BC Shipping News - June 2013

INSIDE: THE WORK OF MARINE ARTIST JOHN M.HORTON

BC SHIPPING NEWS

Volume 3 Issue 5

www.bcshippingnews.com

June 2013

Commercial Marine News for Canada’s West Coast.

Terminal Review

Major challenges as B.C.’s terminals upgrade, expand

Industry Insight Maksim Mihic, General Manager, DP World (Canada) Inc.

12-JUN CP PM# 42161530 JUNE 2013

NSPS

$4.95

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74470 80667

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Plus:

What can Canada’s marine industries realistically offer the world?

International Seafarers’ Day: The face of seafarers’ rights

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VANCOUVE UVE R

TOKYO TO TOK O Y DALIAN D

YOKOHAMA

B USAN

S HANG HAI

S H E NZ H E N HONG H GK KONG O KAOH S I U NG KAO

Closer

is better.

Port Metro Vancouver is already closer to Asia than any other major port in North America. And with u n p r e c e d e n te d i n f r a s t r u c t u r e investment in our gateway, we’re getting even closer.

We’re building land-side projects that boost rail and road efficiency. We’re increasing our container terminal capacity and reducing on-dock dwell through collaboration with supply chain partners. And we’re operating with longshore labour certainty to 2018.

As a result, we’ve taken up to 3 days out of your supply chain. That brings your goods closer to market and you closer to your customers.

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to

June 2013

Volume 3 Issue 5

On the cover: Aerial view of Vancouver Harbour and DP World Vancouver.

Photo courtesy of DP World Vancouver.

Below: Maneuvering across the Hardanger at Lynnterm Terminal in North Vancouver. Photo credit: Dave Roels (www.daveroels.com).

Contents Cover Story

18

10 Industry insight Efficiently moving B.C.’s trade Maksim Mihic may be relatively new to the position of General Manager, DP World (Canada) Inc. but he’s sure not new to the business of moving cargo.

27

Marine art Passions collide

BC Shipping News is very pleased to provide readers with a glimpse into the making of a marine artist with our special feature on John M.Horton.

Seafarers face of seafarers’ rights 33 The Just in time for the Day of the Seafarer, Darryl Anderson outlines 36

the issues affecting the lives of those who carry the world’s trade.

International Sailors’ Society Canada Captain George Adams explains the importance of supporting seafarers’ centres.

D E P A R T M E N T S

F E A T U R E S

Maksim Mihic

Terminal review 2013...

Major challenges as B.C. terminals upgrade, expand

by Ray Dykes

6

News briefs/industry traffic

16

History lesson

24

Rail logistics

26

Dry bulk sector

30

Resources

38

NSPS

44

Ferries

46

Regulations

48

Legal affairs

52

Technology

News briefs

A whale of a tale — B.C.’s whaling history — by Lisa Glandt New rail service from B.C. ports to Indianapolis creates new hub Intercargo’s Secretary General updates B.C.’s shipping industry The wood pellet industry —

by Syd Heal What can Canada’s marine industries realistically offer to the rest of the world? By R.G. Allan P.Eng Networking while learning about customer service at CFOA’s Conference — by Serge Buy Administrative Monetary Penalties —

by Malik Akhtar Collisions 101 — by Paul D.Mooney Marine propulsion: jet drive technology June 2013 BC Shipping News 3

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June 2013 Volume 3/Issue 5 Publisher McIvor Communications Inc. President & Editor Jane McIvor Contributing Writers Darryl Anderson Malik Akhtar Serge Buy Lisa Glandt John M.Horton Maksim Mihic

Captain George Adams Robert G.Allan Ray Dykes Syd Heal Mary Horton Paul D.Mooney

Advertising and Subscriptions Jane McIvor Phone: 604-893-8800 / Email: jane@bcshippingnews.com ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION Canada Three Years $99.95 Cdn*

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Subscribe online at www.bcshippingnews.com Contents copyrighted 2013 McIvor Communications Inc. 300 - 1275 West 6th Avenue, Vancouver, British Columbia Canada V6H 1A6 Phone: 604-893-8800/Fax: 604-708-1920 E-mail: contact@bcshippingnews.com International Standard Serial Number ISSN: 1925-4865 Published 10 times per year.

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4 BC Shipping News June 2013

The opinions expressed by contributing writers are not necessarily those of the Publisher. No part of this magazine may be reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher.

Photos by Dave Roels, www.daveroels.com

EDITOR’S NOTE

Don’t forget to say thanks on June 25

T

his issue of BC Shipping News is jam-packed with interesting articles — for example, Ray Dykes has exclusive information on a new mystery coal terminal; John Horton gives us an inside look at what it takes to be a marine artist (as opposed to an artist who paints pretty boats); Syd Heal looks at the wood pellet industry; and Robert G.Allan asks the question: “What can Canada’s marine industries realistically offer to the rest of the world?” — but there are two articles in particular to which I would like to draw your attention: those from Darryl Anderson and George Adams. Both articles provide perspectives on the importance of seafarers and the need Member of:

International Sailor’s Society Canada

to ensure health and well-being. While Darryl looks at the issues through regulations, rights and conventions, George highlights the importance of our support in other ways, such as that given by the International Sailors’ Society Canada through grants to seafarers’ centres across the country.

Given the role that seafarers play in our daily lives — and the public’s lack of awareness of the effort it takes to be at sea — it’s important that the local shipping community step up to ensure that seafarers’ know that we’re thankful and that we recognize their contribution to our economy.

There are a few ways you can do this: On June 25, the Day of the Seafarer,

log on to www.facebook.com/imohq and post a note of thanks, or use your Twitter account to send thanks via #thankyouseafarer. Show your support for a local seafarers’ centre by making a donation — even if it’s just a few dollars, it helps.

And for those with deeper pockets, you should be working with organizations like the International Sailors’ Society Canada and the Mission to Seafarers to make the lives of seafarers easier.

Read the articles from Darryl and George — they will convince you of the need and the urgency to support seafarers, any way you can.

Jane McIvor

Local traffic...

Thanks to Dave Grant with Vancouver Vessel Traffic Services for this dramatic shot of HMCS Victoria (foreground) and HMCS Algonquin while at Canada Place in late April.

HMCS Victoria is a Victoria Class Long Range Patrol Submarine, 70 metres in length with a beam of 7.6 metres and a crew capacity of 48. HMCS Algonguin is an Iroquis Class Destroyer, 130 metres in length and a beam of 15.2 metres. Crew capacity is 295. She was built in 1973 and modernized in 1990.

Got a great photo? Send it to jane@bcshippingnews.com to be included in our feature on ships visiting our local waters.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 5

industry traffic Re-thinking the re-power

By Alan Haig-Brown

Ernie Catherwood reasons, Catherwood will set the new engines for only 500 HP each, but the bigger boat, renamed DD Catherwood, with its powerful gear-prop combination, will do much to assure “justin-time” delivery on the company’s chartered freight runs regardless of weather conditions.

Photo credit: Haig-Brown/Cummins

6 BC Shipping News June 2013

stripping the engine and going in from the hatch in the aft deck,” Catherwood said, “The savings in labour with workers not climbing up and down to the main deck are significant but more importantly, the crew at Arrow Marine terminals, where we are doing the job, were able to remove the old and set the new engines in place with a fork lift.

With long forks, even the starboard engine, opposite the hull opening, could be set.”

The engines were coupled to the existing air-controlled Lufkin gears that are each nearly the size of the engines. In addition to air-clutches, the gears have air-controlled shaft brakes.

The 7:1 reduction allowed Catherwood to keep the big 84-inch three-blade props that turn in kort nozzles.

In addition to the main engine repower, Catherwood installed two new 50 kW gen sets, upgraded the electronics to include 40 wheelhouse-alarm sensors for the engine room, completely overhauled the Burrard towing winch and rebuilt various components and piping. The winch is fitted with an air-controlled brake and carries 2,400 feet of 1.25-inch wire. For Canadian manning and regulatory

Photo credit: Haig-Brown/Cummins

W

hen the opportunity arose for Ernie Catherwood to add another tug to his 14-boat fleet at Catherwood Towing, he did the math and took the deal. Catherwood Towing has grown up around log towing in the Fraser River. The work, known as “yarding” generally employs boats in the 25 to 43-foot range.

Catherwood has several of these boats, most of which are powered by twin Cummins KTA19 engines.

To diversify their operations, Catherwood has been doing more barge work and now has contracts to tow gravel from a quarry about 30 nautical miles north of the Fraser River. They have also picked up a couple of freight runs towing barges with truck trailers. To better serve these contracts, the company has purchased some larger “outside boats” as the opportunity arises. Such was the case when an owner of a 74 by 25-foot boat phoned Ernie to see if he was interested in adding to his fleet.

The 39-year old boat was at a shipyard undergoing a scheduled Canadian Steamship Inspection. Ernie had marine surveyor Mark McAllister and his port engineer Trevor Sexton check the boat out. They reported the boat sound with excellent half-inch hull plating.

But the old 12V149 Jimmies were tired even though their big Lufkin gears had recently been rebuilt and were in good shape.

Ernie decided that if he could repower the boat with a new set of Cummins KTA38 engines at the right price he could make some money with the tug. Todd Braconnier of TCB Marine Consulting proposed that they use a well-proven process of installing the new engines through the side of the hull rather than the traditional lowering in from above and moving forward into the engine room. Mark McAlister explained that design forethought by the builder in placement of tanks and auxiliary machinery on the tug made this method much simpler.

“We were able to do the engine swap with this method for half the cost of

Rather than installing the new engines by lowering in from above, Catherwood went through the side of the hull.

news briefs Port Alberni Port Authority promotes McCormick

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he Port Alberni Port Authority (PAPA) has announced the promotion of David McCormick to the newly created position of Director, Public Relations and Business Development effective May 1, 2013.

Since joining the Port in September 2010 in the role of Manager, Community Relations and Property, David has demonstrated exceptional knowledge of the community and contexts within which PAPA operates and has made solid contributions towards their vision for growth. This new position will play a more direct role in the port’s current and future relationships in tandem with the CEO. Together, the Director of Public Relations and CEO will lead the strategic activities necessary to achieve the vision for growth supported by the Board of Directors.

“David is a critical thinker who has a unique ability to share a vision within the big picture context while understanding the steps required to achieve the goal,” says CEO, Zoran Knezevic: “I am confident that his increased role will help us get closer and quicker towards achieving our vision of growth for the greater benefit of Port Alberni and our region.”

“I am proud that my commitment, contributions and skill set are recognized and valued by the Port,” McCormick says.

“We’re in an exciting time for not just our organization but

New to the position of Director, Public Relations and Business Development for the Port Alberni Port Authority: David McCormick. for the community. There’s a lot of work yet to be done but our efforts so far in developing our vision for growth are starting to be recognized. I look forward to fulfilling my new, enhanced role within the port’s team as we all work towards achieving the very real potential of new business opportunities.”

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industry traffic W&O Supply named as exclusive distributor for Hyde GUARDIAN® Ballast Water Management Systems

H

yde Marine, Inc. has named W&O Supply as its exclusive sales distributor in the U.S. and Canada for Hyde GUARDIAN® Ballast Water Treatment Systems (BWTS).

The chemical free Hyde GUARDIAN® BWTS uses efficient filtration and ultraviolet disinfection to treat ships’ ballast water to prevent the spread of invasive species from port to port. In April 2013,

the Hyde GUARDIAN® BWTS earned the Alternate Management System (AMS) approval from the United States Coast Guard (USCG). It also received International Maritime Organization (IMO) Type Approval in April 2009 and has Type Approvals from several Class Societies.

According to John Platz, President of Hyde Marine, Jacksonville, Florida-

Nigel S. Greenwood

MA, BSc, Master Mariner, FRIN, MNI Rear-Admiral, RCN (Ret’d)

www.greenwoodmaritime.com nsg@greenwoodmaritime.com / 250-507-8445

TH

RD

B.C.’s Largest Database of Used Boats DERBI N Thunderbird Marina U (West Vancouver): 604.921.7457

T S AL

E

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CH

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Reed Point Marina (Port Moody): 604.939.0499 Westport Marina (Sidney): 250.656.5832

www.thundermarine.com 8 BC Shipping News June 2013

based W&O will begin selling Hyde GUARDIAN® BWTS effective immediately.

“We are pleased to partner with W&O because the company has an outstanding reputation as a premier engineered-solutions provider committed to meeting the needs of the maritime industry,” said Platz. “We are excited about the opportunity to work with W&O to continue the growth of the Hyde GUARDIAN® BWTS business across the U.S. and Canada.”

“Ballast water treatment system regulations are affecting the entire marine industry, which is why it was essential to find a trusted and reputable partner we could work with to bring the best solution available to the market,” said Michael Hume, CEO of W&O. “We are proud to partner with Hyde Marine, a 148-year-old company known for innovation in the marine industry, to help educate our customers and find the best BWTS solutions for their vessels and fleets.”

With 16 stocking locations in the U.S. and Canada, two in Europe and one in South America, W&O Supply serves all segments of the maritime industry, including commercial shipping, the U.S. Navy, Military Sealift Command, MARAD, U.S. Coast Guard, cruise lines, barge owners, upstream oil and gas rigs, and the shipyards that build and repair vessels of all sizes.

