Sustainable Management News

Glosten announced it has been selected to develop the concept design of a coastal research vessel for the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI).The naval architecture and marine engineering firm said it has been working closely with SARDI to refine the vessel’s capabilities and is beginning to develop a design that best fits their operational requirements: a 30-37-meter monohull with extended range, a launch and recovery system, the ability to perform fisheries research…

A new EU agreement on waste shipments is set to remove a legal roadblock to make it possible for a raft of non-OECD ship recycling yards to be included on an EU-approved list, which would unleash much-needed shipbreaking capacity for a massive wave of tonnage due to be scrapped over the coming years, according to green recycling consultancy Sea Sentinels.The European Parliament and Council have agreed to allow exports of hazardous waste, including that contained in EU-flagged ships…

OSM Maritime Group and Thome Group have received approvals from competition authorities to merge and create one of the world's largest ship management companies.The merged company, OSM Thome, says it will be a powerhouse in the international ship management market, represented in 22 countries and headquartered in Arendal, Norway.Finn Amund Nordbye CEO of OSM Thome said: "This is a big day for OSM Thome. Our merger is now formally and finally approved. The merged company combines proud traditions with high ambitions.

For the first time in Australia, autonomous marine technology developers have a location to safely test autonomous vessels without needing to apply for a permit. The Australian Institute of Marine Science’s ReefWorks inshore test range, near Townsville in north Queensland, was granted regulatory sandbox approval for uncrewed vessels from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA).It’s the first approval issued under a proposed Australian Maritime Regulatory Sandbox advocated by Trusted Autonomous Systems (TAS), AIMS and AMC Search.

Applied Satellite Technology (AST) Marine Sciences said it has been awarded a three-year contract with the Welsh government to supply an advanced inshore vessel monitoring solution (iVMS) for the Welsh inshore fleet of 400 under-12-meter fishing vessels.The Welsh government are proactively future proofing their fleet in preparation for the upcoming legislation that will soon require all inshore fleets and fishers to have this technology on board.AST’s Group Managing Director, Gregory Darling said…

The European Union (EU) is set to launch a new interactive map, dubbed The Ocean Tracker, to follow the commitments, made by governments, businesses and NGOs, worth more than €10 billion ($11.13bn) so far.EU Commissioner Karmenu Vella, responsible for Environment, Maritime affairs and Fisheries said: "With the delivery of The Ocean Tracker, the EU demonstrates its leadership in ocean sustainability”.The Ocean tracker, itself a commitment made in 2017, when the EU hosted the Our Ocean in Malta, will make sure that the progress of all pledges is clear to see.EU also announced 22 new commitments at the 2019 edition of Our Ocean conference…

Arctic region experienced the second-warmest air temperatures ever recorded; the second-lowest overall sea-ice coverage; lowest recorded winter ice in the Bering Sea; and earlier plankton blooms due to early melting of sea ice in the Bering Sea - these are the findings of NOAA’s annual report card on the Arctic.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report, which measures the changing climate of the polar region including warmer air and ocean temperatures and declines in sea-ice that are driving shifts in animal habitats, said that in addition to annual updates on ocean temperature, snow cover, tundra greenness and melting on the Greenland Ice Sheet…

Center for the Ocean and the Arctic has commissioned DNV GL to produce report that answers questions like 'how do we manage ocean industries and future opportunities in the Arctic as part of a sustainable future?'.The newly established Center for the Ocean and the Arctic is based deep within the Arctic circle in one of Norway’s northernmost cities, Tromsø. Their task is to coordinate efforts to chart a course for sustainable use of the ocean and the Arctic.Their mandate also includes working towards the UN’s sustainable development goal #14 on conservation and sustainable use of the oceans. The sustainable development goals are both ambitious and overarching in their targets.

