Texas Parks And Wildlife Department News

Bellingham, Wash. shipbuilder All American Marine, Inc. (AAM) announced it has been awarded a contract to build an new 74’ patrol vessel for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW).CDFW manages California's diverse fish, wildlife and plant resources, and the habitats upon which they depend, and its Law Enforcement Division protects California natural resources and provides public safety. The agency will use the new aluminum catamaran for patrolling state and international waters along the California Coast.The 74’ x 27.5’ (OAL) twin engine…

This year, despite innumerable challenges and setbacks, a great number of new U.S.-flagged vessels made their way into service. In addition to Maid of the Mist's new electric tour boats James V. Glynn and Nikola Tesla featured Wednesday, the newbuilds highlighted below are some of the most noteworthy to come out of U.S. shipyards in 2020.DredgerU.S. dredging contractors have been adding tonnage in a big way. This Spring, Callan Marine added a significant piece to the U.S. fleet with its new Jones Act cutterhead suction dredge (CSD) General MacArthur.

U.S.-based marine data acquisition services company TDI-Brooks said it recently mapped the Liberty Ship George Vancouver off Freeport, Texas while out on a seabed survey project with the R/V Brooks McCall. The multiple multi-phase geophysical and geotechnical site surveys program consisted of pipeline routing and subsea structures to facilitate route and project design for offshore developers.Equipment used to map the ship was a Teledyne Reson SeaBat T-20 multibeam sonar with integrated Applanix POSMV for Motion.

Shipbuilder All American Marine, Inc. (AAM) said it has launched an aluminum catamaran built to patrol Texas state and federal waters for the law enforcement division of Texas Parks and Wildlife. The 80’ x 27’ (OAL) Captain Murchison features twin CAT C18 ACERT D Engines, with Hamilton Jet HM 521 waterjets and is built to USCG Subchapter T standards. It is also the first vessel in North America to feature Hamilton Jet’s innovative Advanced Vessel Control (AVX) system. The new AVX features include both a station keeping and a JETanchor positioning system.

All American Marine (AAM) has completed construction and delivered the last of three low wake and high-speed passenger vessels built for Kitsap Transit based in Bremerton, Wa.The Lady Swift, an aluminum catamaran coupled to a composite superstructure and a dynamic carbon fiber hydrofoil, was delivered to Bremerton on Friday, July 26, 2019. The vessel was designed by Teknicraft Design Auckland, New Zealand and will operate on Kitsap’s current cross-sound ferry route between Bremerton and downtown Seattle…

All American Marine (AAM), together with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TWPD), has announced the signing of a contract for the construction of an 80’x 27’ aluminum catamaran for operation in Texas State waters as well as offshore capabilities in the Gulf of Mexico. This vessel will be constructed at All American Marine’s new state-of-the-art 57,000 square foot facility on Bellingham Bay. TPWD selected industry leaders AAM and Teknicraft Design, widely acknowledged for designing and building high quality and fuel-efficient aluminum vessel designs at a great value.

Sinking a 6,000-ton, 371-foot former cargo vessel to help create an artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico is a herculean feat, one only accomplished with strict adherence to rigorous federal and state environmental regulations. When the cargo ship Kraken was recently sunk 67 miles off the Galveston coast, Matrix New World Engineering helped the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department Artificial Reef Program ensure that the vessel was free of environmental hazards and safe to support coral, fish, sea turtles and other aquatic life.

A Coast Guard aircrew found the body of a 61-year-old fisherman Monday, after he was reported missing off Mustang Island earlier in the morning. The Corpus Christi Police Department notified Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi watchstanders at 7:35 a.m. The police reported that the man's wife was waiting in the car when he went wade fishing Sunday at about 11 p.m. They reported that she attempted to contact him when he didn't return and she fell asleep waiting for him, calling the police when she awoke. A Coast Guard Air Station Corpus Christi MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew was immediately launched and joined a Corpus Christi Police Department boat, two Nueces County Fire Department boats and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department shore search.

A section of the Houston Ship Channel has been closed following the release of approximately 500 gallons of benzene from the tanker Maritime Jingan while moored at Vopak Terminal Thursday afternoon. The U.S. Coast Guard said it is responding to the incident along with the Harris County Hazardous Material Response Team. At approximately 12 p.m., Sector Houston-Galveston watchstanders received a call from Vopak Terminal personnel that benzene had been spilled on the Maritime Jingan and that the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department had also been notified. Vessel Traffic Service issued a closure of between the Lynchburg Ferry Crossing and Carpenters Bayou effective at 12:23 p.m. The leak has been secured, and the cause is under investigation.

Gulf of Mexico fishermen are threatened by a daily wave of foreign illegal fishing vessels and the U.S. fishing industry is calling on Congress to take action, Florida business owners said April 8 at an event hosted by the Gulf Coast Leadership Conference. Mexican fishing boats enter U.S. sovereign waters and illegally poach hundreds to thousands of fish at a time. Although the U.S. Coast Guard and Gulf state maritime law enforcement agencies have taken aggressive action to find and destroy these illegal Mexican vessels, the frequency of such incursions continues to escalate.

missing since Friday morning, in San Antonio Bay. Wildlife Department boatcrew to the location. TP&W recovered the body. Aransas and Air Station Corpus Christi before locating the body Sunday afternoon. “Our thoughts, prayers, and deepest condolences are with the family," said Lt. Cmdr. mission coordinator at Sector Corpus Christi. "We are deeply saddened by the outcome today. are unclear, but boaters need to always be prepared for any situation when out on the water. The body will be turned over to the local sheriff's office for a positive identification. kin at the coroner's office. TP&W continues to investigate the accident. -8100. U.S.