Tested and validated at the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), one of the most challenging ballast water test facilities in the world, the Hyde GUARDIAN® BWTS ultimately became the first BWTS accepted into the U.S. Coast Guard’s Shipboard Technology Evaluation Program (STEP), which facilitates the development of effective BWTS technologies for vessel owners seeking alternatives to ballast water exchange.

Visit www.hydemarine.com for more information about Hyde Marine’s ballast water management solutions. For additional background on W&O, visit www.wosupply.com.

news briefs ClassNK signs Authorization Agreement with Government of Myanmar

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eading classification society ClassNK (Chairman and President: Noboru Ueda) has announced that it has signed an agreement with the Government of Myanmar granting ClassNK authorization to carry out statutory surveys on its behalf. The signing ceremony took place in the Park Royal Hotel in Yangon in April 2013 with Director General of the Department of Marine Administration Mr. Maung Maung Oo signing on behalf of the Government of Myanmar.

Myanmar is one of the fastest growing economies in South East Asia, and has recently seen many Japanese businesses, including major shipowners, expanding into the Myanmar market. As one of the world’s main producers of seafarers, Myanmar has become an increasingly important region in the global maritime industry.

ClassNK has been carrying out surveys for Myanmar– flagged vessels for various international conventions since receiving Recognized Organization status from the Government of Myanmar in 1986. This agreement, which is based on the IMO A.739(18) resolution, compiles all previous separate agreements for each convention along with new authorization for other international conventions into one single agreement. The signing of this agreement will allow ClassNK to conduct statutory surveys for Myanmar-flagged vessels for an even wider range of international conventions.

In addition to this agreement, ClassNK also established its first exclusive survey office in Yangon at the beginning of April. With the establishment of this new office, ClassNK can now directly dispatch surveyors throughout the Myanmar region. ClassNK currently operates 122 exclusive survey offices around the world and is authorized to carry out statutory surveys on behalf of over 100 flag administrations.

Mr. Maung Maung Oo, representing the Government of Myanmar with Mr. Noboru Ueda, Chairman and President of ClassNK.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 9

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

Efficiently moving B.C.’s trade — one container at a time.

Maksim Mihic, General Manager, DP World (Canada) Inc.

M

aksim Mihic is new to the position of General Manager at DP World (Canada) Inc. but that doesn’t mean he’s new to the business of moving cargo. As BC Shipping News readers will quickly learn, Maksim’s knowledge of the container industry provides for a fascinating look into the business of moving the world’s trade.

BCSN: I’d like to first get an idea of the size and scope of DP World’s operations so we can put that into context of the worldwide movement of containers.

MM: Globally, DP World has a portfolio of 65 terminals on six continents including new developments underway in India, Africa, Europe, South America and Middle East.

Container handling is the company’s main business and generates around 80 per cent of its revenue. Last year, we handled about 56 million TEUs. By 2020, we are expecting capacity to rise to about 100 million TEUs. Our flagship port is Jebel Ali in Dubai which, incidentally, has been rated the best seaport in the Middle East for the last 18 years.

DP World is actually a combination of two companies — DP International and DP Authority (DP stands for Dubai Ports) — which merged in 2005 to form DP World. DPI was founded in 1999 and built up operations in Saudi Arabia, India and Romania before acquiring CSX World Terminals in 2005.

Later that same year, DPI and DPA merged, then acquired P&O Ports. That was in 2006 and today, we employ 28,000 people.

Looking at our local operations, DP World owns DP World Vancouver and our annual capacity is about 880,000 TEUs. That’s about 1.5 per cent of DP’s total operations. DP World Vancouver Container Terminal is virtually a new 72-acre terminal. We have invested close to $160 million dollars in infrastructure, equipment and operating systems to improve capacity, efficiency and customer service. We have six quay cranes (four of which can accommodate Super Post Panamax vessels); six deepsea berths — two of them container berths — and we just added a berthing dolphin which extends the length of the container berths by 70 metres so we can now bring in vessels up to 350 metres. We have 19 rubber-tired gantry cranes, 10 top picks, 50 yard tractors and trailers for

10 BC Shipping News June 2013

containers and lift trucks with various capacities and attachments. Our dock intermodal yards have four tracks totalling 8,000 feet with service by Candadian National Rail and Canadian Pacific Rail. We also have an automated truck gate with 12 incoming and three outgoing truck lanes and a sophisticated operating system that tracks cargo in real time (NAVIS) with 100 per cent appointments.

Our customer base includes American President Line, China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company, Hyundai, Mitsui OSK Lines and Westwood Shipping Ltd. among others.

DP World Vancouver’s main business is container handling but we also generate about 20 per cent of our revenue from stevedoring services.

BCSN: Could you describe your stevedoring operations?

MM: DP World Vancouver Stevedoring Division has actually been around since 1923 under the name of Canadian Stevedoring. It changed hands a few times and ended up as part of BCR Marine in 1999, then was acquired by P&O Ports in 2003 which we acquired in 2006. So, while the name might have changed a few times, our staff has a lot of experience with all types of vessels and cargo and we’ve operated in every conceivable working condition.

We provide stevedoring services throughout the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island. We’re up to 16

*

INDUSTRY INSIGHT From 2011 to 2012, the Port’s container volume increased eight per cent overall and DP World Vancouver’s increase was about 20 per cent for that same period.

different terminals now — 10 in the Lower Mainland; six on Vancouver Island including Nanaimo, Victoria and Port Alberni. We handle cars, lumber, pulp, steel, bulk, break bulk and specialized cargo.

BCSN: You mentioned Nanaimo — how’s the new short sea shipping service?

MM: Slower than we thought at first but it is catching on now. We started with 17 containers per trip and our exchanges are now in the range of 220 to 230 per barge (a full barge is 168 FEU). We expect to start a second weekly sailing soon.

The service is great for Vancouver Island exporters. Given that most of the commodity is lumber, this has really changed operations for the forestry industry. For example, in the past, they would accumulate lumber for a month and then load ships with lumber anywhere from five to 10 million board feet in bulk and ship to Asia or ship by barge to Vancouver where they would then stuff it into containers and reload onto a ship to China. Now, stuffing is done on the Island which enables a faster response to market demands and direct access to their customer.

What we’re doing on the Island is now

equal to the process done here on the Mainland. There’s no difference in process so they can make a sailing virtually every week.

BCSN: What sort of volume trends overall have you seen over the past five years — i.e., since the recession in 2008/09?

MM: It’s a bit hard to directly relate our volume to the recession because a number of the shipping lines changed terminals and ports of call since 2008 (for example, to Prince Rupert’s container terminal), but if you’re looking for trends, Port of Vancouver had fully recovered by 2011. From 2011 to 2012, the Port’s container volume increased eight per cent overall and DP World Vancouver’s increase was about 20 per cent for that same period. For this year, you can look at the overall trends of Port Metro Vancouver activity and we track very closely to their peaks and dips in volumes.

BCSN: Can you compare DP World Vancouver to other terminals — both locally and globally?

MM: Sure. First, we’re comparable in size to Vanterm in terms of berth and land equipment except that our new berthing dolphin now allows us to accept larger vessels. Vanterm moves

Maksim sits at the controls of the Dolphin Navigation Simulator at Pacific Maritime Institute in Seattle. DP World Vancouver was able to demonstrate to stakeholders (including the cruise lines and Translink’s Seabus) that the new dolphin would not present a navigation hazard.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 11

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

*

Containership sizes really took off in design in 2007 because oil had become so expensive and economies of scale became paramount.

more because they have a larger customer base but the capacity is similar.

Deltaport is already capable of bringing in the larger vessels. Of the 2.7 million TEUs moved in the Lower Mainland last year, we handled about 20 per cent of that.

For Prince Rupert, Fairview Terminal has one berth at present (they are currently exploring options to expand).

They moved about 565,000 TEUs last year.

Looking at other West Coast ports, Los Angeles and Long Beach are the largest (they moved eight million and six million TEUs respectively). Los Angeles actually surpassed all other ports in the U.S. by over one million TEUs last year; Seattle/Tacoma did about 3.5 million TEUs combined compared to Vancouver’s 2.7 million.

By tonnage, Vancouver is the largest on the West Coast and in the top five in North America, but it really depends on how and what you’re measuring. If you look specifically at containers, Vancouver is not a big player on the world scale. You can compare Vancouver’s 2.7 million TEUs to Shanghai (28 million), Singapore (23

12 BC Shipping News June 2013

million), or Hong Kong (20 million); and then you have the ports in Europe — Hamburg (8.9 million) or Rotterdam (11.9 million). Vancouver is perhaps in the top 50 of ports worldwide for volume.

BCSN: And of course, the ships are getting bigger all the time.

MM: Yes, if you look at the evolution of the size of ships over the past 50 years — i.e., since the beginning of containerization (I think the first containers were loaded in 1956) — it started off with converted cargo vessels and then converted tankers that were under 200 metres in length. Then in the 1970s, you saw the first cellular containerships that were about 215 metres.

That’s about the time Vancouver got its first crane. The Port of Vancouver paid $700,000 for it and it was placed at this terminal. Incidentally, this is the same crane that did the first container operation on Vancouver Island. Crane #1

*

was sold to Nanaimo in 2000 and this is the crane that we now use for our short sea shipping operations.

By the 1980s, you started seeing Panamax Class ships — between 250 and 290 metres and those stayed around until the 1990s when the PostPanamax size (275 to 305 metres) became the norm. By 2000, ships of 335 metres became prevalent and these could carry upwards of 8,000 TEUs (this is the Post Panamax Plus size).

It was for this size that we designed DP World Vancouver terminal. At the time, we thought that this was so big, we would never go beyond that size but then you saw vessels upwards of 397 metres carrying 14,500 TEUs. When we designed this terminal in 2004, we converted from the top pick operation to the RTG operation which more than doubled terminal capacity, from about 350,000 TEU (200,000 containers) to 800,000 TEU (450,000 containers) on the same terminal footprint. At that time, we were designing for Post Panamax Plus.

Containership sizes really took off in design in 2007 because oil had become

Now, people are starting to talk about 22,000 TEUs but there is a problem with the design...They are pushing the whole science behind structural engineering to accept the new standards.

INDUSTRY INSIGHT so expensive and economies of scale became paramount. At the same time, you saw quite a few mergers and almost overnight, 40 companies disappeared and were consolidated into other lines.

This June, Maersk will be receiving their Triple E Class which will be able to handle 18,000 TEUs. The three ‘E’s stand for Economy, Environment and Efficiency. These will take over on the European route and the 10,000 to 12,000 TEU vessels will be moved to California; the 8,500 TEU vessels that you currently see in California will start to come this way. That’s why it was so important to get the extension of our berth done now so we can accommodate these larger vessels.

Now, people are starting to talk about 22,000 TEUs but there is a problem with the design because it requires such a wide and long beam that, to avoid bending, you have to make the steel plates 85-millimetre thick and there is no standard in the world that has approved this plate yet. They are pushing the whole science behind structural engineering to accept the new standards. That’s how far they’ve come in five years.

BCSN: What trends do you see happening as the larger vessels come into operation?

MM: Same as we’ve seen in the past no doubt — the big fish will eat the smaller fish and then the markets will stabilize back to the level of needed capacity. It’s the same trend that you see with tankers and cruise ships.

BCSN: In looking at trends, do you think the Panama Canal expansion will affect business here in Vancouver?

MM: There’s a lot of speculation but I don’t think so. It will likely impact Los Angeles and Long Beach. About 63 per cent of world trade is done in containers (that’s about 585 million TEUs every year) and most of that has traditionally travelled east to west, but because the south economy is becoming stronger — South America, Peru, Brazil, Chile — and the east/west route is already over-saturated, you’re starting to see a shift to the south trade.

BCSN: Another trend we’re seeing is toward automation of container terminal operations. Do you have any insight into this?

June 2013 BC Shipping News 13

INDUSTRY INSIGHT

Bird’s eye view of DP World Vancouver.

MM: There’s two things at the root of automation: the need for consistent output and a shortage as well as the cost of labour. The big ships that are coming online are very expensive and you need to ensure they are used as efficiently as possible. The only way to predict the output with any accuracy is to put in a system that can guarantee loading and offloading schedules, one that removes the unpredictability of manual labour and dispatch. In addition to that, the labour market of the western world is expensive and there is also the question of skilled labour to service the industry — we’re already experiencing that.

We’re seeing more and more yards move to greater automation — Hamburg, Spain, Australia, Abu Dhabi.

The first automated terminal in North America is in Portsmouth, Virginia.

Everything past the gate is automated so once you bring the container in, the container number is scanned by OCR, the location in the yard is assigned based on the existing algorithm and a driverless yard crane places the container in a pre-assigned location.

Delivery of the container is done in reverse.

In terms of yard planning in preparation for the vessel, instead of the 14 BC Shipping News June 2013

Photo courtesy of DP World Vancouver.

manual operation where you move the containers around — i.e., yard shuffling and yard grooming, it would be done automatically to optimize the location of the containers and the shape profile of the stacks. It’s quite an interesting system.

Automation would be hard to do in smaller terminals like ours because of the very high capital investment.

You can convert it, but it means you’ll be discarding the equipment you currently have so it’s not economically feasible for an operation like ours. For

About Maksim Mihic

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aksim Mihic was appointed to the position of General Manager, DP World (Canada) Inc. in January 2013. In his current role, he is responsible for overseeing all aspects of operations for the container and stevedoring divisions in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island.

