Weekly News Summary For January 2-8, 2006:
The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) reports that most of the U.S. Gulf Coast seaports impacted by back-to-back hurricanes this season have returned their operations to at or near what they were before the storms hit in August and September. Even those with the most extensive damage are reporting significant progress toward accommodating the normal volumes of freight and passengers on which their communities and the nation depend, AAPA added.
“I’m awed at the speed at which these hurricane-ravaged ports have worked to bring their operations back on line,” said Kurt Nagle, president and chief executive officer of AAPA. “America’s seaports make up the backbone of our economy, so the faster they can get back to normal operations after a disaster, the better off we are as a nation. The men and women who run these ports are showing terrific leadership in the face of daunting challenges.”
Examples of ports with operations at or near pre-hurricane levels include the Texas Port of Beaumont, the Louisiana ports of Lake Charles and Fourchon; and the Alabama State Port Authority at Mobile….
The Gulf Coast Mariners Association (GCMA), a non-profit association of working mariners on western rivers, inland waterways and the Gulf of Mexico, will hold a number of meetings in the Mississippi Valley and Gulf coast to attract additional members.
At the meetings, GCMA directors will explain the extent of their efforts to improve working conditions for mariners since the association’s founding in 1999. GCMA will report on both their successes and failures and emphasize the need for increased mariner participation.
The association strives to live up to its motto as “The Voice for Mariners” by listening to working mariners, studying the problems encountered, and then taking action, according to secretary Richard Block.
Some of the topics to be addressed include the “12-hour rule” for licensed officers, work hours for unlicensed mariners, the two-watch system, licensing issues involving the new apprentice mates/steersman “learners permit,” the use of designated examiners and a peek at new regulations coming, according to Block….
Combining dredging for navigation and using that dredged material to restore coastal wetlands has been a theme of some of the forward-looking coastal port directors of Louisiana for some time now, said Tim Osborn, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) representative for the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
It’s an idea that is attracting national attention, after the storm surges from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita impacted almost all of south Louisiana. The loss of coastal wetlands has often been blamed for the magnitude of the damage from the storms.
Osborn cited Roy Pontiff of the Port of Iberia and Ted Falgout of Port Fourchon as leading advocates for combining the navigation and wetland restoration efforts in projects that can improve hurricane protection for the state’s coast.
The Port of Iberia is located on Commercial Canal, which connects to the Gulf through the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) and Freshwater Bayou. Lafayette, La., lies to the west and Morgan City, La., on the Atchafalaya River, to the east.
The preferred route to the Gulf of Mexico is through Freshwater Bayou, because the GIWW has a 12-foot depth, while the depth across the open water of Vermillion Bay is nine feet. Offshore, the 20-foot contour lies only four miles off the mouth of Freshwater Bayou.
The Port of Iberia is in the final stages of a feasibility study seeking authorization from the Corps of Engineers to dredge its channel from 12 feet, the GIWW depth, to 20 feet, which will then accommodate larger vessels….
When the pushboat CSS Arkansas collided with a ship on the lower Mississippi River several months ago, the towboat sank to the bottom of the river. Despite severe damage, the insurance company’s survey determined that the salvaged vessel was not a total loss and sent the survey out for bid. Subsequently, the refurbishment of the vessel was awarded to C & C Marine & Repair LLC’s boat yard on Peters Road along the Harvey Canal in Louisiana.
“We got the boat and had to gut it right down to bare steel,” said C & C yard manager Glen Page. “That included opening up all the tanks and voids and pressure washing every corner of the boat.”
Damage was extensive with both the wheelhouse and second deck collapsed. The hull and bulwarks suffered substantial damage as well. “After we repaired the steel work we sandblasted the boat inside and out and repainted it,” explained Page, “Then we changed out the 600 hp. Cummins KTA19M engines and the Cummins-powered gen sets for the same models supplied by the owners, Carline Marine.”…
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