The Captain of the Port of Houston/Galveston has opened the bay to all traffic Thursday after multiple cleanup assessments and input from the Texas Department of State Health Services. A current Broadcast Notice to Mariners instructs all boaters that the safety zone remains in affect, however all restrictions are lifted except to transit using safe distance and minimum safe speeds in the vicinity of any oil spill response or salvage operations and to avoid all areas of sheening or visible oil. If any oil is sighted, boaters should report it to the National Response Center at 1-800-424-8802. While all recreational activities, including swimming is open, the DSHS does advise people not to swim in areas where they can see oil.

The U.S. Coast Guard is ramping up efforts to clean oil in the Ports of Texas City and Galveston Wednesday, as expected afternoon weather will likely hinder or cease operations due to safety concerns for responders. Storms may keep responders from being able to safely collect oil on the water and along the shoreline. Response efforts will focus heavily on cleaning Pelican Island and north to the Texas City Dike until weather makes operations too hazardous for responders. The weather is also expected to flush out pockets of oil that were unreachable to responders over the past few days. Once weather abates, responders will be re-assessing the area to update cleanup plans for immediate action.

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has authorized limited marine traffic in the safety zone in the Port of Houston/Galveston for commercial ship traffic, Tuesday. Cleanup operations are still ongoing; however ships are being prioritized for transit by the Port Coordination Team. The USCG said barges are allowed to transit through the Houston Ship Channel and on the Intracoastal Waterway, after assessment teams deemed the channel clear. "The cleanup operations progress is to the point…

The Port of Houston remains closed as the Unified Command continues to assess the situation with oil in the channel to determine when vessel traffic can resume, advises the US Coast Guard. There are 46 outbound vessels and 47 inbound vessels in the queue for transit in the Port of Houston. The Port of Texas City has 5 inbound and 3 outbound vessels in the queue awaiting transit. Once the channel has been determined safe to navigate, and transiting vessels will not spread oil contaminants, a prioritization list will be established to determine the entry order of vessels.

A primer for those interested in Artificial Reefs as a way to dispose of old offshore structures, rigs and ships. The quandary of what to do with a non-productive well and the associated rig structures has always plagued offshore operators. As federal and state regulations begin to tighten in terms of what has to be done, and when, oil and gas principals are taking a new look at alternatives to removal. Hence, when an operator is looking at options for decommissioning, reefing should be one of the first considerations.

A federal judge in Corpus Christi, Texas, has sentenced General Maritime Management (Portugal), the operator of a fleet of tanker vessels, and two crewmembers of the motor tanker Genmar Defiance for making false statements to the U.S. Coast Guard and failing to maintain an accurate Oil Record Book designed to prevent pollution of the world's oceans as required by United States and international law, the Justice Department announced. The court sentenced General Maritime Management (Portugal) LDA, on March 13, to pay a $1m fine. In addition, the company was sentenced to serve five years of probation. Special conditions of the probation require the company to rehire the whistleblowers if they reapply for employment…

The Port of Houston Authority (PHA) signed the federal permit for the Bayport Container and Cruise Terminal on Monday. The permit was then issued after Col. Leonard Waterworth signed it. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' permit was the next critical step in the process to build the $1.2 billion terminal. Construction is expected to begin soon. "We have always felt that this step would occur," said Jim Edmonds, PHA commission chairman. The Corps studied the port authority's Bayport terminal for more than five years…

The Coast Guard established a safety zone on the Neches River from just north of the DuPont plant to the Veteran’s bridge. No recreational boaters will be allowed into the safety zone until more of the oil has been removed. Both the Coast Guard and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will be patrolling the area to ensure that recreational boaters observe the parameters set by the safety zone. Since the Neches River’s opening at approximately 11:44 a.m. Wednesday, a significant amount of ship and barge traffic has been allowed to move in and out of port. As of 4 p.m. today, ship and barge traffic is largely back to normal with the exception of nine ships and barges that must be washed down before heading into uncontaminated water.

Western Towing Co. of Houston, Texas, pleaded guilty on May 16 to violating the Clean Water Act (CWA). Western Towing formerly operated a barge cleaning operation in Houston. Western Towing used river water to pressure-wash the cargo compartments of barges used to transport steel products, grain, gravel, sand, fertilizer and gypsum. The company had a CWA discharge permit which allowed it to discharge treated wastewater into the river, however the defendant did not treat the wastewater first. Discharging untreated barge cleaning wastewater into surface waters can harm fish and aquatic life and can make river waters unsuitable for recreational and drinking water usage. When sentenced, Western Towing faces a fine of up to $500,000 and/or up to five years probation.

The U.S. Coast Guard, working with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and local officials, report that the sulfuric acid that began leaking from a barge in Chocolate Bayou Wednesday appears to have stopped leaking. Officials monitored the amount of product in the barge MGM3030, as well as the level of the barge in the water and the pH levels around the, throughout Wednesday night and into this morning and concluded that the barge was not leaking. Approximately 358,000 gallons of the original 430,000 gallons of acid cargo has been offloaded from the barge . Efforts to remove the remaining acid and water mixture from the barge are expected to continue into Friday.

(PHA) last Thursday welcomed congressional leaders, the U.S. to further fuel the port's remarkable growth. Jim Edmonds. economy growing," he said. ribbon stretched 150 feet across the channel. guests onboard a paddlewheeler, The Colonel. today," said Tom Kornegay, Executive Director of the Port Authority. (from 400 feet) and deepening the channel to 45 feet (from 40 feet). allow slower barge traffic to navigate the channel. and widening project also helps protect water and air quality. Houston Authority and the U. precedent-setting role in improving water and air quality. Edmonds. government agencies formed in 1990. successful. Members of the BUG include Port of Houston Authority, U.S. General Land Office, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. U.S.