Maksim joined DP World in 1996 as an Electrical Engineer and, in 2001, assumed the role of Manager, Engineering and Maintenance. In 2010, he was then promoted to Director, Container Operations. He has over 20 years of experience in industry controls, equipment design and acquisition, process improvements and project management.

Maksim graduated from the University of Sarejevo in the former Yugoslavia with an Electrical Engineering Degree before moving to Canada in 1991. Prior to joining DP World, Maksim worked in the electric power industry as a System Control Engineer and was also a member of a research team for Western Canada that investigated the question of whether there was any link between power lines and leukemia.

Maksim is married to Jovanka and they have three children: Aleksandar (14); Anastasija (11); and Stefan (8).

INDUSTRY INSIGHT Online...Dave Roels’ Photo Essay: Terminal operations: Photographer Dave Roels provides BC Shipping News readers with an inside look at terminal operations as he visits DP World Vancouver, Lynnterm and a number of terminals throughout the Lower Mainland.

Visit www.bcshippingnews.com/photo to see the results.

an automated terminal to be efficient, it has to have a capacity of at least two million TEUs. There are two areas in the current container operations that are not automated — the rail and the vessel operation (the ship-to-shore gantry cranes).

They are already doing trials for the cranes but it’s more like a remote operation rather than automation, however, 80 per cent of the cycle will be automated.

BCSN: How is automation changing the demographics of labour?

MM: We’re seeing big changes.

Traditionally, the industry used to be all male but there are a lot of women now. The other thing that bodes well is the number of younger people coming in. They have a better affinity for this type of work because they’ve grown up with video games and are used to the joystick movements. If you look in the yard behind me, the only manual job you’ll see is the lashing and that won’t change. Paperwork is being done away with as well — it’s all gone digital. Once you start moving toward automation, that eliminates a lot of the traditional work and creates a lot of high-skill jobs.

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June 2013 BC Shipping News 15

HISTORY LESSON

A whale of a tale — B.C.’s whaling history

By Lisa Glandt

Librarian/Archivist, Vancouver Maritime Museum

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F

ew people recall the days when British Columbia was an active participant in the global whaling industry in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Aside from a small station located in Eureka, California, Vancouver Island hosted the only west coast whaling sites north of Chile. Four main varieties of whales were hunted — Finback, Humpback, Sei and Sperm and the occasional Blue whale. Before commercialization began, local First Nations communities had long hunted whales and rendered the

Few people recall the days when B.C. was an active participant in the global whaling industry

Map courtesy of Vancouver Maritime Museum

in the 19th and 20th centuries.

From 1907 to 1967 records show that the five major stations caught a combined total of at least 24,249 whales.

16 BC Shipping News June 2013

blubber into oil on the beaches at Deadman’s Island (Stanley Park), Coal Harbour and Deep Cove.

British Columbia’s first commercial whaling station was established in Saanich Inlet in 1866. Stations also opened in Barkley Sound and at Cortes and Pasley Islands. In 1869, Captain Harry Trim founded the Howe Sound Whaling Co. and for a short time, they operated from Jericho Beach. The industry found early success but, by 1871, whale catches had sharply declined and companies could barely cover their expenses. In December 1871, the largest company operating on the coast — the British Columbia Whaling Co. Ltd. out of Whaletown, Cortes Island went into liquidation.

Interest in coastal whaling resumed in 1905 when Captain Sprott Balcom and Captain William Grant formed the Victoria Whaling Company. They established a series of whaling stations at Sechart (1905), Cachalot — also called Kyuquot (1907), Rose Harbour (1909), and Naden Harbour (1911). A processing station was built at Sechart and whalers used steam-powered chaser boats and large harpoon cannons to hunt. Profitable whale products included sperm oil used by technical trades as a lubricant; hydrogenate whale oil for the manufacturing of margarine, shortenings and soap; whale meal used in feed; and whale liver oil.

Whaling proved to be a boom-bust industry. By 1925, the Sechart and Kyuquot stations had closed due to the recession and an excess of whale oil on the market. A few short years later the tide turned again and whaling recovered. Crews operating from Naden and Rose Harbour continued to work until 1943 when oil prices could not meet the rising operational costs of whaling. The industry stopped that year when Consolidated Whaling, the last company in service, declared bankruptcy.

Their colourful fleet of whaling vessels — with names like Black, Blue, White, Brown, Green, and Gray — were sold in a public auction, many of the old boats destined for scrap.

VANCOUVER MARITIME MUSEUM Photo courtesy of Vancouver Maritime Museum

In 1948, a consortium led by B.C. Packers took the helm to revive coastal whaling. A former RCAF seaplane base situated at Coal Harbour, Quatsino Sound, proved to be an ideal new site — the concrete ramps used to launch the seaplanes could be used to slide whale carcasses to where they could be prepared for flensing and processing.

Yet the same old problems re-emerged — rising costs, crew demands for higher wages and decline for whale products caused by competition from vegetable, mineral, petroleum and synthetic substitutes. In 1962, B.C. Packers entered into a partnership with Tokyo’s largest fishing company, Taiyo Gogyo Company, in order to revitalize the industry with new vessels and skilled whalers. Instead of manufacturing oil and bone meal fertilizer, the plant would process edible whale meat, a source of highly digestible protein favored by the Japanese.

By 1967, the west coast whaling industry had come to an end. Societal pressure to end whaling and a general worldwide market decline for whale

A postcard from 1928: Harpooning whales in the gulf for the Nanaimo Whaling Station. products combined with depleted local whale stocks forced B.C.’s whaling stations to close for good. All that is left of this unique chapter of our local history is found in rusted and decrepit equipment left at the old whaling sites, timeworn photographs and newspaper clippings, and the stories shared by those who experienced it.

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Lisa Glandt has been the Librarian/ Archivist for the Vancouver Maritime Museum since 2007. She started volunteering at the museum in 1999 sharing maritime stories with school children and now she preserves the stories. She can be contacted at archives@vancouvermaritimemuseum. com.

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June 2013 BC Shipping News 17

2/7/2013 1:14:42 PM

Major challenges as B.C. terminals upgrade, expand

By Ray Dykes

M

assive terminal upgrades totalling many billions of dollars are sweeping through British Columbia port facilities as they try to match demand from hungry Asian markets.

From equipment replacement to capacity expansion, the projects cover the spectrum and bring with them a wide variety of challenges from environmental issues to legal wrangles. There are several new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals in the offing totalling in the billions of dollars alone, and there’s even a full-blown new mystery coal terminal to boot.

That mystery revolves around Sydney, Australia-based County Coal and its announcement Down Under of a new coal export terminal in British Columbia at an undisclosed greenfield site. County has two mine projects in the Powder River Basin and is keen to ship to Asia from the West Coast through a new terminal capable of

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From equipment replacement to capacity expansion, the projects cover the spectrum and bring with them a wide variety of challenges from environmental issues to legal wrangles.

handling Capesize vessels, plus another at Longview, Washington.

In its April 23 Shareholder Update, County Coal says “the initial engineering study on the Canadian terminal indicates the port is technically feasible and initial costing indicates the project is economically viable.” County’s Managing Director, Rod Ruston, told BC Shipping News from Sydney, Australia, that the company prefers to be “fairly low key” with respect to the project for now.

But, the mystery still has officials in local coal export terminals and even the ports they’re in scratching their heads over just where that greenfield B.C. site is that can take Capesize ships.

Two other new terminal projects previously announced are still meandering along — the conversion of closed pulp mills in Campbell River and Prince Rupert into new deepsea export facilities. And then there’s possible new potash and LNG terminals in Prince Rupert thanks to its current $90 million road, rail and utility corridor which had a groundbreaking ceremony in March and is tipped to support “billions in new terminal developments.”

And if that’s not enough, the company behind the now stalled Campbell River project, Pacifica Deep Sea Terminals, is about to announce another “mystery” terminal in the B.C. north for the export of resources. Pacifica owner and

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18 BC Shipping News June 2013

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terminal REVIEW 2013 Director, Harold Jahn, told BC Shipping News the northern terminal, which is not part of any existing port authority or the private port of Kitimat, could cover 1,000 acres in water area and have at least four deepsea docks.

The company is also planning to build another export terminal in Skagway, Alaska, he adds.

Westshore rebound Meanwhile, life has been exciting at Westshore Terminals — North America’s busiest coal export terminal — thanks to major equipment upgrades and a crisis no one could have imagined.

Just as the final commissioning phase of a new twin coal dumper was ending, completing a five-year $110-million equipment upgrade last December, the Capesize vessel Cape Apricot slammed through the connecting causeway to Westshore’s largest deepsea dock known as Berth One. This early morning mishap on December 7, 2012 cut the outer berth off from its coal supply, power, water

and road access, giving Westshore the biggest challenge of its almost 43 years of operation — its shipping capacity had been cut in half overnight.

The way the terminal marshalled its forces and began a rebuild within hours has amazed the marine and mining industries and earned the facility accolades. Within eight hours, the first Fraser River Pile & Dredge cranemounted barge was on site and working on the salvage, watched closely by environmental consultants and provincial officials. The coal spill was minimal and caused little or no damage but the media attention was still frenetic.

Burnaby consulting engineers WorleyParsons were called in to oversee the rebuild and the rescue of the MV Chardonnay, which had been loading at Berth One until the causeway crash. With all electrical power cut off and the tide rising, the idled shiploader boom threatened to damage the vessel. Westshore quickly barged in power generators and had the boom lifted away from the stranded dry bulker.

Investigation As well, there was a scurry of activity sweeping through fabrication plants in Greater Vancouver and as far away as Oregon as new causeway steel structures, which support the high speed conveyor, were being built.

As the Transportation Safety Board of Canada began an investigation into the incident, a B.C. pilot was on the bridge of the vessel and two tugs were in attendance. The ill-fated but largely undamaged Cape Apricot was successfully docked at Berth Two, Westshore’s inner berth, and sailed only days later with a full load albeit subject to a $50 million legal bond for the angst it had caused.

Westshore defied all estimates of its insurers by getting the causeway’s essential services up and running two months to the day of the incident on February 7, 2013 as the first ship docked at Berth One for loading. It took several more weeks for the roadway link to be restored, but the full terminal was back in action by late April

A challenging world Westshore Terminals has just completed

one of the biggest equipment upgrades in its history. This five-year, $110 million work has lifted capacity from 23.5 to 33 million tonnes a year; streamlined the way we handle coal; improved our carbon footprint; and greatly enhanced efficiency.

But, no world is without its challenges. The early December breach of the main causeway to our deep-sea Berth One dock by a Capesize vessel is one such challenge. Westshore responded rapidly and had the first ship loading within two months and the causeway back in full service soon after.

ww w. w e s t s ho re . co m

Coal means prosperity for Canada June 2013 BC Shipping News 19

terminal REVIEW 2013

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Coal is only part of the story...Neptune is also hoping to get back into handling phosphate rock, something it did back in the 1960s when it was created.

and looking forward to running up to its new 33-million tonne capacity.

Next year, Westshore will embark on yet another major $210 million upgrade, which will see it replace its three oldest stacker-reclaimers — the giant machines that stack coal on the stockpile and later reclaim it for shiploading — as well as relocating its office, warehouse and workshop facilities from their current central site to one at the far north end of the 54-hectare facility.

The upgrade is expected to start in the Second Quarter in 2014 and take from four to five years, but its final form is still being decided.

Neptune Bulk The Inner Harbour should have seen the arrival of a new stacker-reclaimer at Neptune Bulk Terminals late in May and it won’t have come far. Built by Ramsay Machine Works in Sidney, the custom stacker-reclaimer is a major component of a controversial upgrade and expansion project and will replace an older, smaller reclaimer unit.

Neptune has Port Metro Vancouver approval to proceed with a $200 million expansion including a second railcar dumper and conveyor and replacement of a quadrant shiploader, plus foundation reinforcement for its Berth One. The new longer boom will allow ships to be loaded without repositioning at the coal berth.

The work is controversial because coal export expansion has drawn the ire of climate change environmentalists up and down the West Coast.

Neptune has had to weather more

scrutiny than perhaps it thought it would ever encounter when drawing up its plans. The aim is to boost the facility’s throughput capacity for coal to 18.5 million tonnes per year.

Coal is only part of the story, however, and Neptune is also hoping to get back into handling phosphate rock, something it did back in the 1960s when it was created. The plan would see a new A-frame-shaped phosphate storage shed and other handling facilities built to allow about one million tonnes a year of the fertilizer ingredient to be imported and shipped across Canada by rail. Work is due to start on this project by the end of August.

Neptune is having a good tonnage year and if all goes well it could be its best ever.

Fraser Surrey Docks Also in the Port Metro Vancouver environs, Fraser Surrey Docks is anxiously awaiting a new round of public open houses after its application to handle coal shipments from the Powder River Basin in the U.S. drew the fury of local municipalities and environmentalists. FSD has sent out thousands of information pamphlets to nearby residents and has met with municipalities and federal and provincial politicians

Richardson International’s terminal in North Vancouver.

20 BC Shipping News June 2013

and neighbourhood associations to explain its case, but it isn’t there yet.

