GNOBFA Responded To Fleeting Needs

“It was the Wild West for some of the barge fleets on the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans,” Alan Savoie said. He was speaking of the time before and during the formation of the Greater New Orleans Barge Fleeting Association (GNOBFA), which was founded exactly 50 years ago. While the majority of fleet operators in this corridor adhered to proper fleeting practices, there were no regulations that allowed for consistent and common fleet practices.

In 1974, there were numerous fleet breakaways that resulted in tremendous amounts of damage. More significant was the potential for injury to mariners. The U.S. Coast Guard quickly realized the need for action. The Ports and Waterways Safety Act (PWSA) had been signed by President Richard Nixon on July 10, 1972, aiming to prevent oil spills and promote safety in U.S. ports, harbors and navigable waters. It granted the Coast Guard significant authority to control vessel traffic, establish safety zones and set design and operation standards for tankers to reduce environmental risks.

GNOBFA has become widely known for its respected River and Marine Industry Seminar. The 42nd seminar takes place April 22-24 at the Intercontinental Hotel in New Orleans. But before the seminar was founded, GNOBFA existed as an industry-led forum for barge and fleeting industry leaders to share insights with the Coast Guard. Savoie, one of the few remaining original leaders of GNOBFA, was present during the early years.

The Coast Guard reached out to industry leaders, such as Sonny Ivey of ACBL, Gene Dalton of Wisconsin Barge line, Curt Anderson and Joe Hines of Alter Barge Line and Jeff Kindl of Sioux City Barge Line, for assistance. It became obvious that industry and government needed a venue to communicate and exchange ideas on the critical matter of fleeting practices. GNOBFA was created for this purpose.

How was the Coast Guard going to create and apply those regulations to barge fleets? What was the path forward? What information would it use to set them up? That was where barge and fleeting industry leaders came in.

Single Venue

The Coast Guard wanted to communicate with fleet operators, but they wanted a single venue, Savoie said. “Our people told the Coast Guard about the lack of regulations, and, together with the Coast Guard, they developed standards and regulations for fleeting,” Savoie said. “We formed GNOBFA as a venue to speak with one voice for barge and fleet operators. Fleet operators wanted this. They were cleaning up their act. They were tired of the incidents and the risks to personnel and property.” From the collaboration of the Coast Guard and industry, the 7/8-inch diameter wire rope became the standard thickness for tying up barges. “It was originally a 20-foot-long standard. However, as line-haul tows utilized 35-foot wires, the 20-foot-wire quickly fell out of fashion, and 35-foot-long wires became standard,” Savoie said. “The change from 20 to 35 feet significantly increased fleet security with more leads or wraps per tie and provided an incredible efficiency in turning the large tows coming into the fleets. This unintended benefit to the velocity of barge movements is still recognized today!”

Maritime attorney Maurice Hebert was brought in by Greg Derbes of Azalea Fleet to lead the River and Marine Industry Seminar in 1982. From the beginning, Savoie said, Hebert laid down two conditions. He was to have absolute control of selecting speakers and control of the agenda that dictated the topics presented and discussed. (His son Marc Hebert, a partner in the Corporate Practice Group at Jones Walker, continues to moderate and co-lead the seminar.)

“This was necessary to avoid any appearance of favoritism or undue influence by any one company or entity,” Savoie said. Maritime attorneys, insurers, inspectors and other marine professionals earn professional development credits for attending or speaking at GNOBFA. Being invited to speak or serve on a panel is considered a great honor, and many speakers and panelists remark how they had to wait for years before they were finally accepted. Hebert has admitted that he’s “made some enemies” over the years due to speaker choices, Savoie said, but he always insisted that complete impartiality was necessary to maintain the seminar’s integrity.

The seminar isn’t the only way that GNOBFA communicates with its members and the Coast Guard. In 1995, GNOBFA and the Coast Guard produced the “Barge Fleeting Standard of Care and Streamline Inspection Program Guide Book.” This comprehensive guidebook is still used by both industry and the Coast Guard to train personnel and maintain safety for fleetoperations. “The Streamline inspection program handbook is in as much demand as the regulations themselves,” Savoie said.

Industry-Government Partnership

The CFR regulations don’t apply everywhere in the rivers. The regulated navigation area covered by 33 CFR 165.803 (often referred to in the context of 33 CFR 803) includes the waters of the Mississippi River between Miles 88 and 240 above Head of Passes.

“The reality is that the industry and the Coast Guard developed these regulations together,” Savoie said. “For over 40-plus years, that 1982 CFR has never changed. The government, more specifically the Coast Guard, came in as a partner with the founders of GNOBFA; together they were determined to develop regulations that were lasting, impactful and applicable to the conditions of the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and the mouth of the river. Other rivers and reaches that aren’t covered look at these rules because we have the toughest operating conditions, with currents, high traffic and sometimes extreme weather. We have shared this handbook with St. Louis, for example, which has a pretty busy harbor. Also, the Houston Coast Guard called up GNOBFA and wanted to look at the Streamline handbook in 2010.”

While high-water events still happen, and humans are no closer to controlling the weather than 50 years ago, the achievements of GNOBFA (working with the Coast Guard and other organizations like the American Waterways Operators and the Gulf Intracoastal Canal Association) mean that barge fleeting and operations have become safer even as the number of vessels moving on the Lower Mississippi River has increased.