Winners of the IMarEST President's Award

The winners of the IMarEST President's Award (formerly known as the Stanley Gray Award) are Mr Alan Taylor, Dr Geoff Rigby and Professor Gustaaf Hallegraeff for their extensive work leading to the development of acceptable solutions for the management and treatment of ships' ballast water to minimise the translocation and establishment of non-indigenous marine organisms. Introduced in 1997 this is the first time that this award, with its cash prize of up to £10,000, has been presented. The award is to be presented approximately every 5 years to the engineer, scientist, technologist or research and/ or development team attaining the highest distinction in a maritime technology subject or subjects either by an outstanding achievement, the writing and presentation of a significant technical paper or the writing of a technical book.

'Dawn' of a new era

Following her inaugural trip and christening in December last year, the 92 250gt Norwegian Dawn has entered service operating from the port of Miami to the Eastern and Western Caribbean. The second cruise ship to be built by Meyer Werft for Norwegian Cruise Line, the 'luxury' vessel plays host to a cornucopia of onboard entertainment with which to treat its 2224 passengers, including state of the art theatre, casino, nightclub and galleria, together with a variety of dining establishments to suit all tastes. A quartet of MAN B&W 14V48/60 diesels engines provide a total power output of 58 500kW, while propulsive demands are taken care of through two 20 000kW Azipods enabling a service speed of 25kts.

AIMS improves marine research facility

The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) has unveiled an new look at its Cape Ferguson headquarters thanks to a $17.1M injection of infrastructure funding from the Federal Government. As part of the refurbishment programme, $12.5M was spent on a new wing and building make-over, $3.8M on the new research vessel, RV Cape Ferguson, and $500,000 on refurbishing the existing RV Lady Basten. Australia's Chief Scientist, Dr Robin Batterham, described AIMS new facilities as 'a comprehensive base for the efficient coduct of a range of marine research activities'. He said: "The site is ideal for marine research and there is none better in the region." Dr Batterham has recommended that the Government consider locating more marine research capability and R&D-intensive industry at Cape Ferguson.

IMarEST hosts IOSC Reception

Past President, Simon Rickaby will be representing the IMarEST at the International Oil Spill Conference and Exposition (IOSC). During the show, IMarEST will be hosting a reception for the Canadian members of IMarEST at the Vancouver Club on Wednesday 9th April. IOSC is recognised by the oil spill industry as a world class event attracting nearly 2,000 scientists, contractors and official government representatives.

Tank cleaning partnership

Alfa Laval has acquired the Danish Toftejorg Group, which includes the advanced tank cleaning firm Gunclean Toftelorg. Together, Alfa Laval and Gunclean now claim to have the world's largest service, distribution and marketing network of advanced tank cleaning equipment.

Merseyside maritime boost

A new maritime cluster has been established in the UK with the launch of Mersey Maritime. Merseyside is already one of the UK's leading centres of maritime services with a combined turnover of £1.3billion, and Mersey Maritime aims to build on this and develop a world-class centre of excellence in every sector of maritime operations and services. The cluster includes ship owners, freight and forwarding agents, ship agents, shipbuilders, law firms, insurance companies, cargo handlers, engineers and manufacturers.

New marine engineering degree

The University of Greenwich in London is launching a new degree in conjunction with the National Sea Training Centre at North Kent College and the Greenwich Maritime Institute. This degree will prepare students for a career in marine engineering and aims to develop a sound understanding of engineering systems and operational programmes.

Oceans in peril, says US report

In an informative report - Health of the Oceans - issued to Congress by The Ocean Conservancy, a US-based organization dedicated to protecting the oceans, calls are made for revolutionary changes in the way the oceans are managed. The Ocean Conservancy believe that the oceans are an imperiled public resource. According to the report, poor management has reduced many species of fish and marine wildlife to a fraction of their historical abundance - in some cases to near extinction. And over-fishing has become the greatest threat to the oceans, with a more profoundly negative impact on the oceans than all other human impacts, including pollution. After examining five key issue areas, The Ocean Conservancy reports that:
" The status of over three-fourths of US fish stocks is unknown, yet of the stocks able to be assessed, nearly half are depleted or overfished
" Pollution has rendered 44% of tested US estuaries unfit for uses such as swimming and fishing
" Coral reefs are being lost at an alarming rate
" Numerous species of marine mammals, sea turtles, and sea birds are in danger of extinction. Only 300 North Atlantic right whales are known to exist, and all six species of sea turtles found in US waters are threatened or endangered.
While pointing to overfishing as the greatest threat to the oceans, the report details the increasing impact of pollution resulting in thousands of annual beach closures, the deadly effects of the fishing industry on marine mammals, the growing problem of invasive species and more. The Health of the Oceans report details how destroying the natural environments of the marine ecosystems affect us all and offers strong solutions for how the US can better manage the oceans. The report can be downloaded from www.oceanconservancy.com.

Tanker guidelines published

Italian Classification Society RINA has published a detailed set of Tanker Guidelines to support owners during the specification and tender process for tanker new buildings. These Guidelines are primarily intended for staff in charge of ship construction, specification development or maintenance and aim to help with concerns regarding the structural design of any new building projects.