“We realize there are some public concerns and we haven’t been able to reach out to everybody, so this is an opportunity to broaden that scope,” Fraser Surrey Docks CEO Jeff Scott was recently quoted as saying.

Under the yet to be approved $15 million plan, FSD would dump coal trains and then, by covered conveyor, load barges for short sea shipping to Texada Island where the coal would be transshipped onto deepsea bulk carriers destined largely for Asian markets at a rate that could start at four million tonnes a year and might eventually reach eight million tonnes.

Again, controversy has rocked this coal handling project. Some of the fire might have unfortunately come from the rallying of environmentalists and other activists to the south who are irate over coal train and ship movements through a potential of five or so new terminal projects in Washington and Oregon, none of which has yet had a green light to go ahead.

Richardson International A capacity boost of at least two million tonnes to five million will come within two years as Richardson International Limited spends $130 million at the east end of the existing terminal on two new concrete annexes and related site and rail upgrades such as covered silo roof conveyors and automatic dust filter systems.

Photo credit: BC Shipping News

terminal REVIEW 2013

Pacific Coast Terminals Part of a $150 million expansion project to add handling of food-grade canola and potash has been delayed because Pacific Coast Terminals (PCT) is awaiting final sign off from the so far un-named potash customer.

However, the canola expansion is moving to approval by the end of May, according to PCT Vice President & General Manager, Ken Catton, and will then start the permitting process through Port Metro Vancouver. The facility at the end of Burrard Inlet could be shipping canola again by mid-2014.

Currently, PCT ships sulphur and ethylene glycol and occasional coal on a direct hit basis (straight from train to waiting vessel for export) for Teck Coal.

The canola expansion can proceed independently from the potash project and could see exports reach from 750,000 to one million tonnes shipped per year.

The more involved potash project sees the building of a bottom dump rail car facility that will link to a new warehouse and from there to existing port ship-loading facilities.

Photo courtesy of Pacific Coast Terminals.

Work has begun reconfiguring rail track, and Tanks 1 and 3, used for pellet storage, will soon be demolished, according to Richardson’s Regional Manager, Phil Hulina. The work won’t interfere with normal operations.

Richardson currently moves mostly canola but the upgrade will allow more wheat, peas, barley and flax to be handled in future. Last year, the terminal shipped a total of three million tonnes of grains.

Pacific Coast Terminals in Burrard Inlet is expanding its operations to include canola and potentially potash.

Columbia Containers Construction has begun at Columbia, expanding its Vancouver Port footprint to the west for its container storage site. Although it doesn’t have a shipping dock, the facility will grow by 60 per cent, allowing greater containerstuffing operations ready for shipment at nearby PMV container terminals.

The work will expand rail access to the new lands; improve traffic safety by eliminating one rail crossing; change how trucks enter and exit the property; and help reduce dusting by paving land that is currently sitting as unmaintained gravel.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 21

terminal REVIEW 2013 Photo credit: Andrew Korek, Phoenix Marine Services Inc.

Ridley Terminals took delivery of a new stacker-reclaimer unit in late 2012 as part of their expansion for coal exports. The pieces were transported onboard HHL Macao from China. Above left: the portal; above right: the Tripper car aboard the Miller 201. Thanks to Captain Andrew Frank Korek, project warranty surveyor, Phoenix Marine Services Inc. for photos tracking progress of the delivery. For more photos, visit: www.bcshippingnews.com/photo/hhl-macao-prince-rupert.

Campbell River The old Elk Falls pulp mill site north of Campbell River, reportedly sold last year to Pacifica Deep Sea Terminals Inc. by Catalyst, has hit a glitch and the $8.6 million deal for 1,249 acres of industrial land, three deepsea docks and water lots covering 173 acres has not yet closed.

The aim had been to convert the Catalyst pulp mill site into a dynamic industrial park and port facility “with the goal of creating over 400 full-time positions for the community within the next three years.” Pacifica’s Hahn says he can’t talk of the reason for the sale not completing for now, but adds “in my mind, it’s still an active project”.

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Nanaimo DP World is having success with its short sea shipping container barge service from Duke Point to Vancouver.

This represents one change since the global giant took over managing terminal operations for the Nanaimo Port Authority in early 2012.

But, there’s much more happening, says Kerry Lige, DP World’s Commercial Director, particularly in improving the safety environment for the terminal operations and other container handling enhancements.

Both the port authority and DP World are keen to expand the number of commodities handled by the mid-Island port to build on the lumber, raw logs, containers, scrap steel transshipment, and steel wind turbines which now make up most of the cargo business.

Prince Rupert The “good news” Port of Prince Rupert, which is enjoying booming growth, has at least two potential LNG terminal projects at feasibility study stage and possibly others to follow; hasn’t yet heard if Canpotex will proceed with a potash terminal to take advantage of a $90-million rail corridor expansion project now underway; and has Ridley Terminals Inc. well into its capacity-doubling site works and equipment upgrade.

Although the “For Sale” sign is figuratively back on the front lawn as it

22 BC Shipping News June 2013

terminal REVIEW 2013 was years ago for the federally-owned Ridley Terminals, it’s business as usual as commissioning is underway of a fourth stacker-reclaimer delivered last November by Sandvik. Ridley expects to be finished its current $200 million expansion, bringing it from 12 to 24 million tonnes annual capacity, by the end of 2014. All expansion capacity has been presold.

This year, construction will continue with the integration of new lands into the operation. And in 2014, a new tandem coal car dumper and thaw shed will be commissioned.

So far, the expansion has meant 19 new permanent jobs at the terminal and more will be added as capacity increases through 2014.

Fairview Elsewhere in the Port of Prince Rupert, an environmental assessment has been completed for Phase 2A expansion of its highly successful container facility, Fairview Terminals, but so far, operator Maher Terminals International hasn’t yet announced its commercial decision whether it will go ahead.

This first, smaller stage of a twopronged expansion involves land to the north and would boost Fairview’s capacity by about 500,000 TEUs (20foot equivalent units). The facility has already exceeded its build capacity by 50 per cent and the Phase 2A expansion would see it jump to about 1.25 million TEUs. A further stage to the south could lift that capacity to over two million TEUs should it ever go ahead.

stage with field studies underway, but startup is not seen likely before 2015.

A second major LNG terminal is destined for Lulu Island to the south of Ridley Island for Pacific Northwest LNG and, if it goes ahead, a two-berth facility could be in business, shipping 12 million tonnes a year by 2018.

Watson Island Just outside the Prince Rupert Port Authority’s jurisdiction is another new bulk terminal project where the old Skeena Cellulose pulp mill and its deepsea dock are destined to be converted into new life by a company known as the Watson Island Development Corp. or WatCo. But, a shipload of legal wrangles involving previous owners and the City of Prince Rupert are still being sorted out by the courts. No major breakthrough announcements have been made in the past few months.

Kitimat Medals for patience should soon be awarded for those waiting for the redevelopment of this private port.

With at least four new LNG terminals in the works, Kitimat Mayor Joanne Monaghan is excited for the future of the port which has Alcan and Shell operating the only existing terminals.

One small project by BCLNG Export Co-operative for a barge-mounted LNG plant is leading the new project charge.

The only cloud in a clear blue sky for Kitimat officials comes over future control and Ottawa recently agreed to meet with the Kitimat Council soon to explain its apparent decision to want to bring the port under the federal umbrella.

Ray Dykes is a journalist who has worked his way around the world as a writer/photographer. Ray can be reached at prplus@shaw.ca.

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Ridley corridor Work should be completed by December 2014 on the springboard $90 million road, rail and utility corridor to Ridley Island in the Port of Prince Rupert. The project includes construction of five parallel rail tracks, a two-lane roadway, and a port-owned power distribution system along an eight-kilometre long corridor.

Canpotex hasn’t yet announced a decision on a likely potash terminal, which is expected to have annual capacity of 13 million tonnes if it goes ahead. The BG Group also has its eyes on the island for an LNG terminal to be built on 200 acres. That project is at its feasibility June 2013 BC Shipping News 23

rail logistics New rail service from B.C. ports to Indianapolis creates new distribution hub

E

conomic development officials in Indiana hope a new rail service linking Indianapolis to West Coast ports in Canada will save central Indiana businesses time and money by bypassing a bottleneck in Chicago rail yards and help transform Indianapolis into more of a distribution hub.

The Indiana Rail Road Co. will partner with Canadian National Railway to provide intermodal service for imports and exports between Indianapolis and the British Columbia ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert starting July 1.

Robin Silvester, President and CEO, Port Metro Vancouver said: “CN’s new service is an indicator of the success we continue to have with our railway partners in delivering value to Vancouver’s supply chain. With more destinations available through Port Metro Vancouver, this service creates further opportunities for our customers and increases the competitiveness of our port. CN’s investments to enhance their presence in Vancouver align with our own investments in facilitating growing trade through the Vancouver Gateway.”

Don Krusel, President and CEO of the Port of Prince Rupert, echoed Silvester’s comments: “CN is an integral transportation partner of the Port of Prince Rupert, and since opening the Fairview Container Terminal in 2007 we’ve realized tremendous growth in our container trade through the effective

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The plan is to provide rail service between the Canadian ports [Vancouver and Prince Rupert] and Indianapolis three times a week.

collaboration with CN Rail. Network enhancements such as the new intermodal services in Indianapolis provide for even greater market reach and more options for our customers who rely on fast and reliable supply chain solutions.”

Conexus Indiana, a not-for-profit organization that works to boost the state’s manufacturing and logistics industries, has been working for six years to try to find a way for Indiana businesses to ship via rail while avoiding the congestion in Chicago, said David Holt, the organization’s vice president of operations and business development.

“It’s a big traffic jam for rail in Chicago,” Holt said. “Companies frequently have to pay detention charges while goods sit in rail cars a day or two waiting to be unloaded. Then they have to pay to get the goods to Indianapolis, frequently done by truck, which is more costly than train and more susceptible to weather delays.”

Holt said Conexus began thinking about trying to make Indianapolis an intermodal hub after seeing Columbus, Ohio, create one from the East Coast with Norfolk Southern about seven years ago. The challenge, though, was finding a railroad with which to work.

CN arrives at Fairview Terminal in Prince Rupert.

24 BC Shipping News June 2013

Conexus found an answer when Indiana Rail Road Co., a regional 500mile railroad that serves central and southwest Indiana and central Illinois, and CN agreed to work together.

The plan is to provide rail service between the Canadian ports and Indianapolis three times a week. CN, which in 2009 bought the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co. that encircles Chicago, will move the cargo from the Canadian coast to Newton, Illinois where crews from Indiana Rail and CN will meet and swap loads, with CN bringing exports from Indiana to the Canadian ports.

The cost savings vary depending on what is being shipped and delays along the way. Those involved say the most important factor might be the time savings. Shipping time between Vancouver and Asia is a day or two faster than shipping from Long Beach, California, and the Canadian ports have less traffic, they said.

“Since they can move it quicker, they’re not going to have to stock up as much as they do waiting for the next shipment to come on in again, so they’re going to save big money in terms of safety stock,” said Rick LaGore, executive vice president

rail logistics and chief operating officer of Integrated Distribution Services, a logistics company based in Plainfield.

He said having the rail service from the West Coast makes Indianapolis more competitive as an inland port.

The number of trains could expand if the service is successful and may even encourage other Indiana cities to try to emulate what Indianapolis is doing.

Keith Reardon, CN’s vice president for intermodal, said the railway isn’t actively looking for places where it can expand intermodal service but is willing to work with groups seeking service. CN opened an intermodal facility in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, in February 2012 and, in June, plans to open an intermodal ramp at its freight yard in Joliet, southwest of Chicago.

“It’s definitely feasible for other places,” Reardon said. “It’s all about what property or what city we’re trying to provide service to and then figuring out the best package to put in place to service them.”

CN’s new service from Vancouver to Indianapolis creates further opportunities for customers and increases the competitiveness of B.C. ports, notes Robin Silvester, President and CEO, Port Metro Vancouver.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 25

dry bulk sector Intercargo’s Secretary General updates B.C. industry on dry bulk sector: “not good but not bad either”.

T

he International Ship-Owners Alliance of Canada (ISAC) hosted a presentation from Rob Lomas, Secretary General of the International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (Intercargo) to provide B.C.’s shipping community with an overview of the global dry bulk shipping sector and highlight current issues being addressed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) that will affect the industry.

In describing the current market for the dry bulk sector, Lomas said that “it’s not good, but equally, it’s not bad either. The long-term prospects for the dry bulk industry are pretty good.” Lomas backed up his assertions with statistics that showed consistent growth of six to eight per cent, even during the depths of the recession.

“This is by no means a sunset industry. We’re doing exceptionally well in terms of demand,” said Lomas, “however, what is not doing so well is the rates that can be commanded within the industry — they’ve virtually halved in the space of a couple of years. So things are not so fantastic as far as the money side is concerned.”

It is within this context that Lomas and Intercargo address issues currently before the IMO. “People are suffering at the moment and we need to make sure the regulators know that there’s a real world out there and that the real world is actually hurting.”

