Alaska Ocean News

May 22 marks National Maritime Day. Congress established it in 1933 in commemoration of the steam ship Savannah and her maiden voyage, which was the first trans-Atlantic journey ever made by a steam-powered vessel. In the 203 years since the Savannah departed her eponymous port in Georgia for Liverpool, England, oceangoing technology has come a long way – and maritime shipping has become a supply-chain backbone that keeps goods arriving from all over the world. Much of this shipping…

The aging Pacific Northwest fishing fleet is either undergoing or about to undergo a long-overdo upgrade, judging by a major economic report commissioned by the Port of Seattle. Fisheries managers, seafood suppliers, yards and the supply chain all hope an accompanying surge in ship finance “lifts all boats”. For now, the newbuild count is growing apace, slowed just a bit by owners opting for major retrofits amid rich fish harvests. This fisheries upsurge comes with some rising stars of ship design-and-build for vessels set to ply the Bering and Beaufort seas.

A fisherman who had reportedly lost consciousness and was suffering from chest pain was medevaced by a U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) helicopter crew 30 miles west of Crescent City, California, Tuesday. An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station North Bend, Oregon, hoisted the man and transferred him to awaiting EMS at Crescent City Airport. A video is available here. USCg Pacific Area command center watchstanders in Alameda, California, received a phone call from the parent company of the 344-foot commercial fishing vessel Alaska Ocean shortly before 5 p.m.…

Monitoring efforts along the Pacific Coast of the U.S. and Canada have detected the presence of small amounts of radioactivity from the 2011 Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident 100 miles (150 km) due west of Eureka, California. Scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) found the trace amounts of telltale radioactive compounds as part of their ongoing monitoring of natural and human sources of radioactivity in the ocean. In the aftermath of the 2011 tsunami off Japan, the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant released cesium-134 and other radioactive elements into the ocean at unprecedented levels. Since then, the radioactive plume has traveled west across the Pacific, propelled largely by ocean currents and being diluted along the way.

Naval engineering firm Glosten and Associates of Seattle will guide the state as it plans a new ocean-going ferry to replace the 49-year-old ferry Tustumena, reports the 'Kodiak Daily Mirror', citing news from a meeting of the state's ferry advisory board in Anchorage. The state is prepared to spend up to $10 million designing the Tustumena, money that has been reserved from the state's vessel replacement fund. The design study report will recommend a particular vessel design, and the state may proceed with procurement at that point.

Rolls-Royce has won its first contract to supply a new version of its innovative Promas Lite propulsion system to American ship owner Glacier Fish to improve propeller efficiency on its Guido Perla Associates designed factory trawler 'Alaska Ocean'. Promas Lite is an integrated propeller and rudder system that increases efficiency and is designed specifically for retrofitting to existing ships. Glacier Fish is currently installing the newest version of Promas Lite, which incorporates a new nozzle design for even greater efficiency gains…

Crowley's Ocean Rangers Have Protected Alaska's Environment Since 2008. The State of Alaska's Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) has announced that it has awarded a contract to Crowley Maritime Corporation to continue administering the State of Alaska's Ocean Ranger Program, effective November 2011. The contract directs Crowley to recruit, hire, train and organize the logistics of placing Ocean Rangers on board cruise ships each season to act as independent observers and to assure compliance with federal and state environmental health, sanitation and safety requirements.

The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History opened "On the Water: Stories from Maritime America," a new, permanent exhibition designed to engage the public in an exploration of America's maritime heritage. The 8,500 sq ft exhibition builds on the Smithsonian's National Watercraft Collection of rigged ship models, patent models, documents and images to bring the sights, sounds and stories from the oceans, inland rivers and coastal communities to the museum's millions of visitors.

Crowley will implement and administer the State of Alaska's Ocean Ranger Program, beginning with the 2008 cruise ship season. The State of Alaska's Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) awarded the contract to Crowley Monday. The contract, valued at up to $4 million per fiscal year, directs Crowley to recruit, hire, train, and organize the logistics of placing up to 35 Ocean Rangers on board cruise ships this season to monitor their wastewater discharges and compliance with other pollution requirements for the state. Ocean Rangers are required as part of a new law adopted by the citizens of Alaska - the Alaska Cruise Ship Initiative- in 2006. Crowley is accepting resumes from qualified, licensed third assistant engineers or higher rating.