMSA investigated the operation of the vessel following an incident in February 2019 involving a 39-year-old woman who was found dead in a bathroom on Lady Rose during a cruise.

A "poorly maintained" livestock carrier seen operating with a list and a hole in its hull has been banned from Australian ports for a period of 24 months, the country's "most severe banning to date", authorities said Friday.The Marshall-Islands-flagged Barkly Pearl was initially spotted on November 3, 2020 traveling through Australia’s northern waters with a large hole in its hull, and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued an intervention direction instructing…

Australian maritime officials have set an end date for interim arrangements permitting seafarers to serve longer than 11 months aboard ships amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.Under the International Labor Organization’s Maritime Labor Convention (MLC) the normal maximum period that a seafarer can serve aboard a vessel without leave is 11 months.Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) general manager of operations, Allan Schwartz, said that while flexibility on the part of regulators was necessary when the COVID-19 pandemic began…

The owner of an unseaworthy tug boat was convicted of hindering an Australian maritime safety official in Cairns Magistrate Court on October 13.Anthony Roy Wolfe was found guilty, with a conviction recorded on his criminal record for the next 10 years and fined $750 for hindering an Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) inspector who detained Wolfe's ex-navy tug, the Wallaroo.At the time, Wolfe intended on using Wallaroo to transport shipping containers from Cairns to Papua New Guinea under a commercial arrangement, but an inspection in Brisbane revealed serious deficiencies with watertight hatches, defunct firefighting equipment and no life raft on the vessel…

A Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier has been banned from Australian ports for six months over the operation of several sets of wage accounts and multiple conflicting seafarer employment agreements, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said.The Unison Jasper has remained alongside in the Port of Newcastle, under detention, since July 25, 2020 for the Maritime Labor Convention breaches. AMSA said it also found insufficient quantity and variety of food on board and an ineffective complaints procedure.On July 31, 11 crew members left ship and entered into quarantine arrangements in Sydney so they could be repatriated to their own country.The ship has remained under detention in Newcastle because there were not enough crew onboard to sail the ship safely.

The master of Singapore-flagged APL England is facing charges in Australia after the vessel under his command lost dozens of containers overboard in rough seas off the coast of Sydney last week.The offences relate to pollution and/or damage of the marine environment as a result of poor cargo loading, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said.The 5,510 TEU capacity APL England had been en route from Ningbo, China to Melbourne last Sunday when a temporary propulsion loss left the 277-meter vessel rolling in heavy seas…

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has banned two foreign-flagged bulk carriers from Australian ports after their crews reported being underpaid.The Chinese-owned bulk carrier MV Xing Jing Hai and the Panama-flagged MV Fortune Genius were banned for 18 months and 12 months respectively.AMSA surveyors boarded the Fortune Genius in Gladstone after receiving a complaint via the International Transport Workers’ Federation.AMSA’s investigation revealed the crew of the Fortune Genius had been deliberately under paid by the operator, New Fortune Genius Management, by about AUD $100,000 for the months of April to August.The ship had been operating with two sets of wage accounts…

Liberian-flagged containership MSC Kia Ora has been banned from Australian ports for three months after the operator failed to ensure crew were paid their wages in full and on time, and that critical equipment was maintained. The ban was issued by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), who inspected the ship in the Port of Brisbane on March 14, 2018 after receiving a complaint which alleged that crew had been underpaid. During the inspection AMSA found evidence that crew had been underpaid from November 2017 to February 2018 and were owed more than AU$53,000 (US$40,800).

A Panama flagged bulk carrier, DL Carnation, has been banned from entering Australian ports for a period of 12 months after authorities uncovered a scheme which saw the vessel’s crew being intentionally underpaid. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said it received a complaint on Friday, September 8 via the International Transport Workers’ Federation alleging discrepancies in the payment of wages for the crew of the DL Carnation. An AMSA surveyor attended the vessel in Gladstone and found that the ship was operating with two sets of wage accounts on board: one showing the amount of pay the crew should have been receiving in line with their Seafarer Employment Agreements, and the other showing what the crew was actually receiving.

Hong Kong flagged bulk carrier Five Stars Fujian has been banned from Australian ports for 12 months once it was discovered that the vessel lacked sufficient provisions for its intended voyage and the crew had not been paid in several months. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued the ban after detaining the vessel August 12. The vessel has been at anchor off Gladstone since July when it was arrested by the Federal Court over a commercial matter. “The crew of the Five Stars Fujian have been forsaken off the Australian coast for over two months, with limited supplies and thousands of dollars of unpaid wages,” said AMSA General Manager of Ship Safety Allan Schwartz.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) informs that it has issued a direction to the container ship 'Vega Auriga' (IMO 9347786) that prohibits the ship from using or entering any Australian ports due to repeated breaches relating to seafarer welfare and maintenance of the ship. The Vega Auriga has been detained by AMSA on three occasions since 25 July 2013 with repeated concerns for the welfare of the crew including improper payment of wages, inadequate living and working conditions and inadequate maintenance resulting in an unseaworthy and substandard vessel. General Manager of AMSA’s Ship Safety Division, Allan Schwartz said vessels entering Australian ports must ensure they meet minimum international standards.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal last week affirmed the Australian Maritime Safety Authority’s (AMSA) detention of a Liberian flagged vessel SCF Yenisei, in Queensland in October 2013. The manager of the vessel sought to have the detention of the vessel downgraded at the tribunal, alleging the deficiency identified by an AMSA port marine surveyor was not serious enough to warrant detention. AMSA Ship Safety Division General Manager Allan Schwartz said the tribunal decision had affirmed AMSA’s decision to detain the vessel, which had sailed to Mackay via Hydrographers Passage from Kawasaki without the appropriate navigational charts.

A world leading collaborative research project between the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), the University of Queensland and the University of Western Australia will investigate the safety culture of shipping operations over a three-year period. AMSA, and UQ have obtained a linkage grant through the Australian Research Council (ARC) to examine the predictors and outcomes of safety culture in the Australian maritime industry. Ship Safety Division general manager Allan Schwartz said the findings from the project would be used to improve safety policies, regulations and practices that aim to reduce the number of accidents and incidents in Australian waters.

Australian Parliament's new maritime legislation will revamp Australian maritime regulatory responsibilites in 2013. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) will become the national regulator for all domestic commercial vessels in Australia, with state and Northern Territory maritime agencies exercising AMSA delegations in administering national standards. The new Navigation Act 2012 will modernise the way international shipping is regulated by AMSA, providing for high levels of safety and protection of the marine environment through transparent and flexible regulation. The Regulatory Affairs and Reform Division will become the Domestic Vessel Division.