Noting that the number of owners within the dry bulk sector has increased by as much as 140 over the last two years (this is in addition to Intercargo’s membership of over 180), Lomas reported that there are close to 9,000 vessels currently in the dry bulk sector but that rates of delivery are slowing down: “2011 was pretty dramatic, 2012 was bad enough but 2013

26 BC Shipping News June 2013

In addition to Rob Lomas’ presentation, Mike Henderson provided an overview of the recently announced initiatives on tanker safety. Left to right: Robert Ho, Fairmont Shipping (HK) Ltd.; Kaity Arsoniadis-Stein, International Ship-Owners Alliance of Canada Inc.; Mike Henderson, Transport Canada Marine Safety and Security; Rob Lomas, Intercargo; Georgia Papadimitriou, ISAC; and Oscar Pinto, Valles Steamship. should see a tail off of the numbers of deliveries”. This trend has led to a very youthful industry with the average age of the fleet about to dip below 10 years for the first time ever.

Given this background, Lomas then outlined a number of issues that were of importance to the industry: • Air emissions — questions remain on monitoring, reporting and verification, as well as proposals for market-based measures and confusion over fuel switch-over procedures.

• Cargo safety — incidents in the last few years have raised concerns over moisture leaking into cargo and leading to ship instability.

• Casualties — while the industry has always been considered “pretty safe” (for example, in 2012, there were only three ships out of 9,000 lost and no loss of life), there is always room for improvement and Intercargo has set up an internal committee to examine safety more closely.

• Criminalization — there is a need to ensure that accidents are treated as such.

• Design — Intercargo is currently participating on an advisory group with the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) to address issues of safe design and

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common structural rules for bulk carriers.

Ballast water management — uncertainty remains on the type of systems that will be required as well as sampling procedures.

Piracy — while incidents have been decreasing in the area around Somalia, there is concern over an increase of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea. Intercargo is concerned that navies will begin to wind down their operations and complacency will set in with ship owners.

Port State control — Intercargo is pushing for worldwide consistency of inspections and reporting.

Reception facilities — there is concern over MARPOL V amendments that ban the discharge of cargo residues through wash water while lacking reception facilities.

Training and manpower — questions remain about the implications of the Maritime Labour Convention (coming into force in August of this year), for example, enforcement, requirements for additional crew and ship owner awareness of the implications.

Panama Canal expansion — issues include opening dates and new toll proposals linked to dwt and cargo type. BCSN

marine art Passions collide – the making of a marine artist Photo credit: Adrian Macnair, South Delta Leader.

T

his brief look at Horton’s talents hardly does justice in describing a lifetime of accolades, nor is it meant to be a biographical look at the transition from architectural designer to marine artist. For that, we strongly recommend a review of Peter Vassilopolous’ book: Mariner Artist John M. Horton (available, while supplies last, by contacting mary@johnhorton.ca). Vassilopolous has done a great job in detailing Horton’s life — his childhood, marked by a serious car accident that led to convalescence time spent focused on painting and music; his early apprenticeship training at D. Drake and Sons where he developed his skills in architectural renderings and building design; his service in the Royal Navy; and his life in Canada which includes over 30 years of service at sea, first under the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary and later as a member of the Canadian Lifeboat Institution.

Very few of us ever get the opportunity to pursue our passions full time — even fewer can develop that passion into a notable career. With talent such as that possessed by John Malcolm Horton however, combining a love of painting with a love of the sea has proven to be a very successful venture.

A marine artist does more than paint a picture of a pretty ship. To understand the difference between an artist who paints ships and a marine artist, we turned to Horton — the one person on the West Coast who best exemplifies the talent, skill and knowledge that allows a painting to convey the true meaning of life at sea — for an explanation.

“When I had my first painting accepted by the Royal Society of Marine Artists, I asked the president at the time that very question.” said Horton. “He told me that marine art has to be technically accurate and properly painted. Technical accuracy was an absolute must. It’s not just a person who looks at a boat and thinks it’s pretty so he paints it. We have to understand the purpose of every piece of equipment — where it goes and how it works — and that’s the difference.”

With upwards of 1,400 pieces of marine art to his name, John Horton’s skill

Marine artist John Horton puts the finishing touches on his most recent painting, “Arrival at Port Guichon”.

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Horton is known as much for his historical accuracy as his technical accuracy but it his ability to articulate the “atmosphere” of a scene that sets him apart from his contemporaries.

as a marine artist is undisputed. He is a founding member of the Canadian Society of Marine Artists, and a member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, the Naval Officers Association of B.C., the Honourable Company of Master Mariners in Canada, and is the only Canadian marine artist mentioned in the late Dennis Brook-Hart’s definitive book, Twentieth Century Marine Painting.

He has had many works exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts and the Royal Society of Marine Artists; was the first marine artist to go into a theatre of war under the Canadian Forces Artists Program and has been commissioned by the Royal Canadian Mint to design several special-collection coins.

Horton is known as much for his historical accuracy as his technical accuracy but it his ability to articulate the “atmosphere” of a scene that sets him apart from his contemporaries. “You’re not just doing a portion of a ship or a moment at sea. There’s much more to it — the feeling of the moment must be there,” he explains. “I’ve had clients tell me that they can feel the temperature of the day. For example, they’ll recognize a

springtime scene because they know the area and they know that you’ll only see clouds like that in the spring.”

Extending that “feeling of the moment” to the accuracy of his historical depictions is the combined result of sailing the coast as well as many hours spent looking through archives and reviewing old photographs. Take his Captain Vancouver series, for instance. Once the subject of a painting is chosen, Horton can spend months in research before getting to the actual painting. So it was with his series on Captain Vancouver. “It started with the commissioning of three paintings for the Cook conference in 1978,” Horton recalls. “I realized that Captain Vancouver was a natural follow up to these and I got more and more interested in his story. I started to read, sailed the coast and went to the places where he had anchored and explored.”

Since that initial inspiration, Horton went on to paint over 50 depictions of Vancouver’s voyage, 27 of which were in an exhibition commemorating the 200th anniversary of Captain Vancouver’s arrival on the West Coast.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 27

marine art Horton’s expertise in representing the accuracy of a moment has left him in good stead with the Royal Canadian Navy and has led to a number of opportunities to travel with naval forces, including the notable distinction of being the first artist to go into a theatre of war under the Canadian Forces Artists Program. Through Operation APOLLO, the Canadian Forces’ operation in the Persian Gulf in support of U.S. military actions in Afghanistan, Horton captured Canada’s contribution to the campaign in a series of six paintings including a unique perspective of the iconic Sea King helicopter. The viewpoint is one that looks down on the helicopter as it approaches HMCS Ottawa for landing.

“This was quite tricky but the helicopters were such a story in the whole operation, I knew I had to include them,” said Horton. “I had this vision of how I wanted it done, but how do you get up there to get the perspective of the helicopter from that angle? I ended up sitting on top of a ladder while the helicopter was in a hangar to get the angle I wanted.”

When asked how he chooses the subject of those paintings that are not commissioned, Horton notes that he’s always looking for the view that will catch his eye. “But then you have to ask yourself, would it sell? It’s all very well to do a painting for enjoyment, but when you’re a professional artist and anticipating mortgage payments, if your clientele don’t like it, you’ll go hungry. There’s a delicate balance between what I want to paint and what really turns people on. You’re always looking for that trick of light or certain angle.”

A large part of Horton’s search for the perfect angle has

taken place aboard the Steveston Lifeboat, a 52-foot search and rescue vessel — both prior to and since volunteering it into service in the Canadian Lifeboat Institution (CLI)*. “The whole idea of owning a boat was to be able to experience the different atmospheres that the sea throws at you. You have to live it to be able to paint it. I think I’ve been to just about every anchorage in B.C and Alaska explored by Captain Vancouver.”

Given his talent as an artist, his expertise as a sailor, and his unique ability to capture the essence of life at sea, Horton’s contribution to preserving a record of West Coast marine history has become invaluable. *The CLI (featured in the July 2012 issue of BC Shipping News) is a volunteer organization that has focused on preventative patrols on the Fraser River since 1981. “Our aim is to save an accident from happening rather than having to react to an incident,” says Horton, noting that they often escort commercial ships up the river in convoys, leading the way to clear a path between fishing nets. Recognizing the increase in commercial traffic on the Fraser, the Steveston Lifeboat will soon be joined by a second vessel acquired from the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. At the time of this interview, Horton was on short notice to fly to England to pick up the new vessel and take it to Holland where, with the help of General Manager Terry Koke, they have secured transport back to Vancouver on one of Greig Star Shipping’s carriers. The new lifeboat will undergo refit work at Tom Mac Shipyards in Richmond before being put into service out of the Fraser River. BCSN

“Apollo Patrol” — Horton captured this unique perspective by sitting atop a ladder while the helicopter was in a hangar.

28 BC Shipping News June 2013

marine art The works of John M. Horton...

“Rendezvous off Point Grey” — from Horton’s collection of works dealing with Captain Vancouver.

“Busy Wharves” — Horton’s talents have been showcasing life on Vancouver’s docks for over 40 years.

“Winter Sun Over the Bacino De San Marco” — a painting from Horton’s latest exhibition at the Petley Jones Gallery.

“The Big Push” — A Cates tug at work in Vancouver Harbour (before being purchased by the Washington Group).

“The Hastings Mill” (detail) — the painting captures the feeling of an early West Coast trade industry.

All images are the copyright of John M.Horton. Permission required for reproduction.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 29

The wood pellet industry.

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By Syd Heal

Pinnacle has been exporting product through Prince Rupert

I

can make no claim to knowing who invented the wood pellet or where they were located, beyond a suggestion made in a Wikipedia article that indicates it was initially developed in the State of Washington. The article gave credit to Potlatch Forest Products in Washington for the development of the Presto Log, a simulated log made of compressed sawmill waste which became popular after its invention in 1930. The thrust of the wood pellet was much the same in the sense that it was a way to turn sawmill waste into a product with greater value that could be manufactured, distributed widely and used for home heating.

The pellet seems to have come before the specially designed pellet stove. In fact, the first time I saw wood pellets being burned must have been 40 years ago at a friend’s home where they were scattered on an open fire with most of their heat going up the chimney. In those days, I suggest the wood pellet was a small, insignificant curiosity with a very modest impact on the revenues of the hardware, fuel and animal food stores that were the main retail distribution outlets. They sold, and still sell, the product in a 50-pound paper sack not unlike a cement or animal feed sack.

That has all changed now with the increasing emphasis on biofuels as a substitute for coal and oil firing for several reasons, not the least being its almost total combustion and efficient source of heat. Good quality pellets have an ash content of about one per cent which is far better than most coals, and their carbon footprint is small.

30 BC Shipping News June 2013

for some years now but, with the growth in the industry, they are well advanced with a new construction project which will see five new silos built......

Canada is a major source of pellets that are particularly valued in Europe with large scale utilization by power stations. As an example, the Drax power complex in the U.K. is abandoning coal and has negotiated a supply contract for 1.2 million tonnes of pellets annually from a production facility in the Eastern United States.

In Canada, British Columbia is the top producer as Table A attests, but Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia all have a sizeable output.

B.C.’s output was given a great boost resulting from the disastrous depredations of the mountain pine beetle that led to an increase in supply of raw biomass when whole forests of standing pine died. The result was a sudden urgency to turn the material into something of value before it rotted in place — indeed, most of the significant development of pellet plants has taken place in areas convenient to the kill off. These were mainly through the Cariboo and the areas surrounding the Okanagan. Driving through interior forest lands, such as Manning Park, one can see lots of evidence of this killing off of the interior pine forests, right down to the U.S. border.

Table B lists the actual plants in B.C. along with their output. As will be seen, the Pinnacle Group of six producing plants is the largest company in the industry, both nationally and provincially. Pinnacle has been

exporting product through Prince Rupert for some years now but, with the growth in the industry, they are well advanced with a new construction project which will see five new silos built on the Prince Rupert waterfront, serving their own shiploader in loading up to 73,000-tonne Panamax bulkers with most of the product going to Europe. The Westview Terminal, as it has been named, is designed for a capacity of three million tonnes per year so thinking ahead, the industry, led by Pinnacle, appears committed to ongoing expansion.

The other terminal handling this product is Fibreco in North Vancouver.

Conceived as a terminal and trader for surplus woodchips, Fibreco was established in 1975 by some 30 lumber producers who wanted a marketing and handling facility for their output of chips.

In 2005, it started the handling of wood pellets and now has six silos and a large flat storage shed at its North Vancouver facility committed to wood pellets with a total storage capacity of 45,000 tonnes. This enables them to fully load a Handimax or Supramax bulker.

There have been efforts to develop biomass resources for power generation outside the present area where the producers are located. The most notable might be the redevelopment of the boiler room remaining after the

resources disassembly of the former Vancouver Annual output of the Canadian wood pellet industry Island pulp mill at Gold River. It had (by province and in metric tonnes) closed down as long ago as 1998 following depletion of its available timber licence reserves. Now owned by a

Proposed Under Construction Operating company called Green Island Energy, it British Columbia 100,000 1,875,000 was part of a major real estate reorganAlberta 145,000 ization of the old Gold River assets. An arrangement was made with Covanta, a Saskatchewan 6,000 U.S.-based energy company responsible Manitoba 2,000 for running a number of energy projects.