An international agreement that has been instrumental in repressing piracy and armed robbery against ships in the western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden has seen its scope significantly broadened to cover other illicit maritime activities, including human trafficking and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. A high-level meeting of signatories to the Djibouti Code of Conduct, held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (10 to 12 January 2017) has adopted a revised Code of Conduct, which will be known as the “Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct 2017”. The participatory States agreed to work together, with support from IMO and other stakeholders…

European Union lawmakers and member states have agreed on a long-term plan to end over fishing of cod, sprat and herring stocks in the Baltic Sea, the first such plan of its kind under the EU's reformed fisheries policy. The multi-annual deal clinched late on Tuesday will combine the management of cod, herring and sprat stocks into a single plan to take into account their interdependence and ensure they are sustainably managed. Cod eat sprats and herrings while herrings and sprats feed on the eggs of cod, meaning the health of one stock affects the others. Currently, only cod are subject to a management plan. "The plan sets the basis for the sustainable management of the most important fish stocks in the Baltic Sea," EU Fisheries Commissioner Karmenu Vella said.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister of Norway Erna Solberg agreed to cooperate on deep sea technology for oil and gas exploration and maritime sector. Norway has been advanced on deep sea technology and Indonesia thinks it is beneficial to have cooperation in this sector because many of its oil reserve are located in deep sea," Indonesian Energy and Mines Minister Sudirman Said said. Most of Indonesia's oil and gas reserves are located in deep sea in the eastern part of the country. The minister said that Indonesia's state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina and Norway's state company State Oil would cooperate in implementing the plan.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), Antwerp Port Authority, Port of Rotterdam and Port of Zeebrugge participated in a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) bunkering focus group discussion on 14 and 17 October, held in conjunction with the Singapore International Bunkering Conference and Exhibition (SIBCON) 2014. Mr Andrew Tan, Chief Executive of MPA, said, “As an alternative fuel, the shipping industry is looking to LNG as a cleaner marine fuel to meet international regulations. Given the international nature of shipping, we are excited to work with the Antwerp Port Authority, Port of Rotterdam and Port of Zeebrugge, to harmonise the global LNG bunkering standards.

The European Commission launch a proposal to improve the planning of maritime activities at sea and the management of coastal areas. The proposal – which takes the form of a draft directive – aims to establish a common European framework for maritime spatial planning and integrated coastal management in EU Member States, with a view to ensuring that the growth of maritime and coastal activities and the use of resources at sea and on coasts remain sustainable. Human and economic activities such as offshore wind energy, submarine cable and pipeline routes, shipping, fishing and aquaculture are increasing in marine waters and coastal areas, but too little coordination can lead to competition for space and pressure on valuable resources.

Indian Ocean Islands, Seychelles & Mauritius join forces to manage exploitation of world's largest offshore continental shelf area. With the help of the Commonwealth Secretariat Seychelles and Mauritius have established a joint commission, the first of its kind, to manage an offshore zone comprising 400,000 sq. kilometers of continental shelf. This development comes after their successful joint claim to the continental shelf before the United Nations. This will enable both countries to jointly regulate seabed activities, including exploration for petroleum and minerals, as well as the conservation and management of the living resources of the seabed, reports 'The Information Daily'.

ACP has signed a Technical Cooperation Agreement with the National Environmental Authority (ANAM) and the German Agency for International Cooperation to apply mechanisms that will reduce emissions in the Canal Watershed. The agreement aims to establish the terms and conditions for the design and implementation of a pilot program in the Panama Canal Watershed, compensation mechanisms for the sustainable management of forest resources that can be replicated nationwide, under the parameters of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD +). The REDD+ program focuses on the conservation of carbon reserves and also on the sustainable management of forests.

The U.S. Coast Guard announced Friday that, in cooperation with federal and international partners, it has seized a fishing vessel and crew suspected of large-scale illegal high-seas drift net fishing in the North Pacific Ocean and is delivering them to the Alaska Division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement for the investigation. Renegade large-scale high-seas drift net fishing indiscriminately kills massive amounts of fish and other marine life such as whales and turtles by means of enormous nets suspended for miles in open water.

Vizada, an independent satellite communications provider, and CLS, specializing in sustainable management of marine resources, environmental monitoring and maritime security, have signed a partnership to jointly provide long range identification and tracking (LRIT) to the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and other Flag States including Vanuatu and Chile. Vizada is the first provider to have met the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) strict performance requirements for the delivery of LRIT, now mandatory for vessels on international voyages for security and search & rescue purposes. Through a significant upgrade to its teleport in France, Vizada ensures the reliable and secure transmission of report data to its partner CLS.