The original premise in its promotion Ontario 610,000* 365,000* 221,000 was that Gold River would take a large Quebec 190,000 640,000 quantity of construction and industrial New Brunswick 120,000 210,000 waste from locations in Puget Sound, but the key to it all was obtaining this Nova Scotia 210,000 type of waste from Metro Vancouver’s Prince Edward Island 0 facilities. The tonnage required was a Nfld/Labrador 120,000 73,000 half-million tonnes annually, but this has been held up indefinitely while the NWT 80,000 0 Greater Vancouver Regional District debates whether to use the material *Ontario reports two figures for plants proposed and/or under construction. The lower figure itself in a generating plant that might used here is the initial objective. The higher figure appears to be a target figure for some be located on the old sawmill site at time in the future.

Sapperton near New Westminster. The 1/2 pg h #4_1/2aspect pg horz of 2/4/13 PM Page 1Table 1. Annual output by province. unfortunate this8:18 otherwise

Over a century of service to BC’s marine industry

Phone 604.988.3111

www.seaspan.com June 2013 BC Shipping News 31

resources Annual output(1) by plant from British Columbia producers Highland Pellet Mfg Merritt 90,000 Okanagan Pellet Co. Kelowna 50,000 Nations Energy Kamloops 35,000 Pacific Bioenergy Prince George 400,000 Pinnacle Pellet Armstrong 50,000 Pinnacle Pellet Burns Lake 400,000 Pinnacle Pellet Strathnaver 200,000 Pinnacle Pellet Quesnel 90,000 Pinnacle Pellet Williams Lake 150,000 Pinnacle/Canfor Houston 150,000 Premium Pellet Vanderhoof 140,000 Princeton Co-Generation Princeton 90,000 Vanderhoof Specialty WP Vanderhoof 30,000

Total 1,875,000 (1)

Source of figures courtesy of Canadian Biomass Magazine.

Table 2. Annual output in B.C. worthwhile development is that considerable capital is frozen awaiting decisions that are made with glacial speed.

There is of course a great deal of waste biomass material to be found on Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland coast as in many other parts of B.C., far removed from the current production areas, but the governing issue appears to be the cost of collection and processing and on the West Coast itself there will frequently be a marine component to any movement of biomass just to add to the complications. This probably accounts for no pellet manufacturing in this area.

On the other hand it also has to be noted that efficient and economic pellet manufacturing cannot succeed without the investment in and

employment of first-class, heavy-duty machinery at every stage of the process. Fortunately, there is a good range of such equipment on the market manufactured mainly in the U.S. and China and probably Europe as well. It starts with a truck-mounted machine that can be taken under its own power onto, for example, a logged-over area and everything up to the size of whole trees down to branches complete with all their needles or leaves in place can be fed into its mouth and discharged via a conveyer rigged over the truck cab that can be loaded into box-fitted trailers and towed to the manufacturing plant where it is delivered as uniform granular material to a stock pile.

The next stage involves this granular material being run through a hammer mill where the larger particles are

crushed down to a uniform size ready for the extrusion process. Needless to say the skill of the operator comes into play at this point as the moisture content has to be at the right consistency.

The mix is then, with the aid of a roller, forced through a die with a number of uniformly appropriate holes through it. A combination of heat and pressure release lignin in the wood that acts as a binder that holds the extruded material together. A knife cuts off each extruded length into fairly uniform pieces and, from thereon, it is allowed to dry assisted by a current of warm air from a drier. At this point, the product can be bagged or stored in a silo until it is taken away from the plant. So long as the proper machinery is used, the actual conversion from small loose particles of wood to pellets appears to be very simple.

What of the future? It’s reasonable to anticipate an ongoing expansion in the industry. The area of production in B.C. is quite confined and mostly appears to relate to the beetle-killed wood at this point. Vast areas of B.C. contain huge biomass resources and no doubt this will gradually come into development as cost structures are improved including the all-important transportation factor of both raw material and finished product. A plant on Northern Vancouver Island would be able to ship product by covered barge to Vancouver, for example, for offloading at the North Vancouver facility and should be easy enough. But if the catchment area for raw material was to include mainland inlets and islands, it’s pretty obvious that a special marine operation would be involved with the machinery used in woodland areas being completely mobile.

One point can be added: This is an active, virile industry that is looking to a widening horizon for biomass products generally and considerable effort is going into opening up additional markets, particularly export, plus research to develop new by-products and uses for wood chemicals.

Syd Heal, a veteran of the marine industry and a prolific writer and publisher of marine books, can be contacted at: richbook@shaw.ca.

32 BC Shipping News June 2013

SEAFARERS

The face of seafarers’ rights

An international and local perspective

By Darryl Anderson

Managing Director, Wave Point Consulting

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tephen Brooks, President of the Chamber of Marine Commerce, said: “Canada’s shipping sector impacts every aspect of our lives from delivering the goods we use every day to supporting thousands of wellpaying jobs. Marine shipping provides efficient, safe and environmentally smart transportation to manufacturing, retail and agriculture, ensuring their competitiveness in the global marketplace. With 97 per cent of our country’s non-U.S. international trade carried on ships, the marine shipping industry is integral to the success of Canada’s strategy to expand and diversify its trading relationships.”

In recognition of the importance of maritime commerce, this article will acknowledge the contribution that seafarers make to Canada’s international trade efforts and explore some of the important issues these same individuals face while serving in the world’s merchant fleet.

Day of the Seafarer — Faces of the Sea The Day of the Seafarer is a celebration of seafarers around the world and those that either make their home in British Columbia or serve on the merchant fleets that visit our ports.

June 25, 2013 marks the date for the third annual International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) initiative. The theme this year is “Faces of the Sea” (last year’s campaign focussed on “It came by sea and I can’t live without it”).

The IMO’s universal outreach and use of social media helps to raise awareness

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The IMO’s universal outreach and use of social media helps to raise awareness of the vital role that seafarers play in our daily lives, enabling ships to carry more than 90 per cent of world trade...

of the vital role that seafarers play in our daily lives, enabling ships to carry more than 90 per cent of world trade and bring goods to our doors.

Ms. Karine Langlois, New Media Officer for the IMO, stated: “It is a very important campaign for IMO. First of all, the Day of the Seafarer has now been included in the annual list of United Nations Observances. This year, we will celebrate the third edition of the campaign that so far has taken the form of an online campaign, harnessing the power of social media to spread the message to as many people as possible.’’ She went on to say that “our ultimate objective with the campaign is to pay tribute to the 1.5 million seafarers for the unique and all-too-often overlooked contribution to the wellbeing of the general public.” By generating interaction on the IMO web about seafarers, Mr. Langlois indicated that it would be a good way for the public to show respect, recognition and gratitude to seafarers everywhere.

International seafarers’ rights On a global basis, Seafarers’ Rights International (SRI) is the leading organization that gives a public face to seafarers’ issues. SRI’s mission is to advance seafarers’ rights in international and national forums through

independent, high-quality research; education and training in laws concerning seafarers; empowerment of seafarers to realize their rights; and to protect their diverse interests worldwide. In summary, SRI is the public face for those who sail to shores beyond our borders and whose contribution to our well-being can too easily be ignored.

Increased visibility and support for the work of the SRI demonstrates the long-term commitment of the international maritime community to promote the development and dissemination of seafarers’ laws, and to improve seafarers’ legal rights and their protection under a just rule of law.

SRI places the protection of seafarers’ legal interests at the centre of its concerns. Important issues currently being advanced by the SRI include: Seafarers and criminalization: It is an inherent risk in the working lives of seafarers that they may be subjected to criminal charges either of a professional or a non-professional nature.

Seafaring is transnational by nature.

As seafarers transit from port to port, they are subject to the entire range of criminal laws of those port states. SRI reports that in any survey conducted to determine the attitudes of seafarers, in order to establish and rank their June 2013 BC Shipping News 33

SEAFARERS concerns about contemporary issues, the risk of facing criminal proceedings because of their particular employment will be found high on the list of their worries.

Flag State responsibilities and seafarers’ rights: The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development data indicates that we are living in the era of “international registries”.

An “international” register — a flag open to foreign tonnage, located in its home nation state (or in some offshore location associated with it) but closely associated with its home domestic administration. Among the top 35 ship-owning countries, 17 are located in Asia, 14 in Europe and four in the Americas. Four nations — Greece, Japan, Germany and China — own almost half of the world tonnage (49.7 per cent). The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) reported that the use of “open” registries has increased: an estimated 71.5 per cent of the world tonnage is now registered under foreign flag, that is, vessels operate under a different flag to that of the nationality of the owner. The open-registry fleet has its highest fleet registered in the developing countries of Asia. At the same time as the creation of the

international registers, the pressures led to some deregulation of national flag requirements, particularly the relaxation of national crewing and labour conditions, often leaving ship owners themselves as the self-regulators. Yet, vessel ownership does not necessarily imply that the ship-owning nations effectively operate or control the shipping companies. Thus, the traditional distinction between open flags of registration as compared with flags that cater only to national owners has become increasingly blurred. This suggests that the real economic interests of a Flag State and rights of the Coastal state have become much more indirect. SRI is concerned about the issue because there remains a considerable possibility that there will be a “patchwork” of Port State controls in which an international trading ship would be faced with different rules in every port it visited. This could have a detrimental impact on the rights of those who work aboard vessels.

Abandonment of seafarers: SRI reports that the problem of abandoned seafarers is a stark one of human hardship. They observe that the International Labour Organization (ILO) keeps a database of cases of abandonment and, given the vital role of

Reverend Nick Parker with the Mission to Seafarers welcomes ships’ crew to Vancouver.

34 BC Shipping News June 2013

shipping in the global economy, the figures should be a source of concern.

Between 2001 and 2010, 136 ships and 1,612 seafarers were abandoned.

In 2009 alone, at the height of the global economic downturn, a total of 57 vessels were abandoned affecting 647 seafarers. The international community has worked on a regulatory framework designed to protect seafarers and geared to their very specific circumstances. The SRI’s perspective is that the international efforts have been painfully slow. They note that the ILO Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), which was adopted in 2006, could go a long way to improving working conditions for those who earn their living at sea. But its immediate impact on the issue of abandonment remains to be seen. A policy alternative to deal with the specific issue would be an amendment to the MLC specifically addressing the issue of abandonment. The goal would be to create some form of a mandatory financial security net for abandoned seafarers, thereby eliminating seafarer abandonment as an attractive business decision. But while this potential international alternative solution unfolds, SRI remains concerned that ships’ crews will continue to be abandoned, their basic rights breached and their family life strained at best, destroyed at worst.

Maritime Labour Convention: The coming into force of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) in August 2013 will no doubt impact seafarers’ working conditions. There are a number of issues that gave rise to the need for minimum international standards for seafarers. Working and living conditions, occupational health and safety, causes of fatigue, crew retention and motivation, and recruitment are some of the most important reasons.

As a result, the MLC, 2006 covers conditions of employment, accommodation, food and catering, health protection, medical care, welfare and social issues, and recreational facilities. Subject to few exceptions, the convention applies to all ships — whether publicly or privately owned — ordinarily engaged in commercial activities. The issue of seafarers’ complaints warrants discussion because the MLC, 2006 has a number

SEAFARERS of requirements. Most notably, ships are required to have onboard procedures for the fair, effective and prompt handling of seafarers’ complaints alleging breaches of the requirements of the Convention. Seafarers have the right to complain directly to the master and, where they consider it necessary, to an appropriate external authority. In addition, Port States must have procedures for complaints made while onshore.

B.C. perspective On a regional basis, the Mission to Seafarers’ centres at Vancouver and Roberts Bank provide practical support to a seafarer’s well-being by providing a welcoming face to crew from around the world. Evidence of this practical concern is the “Flying Angel Club” which is located on Vancouver’s waterfront. The club offers seafarers a comfortable lounge, chapel, billiards room, used clothing store, shop for snacks, souvenirs and toiletries, telephone booths, a computer cybercafe for internet access and e-mail, international money transfers, cable television, XOXO and Euro Direct cards, free magazines and books. Mass can be held either at the Mission or on board ship when requested. Three Chaplains visit ships and are always available.

British Columbia’s shipping industry leaders also recognize the important work that seafarers perform. Captain Stephen Brown, President Chamber of Shipping of British Columbia stated: “International trade has never been more important to the people of British Columbia and our fellow Canadians than it is today. Whether it is the clothes we wear, the cars we drive, the coffee we drink or the computers that shape our careers, we have a dependence on the reliability of shipping to meet our daily lifestyle expectations. Around 80,000 ships trading internationally, manned by hundreds of thousands of seafarers, are responsible for safely executing more than 90 per cent of the world’s trade. We owe them an enormous debt of gratitude for the professional manner in which they quietly go about their business. May we take time to spare them a thought and wish them well on this 2013 International Day of the Seafarer.”

Conclusions The IMO is asking people around the world to say “Thank you, seafarers” on Facebook, via tweets, by posting a video on Youtube, discussing it on LinkedIn, or writing an inspirational blog. On June 25, the IMO is asking different groups to contribute in slightly different ways to this year’s theme: Faces of the Sea. For example: ship owners and companies are bing asked to take photos of their staff and post them on a social platform of their choice, and tell how many of their employees are currently at sea. The IMO is asking retailers or charterers to take a photo of their most popular product post it on a channel and say “thank you, seafarer”. This year, seafarers are also asked to participate, so for those who have internet access, the IMO would like to see photos with a surprising angle or some aspect of their work at sea.

The Day of the Seafarer is not only an opportunity to raise awareness of the vital role that shipping and seafarers play in the international trade that supports B.C.’s ports and Canada’s economy, but the occasion also affords us an

opportunity to reflect more deeply on some of the issues occurring globally that impact seafarers’ well-being. By giving a face to these issues, some BC Shipping News readers may feel inclined to financially support the efforts of local organizations such as the Mission to Seafarers and the Apostleship of the Sea. Others may feel inclined to take a more active interest in the scope of work in which the Chamber of Shipping of British Columbia or the Chamber of Maritime Commerce are involved. The business community in our province is well served when both global and local seafaring issues are adequately supported and addressed.

Darryl Anderson is a Victoria-based consultant. He maintains an active independent research practice focusing exclusively on maritime transportation and policy issues. www.wavepointconsulting.ca.

Join the IMO on June 25 to say thank you to seafarers: Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/imohq Twitter: @IMOHQ / campaign hashtag: #thankyouseafarer YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/IMOHQ

Located at Vancouver Waterfront and Roberts Bank

www.flyingangel.ca June 2013 BC Shipping News 35

seafarers

Society’s support for centres recognizes the importance of seafarers.

By Captain George Adams

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Notwithstanding the extraordinary technological advances in communications, the life of today’s deepsea mariner is probably more isolated than ever.

became an autonomous body under Dominion Charter operating seafarers’ centres in its own name in ports from Sydney, Nova Scotia to Sidney, British Columbia, providing ship visits, accommodation and canteen services, library and writing facilities, social programs, compassionate care and counselling to visiting seafarers.

By the 1970s, the growing number of “competing” seafarers’ organizations in major Canadian ports persuaded the

Photo courtesy of the Mission to Seafarers.

eafarers’ centres have always provided comfort, relaxation, an understanding ear and, as far as is possible, a home away from home to seafarers visiting Canadian ports.

Today, the role of the International Seafarers’ Society Canada (ISSC), a Registered Canadian charity, is to provide support to those seafarers’ centres, both secular and ecumenical, through financial contributions towards their operating expenditures, grants to specific capital projects and, as requested, suggestions and advice.

The Society’s presence in Canada began in 1907 when the Rev. J. Wheeler, of the British Sailors’ Society in London, arrived to work with loggers and sailors in Vancouver. In 1949, the Society

Through its financial support, the ISSC helps organizations like the Mission to Seafarers who regularly visit ships’ crews onboard (shown above: Chaplain Ernst De Vries).

36 BC Shipping News June 2013

ISSC gradually to close its own branches across Canada and redefine its purpose to become the support agency of other centres.

Notwithstanding the extraordinary technological advances in communications, the life of today’s deepsea mariner is probably more isolated than ever.

In the middle of the last century, when some of the more mature amongst us (including the author), sailed these waters, the crews on most of the ships calling at our ports numbered up to 50.

Ships would spend many days, even weeks in our ports, firstly to discharge the inbound and then to load the outbound cargoes, frequently sitting idle for long periods. In-port working hours were much less than today — there was no evening work during the weekdays and no weekend work except perhaps for four hours on a Saturday morning.

This was all “pre-security” when the docks were usually wide open to the public and it was quite normal for the local populace, as part of their evening constitutional, to drive to and then stroll beside the tied-up ships, mingling with and talking to the seafarers, often inviting them to their homes.

The local populace took a great interest

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in the ships and their trades and as a result, were knowledgeable about the different trades, the cargoes carried and the visiting seafarers and some of their activities.

For the seafarer, those were relatively civilized times.

Although contact with home was by mail, which was slow and unreliable, great joy and excitement greeted the arrival of any familiar envelope.

One of the favourite places to visit during these lengthy port stays was the local seafarers’ centre of which there were many around the B.C. coast. Sports competitions, such as soccer games, were arranged between ships; weekly dances were held; and sightseeing outings were organized, all providing opportunities to meet local residents.

How times have changed! Today’s freighters are manned to a bare minimum, usually numbered in the teens, and port-time has been reduced significantly, virtually eliminating the opportunities for more than a very brief shore leave. Another outcome of smaller crews and longer confinement is the inability to avoid any disagreeable shipmates, of which there are usually a few. These factors, together with added security restrictions, have served to eliminate almost all contact between the seafarer and the port residents. Not only has the seafarer suffered as a result but most of the population of our ports now take the coming and going of ships for granted, quite unaware of the major part they play in the trade of this nation. They pay scant or no heed to the individuals manning the ships.

Off-setting these deteriorating conditions for the mariner has been a major improvement in communications between seafarers and their families. Today, I doubt any of them use letter-writing for maintaining their contacts — instead they make use of modern equipment and technology for almost instantaneous communications which offer also the opportunity to view the family member with whom they are speaking and even to watch the growth of young children.

Today, the mariner makes great use of the communications equipment and connections available at seafarers’ centres, facilities which are not available onboard their ships.

The sympathetic and understanding ear is still available as is moral support, encouragement and local information.

seafarers

Over the past 35 years, the ISSC has contributed over $800,000 to support and... help maintain the high quality of services ...by dedicated staff and volunteers.

To the mariner, the seafarers’ centre is as important as ever and yet, unfortunately, the public awareness of the institutions is remote at best and their financial and volunteer support scarce.

Over the past 35 years, the ISSC has contributed over $800,000 to support and develop centres and help maintain the high quality of services provided by their dedicated staff and volunteers. The financial reserves of the Society are supplemented by various events including dinners and auctions.

These fundraising activities do not compete with, nor do we wish to detract from those of local centres. They deserve support; we respond to the needs of centres in all Canadian ports.

We welcome enquiries and especially contributions to help us support seafarers who play such a critical part in the trades which are an essential part of our economy. Our contact information is available at www.sailorssociety.ca. We will be delighted to hear from you.

Photo credit: BC Shipping News.

Captain George Adams started his sea-going career as an apprentice with Shell Tankers Ltd. in 1954. Following positions with Furness Withy & Company Ltd. at sea and ashore, Adams moved to Vancouver where he began a career with Canadian Transport Company Ltd., ultimately becoming their President as well as Vice President of Transportation for MacMillan Bloedel Ltd. He has been a director of the International Sailors’ Society Canada since 2007 and its Chairman since 2009. Captain Adams can be reached at george_adams@telus.net.

The Mission to Seafarers’ new trailer at Roberts Bank came to fruition with some help from the ISSC. The centre give seafarers an opportunity to relax, shop for necessities or use a computer to contact home and family.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 37

What can Canada’s marine industries realistically offer to the rest of the world?

By R.G. Allan P.Eng Executive Chairman, Robert Allan Ltd.

T

he decision by the Government of Canada to implement the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy is certainly welcome by most in the Canadian marine industry. This is not the first attempt by the national government however to stimulate or support the shipbuilding industry: within the past 50 years there have been numerous efforts, either direct industry subsidies, tax investment strategies, or “clump-building” programs to bring needed work into Canadian shipyards. The last of these major support efforts was the SCRAP program (1984-1987) which resulted in the building of a dozen vessels for the Canadian Coast Guard and for Fisheries and Oceans Canada, but which ultimately did not stop the demise of the industry and the subsequent closure of many Canadian shipyards. Many criticized that program as it came after a period of some drought and then injected a lot of work simultaneously into yards that were struggling and non-competitive. The results were overly expensive ships, with no plan for sustaining the industry in the longer term. Many of the vessels built under that program are now facing mid-life refits and those requirements may compete for yard space with the demands of the new NSPS program.

Today, the industry certainly has a brighter outlook with a view to the future which has never before existed — certainly not in my 42 years in this industry. Although many of the last generation of skilled shipyard workers have left or retired early, there is an

38 BC Shipping News June 2013

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Although many of the last generation of skilled shipyard workers have left or retired early, there is an opportunity/need to train a new generation of shipbuilders in an era of a much more highly automated industry...

opportunity/need to train a new generation of shipbuilders in an era of a much more highly automated industry than when the last major vessels were built in this country.

But what is the end result? What will a revitalized shipbuilding industry mean to the country? Will the NSPS investment pay a dividend to the Canadian taxpayer? Ideally “yes”, and as an example, it is worthwhile to look at how the Canadian marine experience has provided our small company with a global advantage in some niche markets and the benefits that have ensued.

Robert Allan Ltd. is Canada’s most experienced consulting Naval Architecture firm and the only major Canadian company in this discipline not owned by a foreign consultant or a major international of Canadian shipbuilding interest. As such, we have the benefit of more than eight decades of completely independent experience in virtually every aspect of shipping in this country. Our domestic design history encompasses projects on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, in the Arctic and on many inland lakes and rivers in almost every province and territory of this country.

Robert Allan Ltd., in a joint venture with Alion Science and Technology of Alexandria, VA and Ottawa, named RALion, was awarded the contract for the design of the first vessels to be constructed under the NSPS program: the Offshore Fisheries Science Vessels (OFSV). This OFSV design credential was instrumental in the RALion design team winning a subsequent design contract with the Government of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, (CSIRO), Australia’s national science agency, for a major oceanographic research vessel. The 90-metre, $120million sophisticated ice class research vessel RV Investigator is now nearing completion at Sembawang Shipyard in Singapore. In contrast to this fasttracked project, the OFSV project is still under development as Seaspan Shipyards prepare production drawings and deal with the significant infrastructure upgrades necessary in order to build these and the subsequent larger vessels of the NSPS program.

This is an excellent example of how initial Canadian experience has helped Robert Allan Ltd. to build a truly international business on the strength of local experience. This is not a unique

nsps

The 90-metre Australian Oceanographic Research vessel, RV Investigator. example however, and the spin-offs are certainly not dependent on government programs, but rather on a lot of hard work and business development efforts. Other examples of such “local to global” business include: • Experience from the 1970s designing icebreaking supply vessels for the Beaufort Sea has been instrumental in Robert Allan Ltd. winning design contracts for icebreaking Offshore Support Vessels for oilfield exploration in the Caspian Sea. That shallow draft environment, coupled with the constraints of the canal system which enables access into the Caspian, very closely mirrored the early design constraints of the Beaufort. In 2004, we designed four 65-metre OSVs for Lukoil, built in Singapore.

In early April of this year, we were again selected as the designers of two more classes of 80-metre long icebreaking OSVs. This contract was awarded by the Turkish-based Palmali Group of Companies, and the vessels will be built

by Besiktas Shipyard of Altinova, Turkey. Upon delivery, the vessels will be chartered to the Lukoil Oil Company of Astrakhan, Russia. Three vessels in total are to be built and delivered by the end of 2014.

The first design, designated as a TundRA 8000 OSV, of which two will be built, is for a shallow-draft icebreaking OSV, capable of operating in 90 cm of ice. The second design, designated as a TundRA 8000 MSRV, will

be a multifunctional standby/rescue variant capable of breaking 120 cm of ice. One of the MSRV design has been ordered.

• In a similar vein, our northern Canadian experience, gained initially in the early 1970s designing very shallow draft tug-barge systems for the Mackenzie River and its tributaries, has been instrumental in winning contracts for major pusher tugs and barge fleets for mega-project developments using the Rio Parana/Rio Paraguay waterway of South America. Currently under construction at Uzmar Shipyard in Turkey are eight 5000 kW, triple-screw Z-drive pusher tugs with 2.5 m maximum draft, and at ZPMC shipyard in Shanghai, China, a flotilla of 148 hopper barges, each with a cargo capacity of 3,000 tonnes of iron ore at 3.96 m draft.

• Finally, and by no means least important, we are forever indebted to the C.H. Cates & Sons Company (now part of the Washington Marine Group) for selecting Robert Allan Ltd. in the late 1960s as their consulting Naval Architects.

Working closely with the Cates organization for almost 40 years provided us with an opportunity to develop and refine some extremely unique ship-handling tug designs.

That experience laid the foundation for the emergence of Robert Allan Ltd. as the leading tug designer internationally, accounting for 35-40 per cent of published worldwide tug deliveries in the world today. Currently, there is on average one tug delivered every week somewhere in the world that is a Robert Allan Ltd. design.

Robert Allan Ltd. is a 100 per cent Canadian company, now owned entirely by a group of its senior employees. The company has experienced exceptional growth over the past 20 years, capitalizing on turning local design experience and expertise into a highly successful global business. In those 20 years, our turnover has increased about 15-fold. Employment has increased from about 15-20 persons to more than 75.

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...the spin-offs are certainly not dependent on government programs, but rather on a lot of hard work and business development efforts.

Original 1974 Beaufort Sea icebreakers (left), and Caspian Sea Icebreaking OSV (2004) (right).

June 2013 BC Shipping News 39

nsps

One of eight 5000 kW S/D Pusher Tugs for Brazilian owners, under construction in Turkey.

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...the common theme of all of these Canadian projects is unique, specialized vessels designed to operate in the remote areas and harsh environment of Canada’s outlying regions...

Since 2000, more than $5 Billion worth of new vessels have been built worldwide to designs from this Vancouverbased consulting company!

It would be incorrect to state that this growth was the direct result of any government program in Canada, but the examples cited come entirely from the Canadian experience and from projects where there was some government involvement (e.g. Crown Corporations

40 BC Shipping News June 2013

or support in the form of accelerated depreciation plans, etc.). All those vessels were also built in this country at a time when the local shipbuilding industry was thriving and there was a lot of domestic work, creating a very competitive environment. We would also certainly acknowledge the valuable contribution of the Scientific Research and Development (SRED) tax credit scheme that enabled us to

conduct some much needed research into the fledgling escort towing industry. The wider industry strength at the time however was the result primarily of resource development aided by some incentive financing, so it is hard to say that there was not an indirect influence of one or more government programs on these projects. But the common theme of all of these Canadian projects is unique, specialized vessels designed to operate in the remote areas and harsh environment of Canada’s outlying regions, often far from support services. Those same traits in a design are much sought after in many areas of the world, and the company that can demonstrate an understanding of those challenges will benefit.

So, what ultimate benefits will Canadian industries and the Canadian taxpayer see from the NSPS program?

Ideally, the result will be a revitalized and strengthened shipbuilding industry capable of dealing efficiently with all domestic shipbuilding requirements. We cannot realistically hope to compete with large volume, low-cost builders in China, Korea and Japan.

The strength of the Canadian shipbuilding industry has always been in the smaller, uniquely specialized working craft that support the coastal communities and industries of this country, but efficiencies will only be achieved with a consistent volume of work. The OFSV vessels designed by RALion, to be constructed at Seaspan Shipyards, are of this ilk, but these are also typical

NSPs of vessel types currently being built in many lower-cost shipyards worldwide.

We can thus expect perhaps some modest export success, but primarily we should be hoping for cost-effective and efficient domestic production so there should be no excuse to build ferries or similar service craft outside of Canada.

In the support sectors of this industry, a healthy local shipbuilding sector will provide opportunities for a few select businesses which can use the opportunity created by NSPS to develop high-quality products and develop international sales as a result.

The same can certainly be said for Canadian Naval Architects; both locally trained and skilled immigrants.

Involvement in NSPS and the attendant industry revitalization provides invaluable experience. The specialty ship design experience is, as our own business has shown, an eminently exportable commodity.

Robert G. Allan is currently Executive Chairman of Robert Allan Ltd. The company is established as an international leader in commercial small craft design with a staff of highly qualified professionals who handle a wide variety of projects for clients around the world.

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The TundRA 8000 MSRV, an 80-metre Shallow Draft Icebreaker.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 41

Current Design & Under Construction Projects 42 BC Shipping News June 2013

design@ral.ca

On average, approximately one Robert Allan Ltd. designed tug is launched every week somewhere around the globe!

June 2013 BC Shipping News 43

ferries Networking while learning about customer service in the marine transport sector: CFOA’s 2013 Conference Serge Buy, CEO, Canadian Ferry Operators Association

O

Other notable events during the conference will be: • The launch of CFOA’s Best Practices Library • Unveiling the results of the “Economic and Social Footprint” survey of the ferry sector in Canada • Great networking opportunities with senior representatives of the ferry sector in Canada and other stakeholders (such as government officials, suppliers, etc.)

• A fantastic trade show with the world’s leading suppliers to the ferry sector For more information on the CFOA 2013 Conference, please visit our website (www.cfoa.ca).

Registration for the Conference, including sponsors and exhibitors, has been open for the past month. We have been pleased to see a very good start to the registration process, which confirms that this Conference will be an exciting and groundbreaking event.

Ferries are often forgotten when people think of Canada’s transportation

Photo credit: BC Shipping News

perators of Canadian ferries are embarking on a set of new and bold steps that will see them come together as an industry to better advocate for the sector, learn and share new concepts and meet with an increased number of stakeholders.

This renewal of the Canadian Ferry Operators Association will be on display at the Association’s 2013 Conference in St. John’s, NL (September 23-24).

The theme of this year’s conference is “Charting the Course: Innovative Approaches to Customer Relations”.

The intent is to learn what is being done in the sector to attract and retain customers as well as enhance their experience onboard ferries. The topics of this year’s sessions are: • How to make the most of existing customers • How to better serve our customers onboard • Marketing our services to new clients The theme of the conference and the topics of the sessions have attracted experts in their fields to provide informative sessions on the overall process: how to engage customers through social media, ways to train employees on customer relations and techniques used by some ferry operators.

The 2012 CFOA Conference in Victoria, B.C. — many attendees and a sold out trade show made for great networking opportunities.

44 BC Shipping News June 2013

infrastructure. However, the use of this mode of public transportation pre-dates Confederation! First Nations peoples used boats to ferry passengers through waterways and the early settlers used them to transport civilians, military personnel and goods. The ferry sector has had an important presence in Canada since its early days.

Furthermore, the ferry sector will continue to play a significant role in our transportation infrastructure going forward due to the low environmental impact of ferries (in comparison to other modes of transportation), their capacity to access hard-to-reach places and remote communities and their ability to transport passengers, vehicles and goods to various locations.

The ferry sector’s economic impact (through direct and indirect job creation, the low cost of transporting goods by ferry and the fact that they are often the only way for tourists to reach some beautiful communities) is also something that is often missed when discussions are held about ferries. However, the benefits of the ferry sector need to be recognized and promoted. That is CFOA’s role, and that is why we work with stakeholders and meet with parliamentarians, senior officials and Ministers’ offices.

We welcome your involvement in our association. By joining our association as one of our operator members, industry members (suppliers mainly) or interested parties (very small companies, academics, etc.), or by attending our 2013 Conference, you can be involved and participate in the renewal of the sector.

Come and join the excitement in St. Johns for CFOA’s 2013 Conference: www.cfoa.ca.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 45

Administrative Monetary Penalties under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001

By Malik Akhtar

T

ransport Canada Marine Safety (TCMS) introduced the Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMP) regime in 2008 following implementation of the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (CSA 2001). The AMP regime was introduced to provide modern compliance tools for Marine Safety frontline managers and inspectors and to deal with the non-compliance in a timely fashion. In order to structure the discretion and provide clear guiding principles on how and what monetary penalties will be assessed against each violation, Transport Canada has developed a comprehensive Compliance and Enforcement Policy and Procedures. These policies and procedures are open to the public and can be accessed through the Transport Canada website (www.tc.gc.ca).

All Transport Canada employees and Marine Safety Inspectors are bound to respect these policies and procedures while implementing the AMP regime.

For example, the procedure for assessing an AMP against an alleged offender is as follows: First, the inspector completes the investigation, determines if an AMP is the appropriate enforcement response and confirms that the contravention is designated as a violation in the AMP Regulations. The inspector then determines who should be held accountable — the vessel (or its representative) or the master or crew.

Further, the inspector determines the appropriate AMP amount, making reference to the penalty range prescribed in the Regulations and respecting the Transport Canada policy. Finally, the

46 BC Shipping News June 2013

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The AMP regime was introduced to provide modern compliance tools for Marine Safety frontline managers and inspectors and to deal with the non-compliance in a timely fashion.

inspector drafts a Notice of Violation (NOV) and, if appropriate, an accompanying letter that offers the alleged offender an opportunity to make representations at an informal meeting with a regional designating officer (one is identified in each region across Canada).

Under the AMP regime, Transport Canada has designated almost all of the offences listed in the CSA, 2001 accompanied by a range of monetary penalties with a maximum fine of up to$ 25,000.

While ranges are set, further discretion in how to arrive at a specific amount is controlled by policy. By policy, each violation designated under the regime has been categorized into three tiers: minor, medium and serious, and monetary values are assigned accordingly.

Similarly, the penalty amounts cab vary depending on the frequency of the violation so that each subsequent violation/offence can be treated with a more severe monetary penalty.

The following table gives an overview of how TCMS inspectors are directed to interpret and apply such ranges: Baseline AMP amounts for individuals are outlined in Figure 1.

The following simple example demonstrates how Marine Safety inspectors should calculate penalties: A foreign passenger vessel with no previous TCMS enforcement record was investigated for

a contravention of section 187 of the CSA 2001 (discharge of a prescribed pollutant). Based on the evidence available, it cannot be proven whether the discharge was an isolated event or occurred over a period of a few days. The discharge resulted in some minor harm to a few birds and other aquatic life although this was contained to a small area. Despite the evidence, the master of the vessel denies his responsibility for the discharge and does not co-operate during the investigation.

The inspector determines that assessing an AMP against the vessel is the appropriate enforcement response.

The inspector then determines the appropriate amount: • Step 1: Annex 1 of the AMP regime includes section 187 of the CSA 2001 with a penalty range of $1,250 to $25,000 and identifies section 187 as being of “high gravity”.

• Step 2: Using the baseline AMP table for corporations and vessels, the amount for a first offence of high gravity is $6,000.

• Step 3: Section 243 of CSA 2001 does not apply (i.e., if a violation of Part 4 — Safety — is committed by a Canadian vessel while under agreement to ensure compliance is carried out by an authorized representative, the penalty is doubled). The vessel is foreign, the violation in question was

REGULATIONS Baseline AMP amounts for individuals Gravity Ist offence 2nd offence

Low $250 $500 Medium $600 $1,200 High $1000 $ 2,500

3rd or subsequent $1,000 $2,400 $5,000

Baseline AMP amounts for corporations and vessels Gravity Ist offence 2nd offence 3rd or subsequent Low $1,000 $2,000 $5,000 Medium $3,000 $6,000 $12,000 High $6,000 $ 12,000 $25,000 Table 1: baseline penalties. not under Part 4 of the CSA 2001 and no TCMS approved self-inspection program was in place. The AMP-regulated penalty range is not doubled and the AMP baseline amount is not doubled. The baseline amount remains at $6,000.

• Step 4: Based on the extent of harm to the environment and the master’s attitude, it could be considered appropriate to increase the AMP amount by 10 to15 per cent, say to $6,900.

• Step 5: $6,900 is well within the regulated penalty range ($1,250 to $25,000) for violations related to section 187.

• Step 6: Section 187 is identified (in the Administrative Monetary Penalties Regulations and reflected in Annex 1) as a violation of a continuing nature. Because of the lack of evidence that the violation was more than an isolated occurrence however, the violation should not be considered to have taken place over a period of days. A separate AMP should not be assessed for each day of the vessel’s operation in the waters in question.

• Result: the NOV is drafted with the AMP amount set at $6,900.

In the case of a disagreement, the alleged violators are encouraged to raise their concerns with the regional designating officer in accordance with the policy. Transport Canada has designated one individual in each region who can potentially reduce the monetary penalty by up to 30 per cent, depending on mitigating circumstances. In any event, there is no harm to discuss your case with the respective designating officer to understand and assess your options. While alleged offenders are encouraged to do so within 30 days of the issuance of the Notice of Violation, there are no hard and fast rules that would prohibit discussions being initiated at any stage of the file.

As an alleged offender, a person, vessel or corporation has the right to request full disclosure of all evidence possessed

by Transport Canada. Should the alleged offender wish to challenge the NOV, they can do so by requesting a review to the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada (TATC or the Tribunal) in writing or by phone. It is always good idea to keep a record of all of your correspondence with Transport Canada officials or with the Tribunal, especially the dates when you requested a review as, in some cases, this may become an issue — although the deadline for such reviews is normally 30 days

from the day the NOV is issued, a review can be requested even after that expiry date. The final decision rests with the Tribunal and will be decided by any extraneous circumstances or the nature of the individual case. Normally, the Tribunal is flexible and will allow the parties a review even after 30 days.

During the review hearing, the burden of proof is on Transport Canada to prove their case on the basis of a “balance of probabilities”. This burden is significantly less when compared to the “balance of beyond reasonable doubt” and as such, hearsay evidence may be permissible.

Since coming into force, Transport Canada has issued numerous Notices of Violation. These cases can be accessed through Transport Canada’s website. The success rate to overturn a NOV during the review hearing is mixed and depends on the merits of each case. So far though, most cases that have involved a review at the first or second level have been decided in favour of the alleged offender. All review decisions of the Tribunal review hearing at first or second level can be accessed through their website: www.tatc.gc.ca (under Guide for Applicants — Canadian Transportation Agency).

Malik Akhtar is a freelance writer and expert in Administrative Law especially the Administrative Monetary Penalty Regime set by Transport Canada and would welcome any comments or feedback regarding this article. If you have received a Notice of Violation and considering your options to request for a review, feel free to contact the author at mamalik771@gmail.com for a free consultation.

Vancouver Maritime Arbitrators Association To provide the maritime industry with a set of practical rules and experienced arbitrators and mediators in order to promote and achieve the efficient and impartial resolution of maritime disputes and claims in Vancouver.

For more information: 604.681.2351 secretary@vmaa.org

www.vmaa.org June 2013 BC Shipping News 47

Collisions 101

By Paul D. Mooney

A Vancouver Lawyer with Bernard LLP

A

number of large scale collisions and allisions (striking an inanimate object such as a dock or pier) seem to be making the news of late. Although most competent mariners are generally knowledgeable about this topic and what is required if a collision occurs, the following is a general refresher on the legislation governing collisions and some of the requirements that must be met if a collision occurs.

The Collision Regulations The Collision Regulations, C.R.C. c.

1416 are regulations issued under the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 (and its predecessor legislation). They adopt the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (COLREGS 1972), with modifications specific to Canada. COLREGS 1972 revised the international rules for navigation that had been in place for over a century.1 The Collision Regulations are the ‘rules of the road’. They are divided into five parts; Part A deals with general principles, Part B deals with steering and sailing rules relevant to collisions, Part C governs the lights and shapes that ships must show for identification, Part D sets out the standard sound and light signals, and Part E has information on exempted vessels.

The rules, as laid out by the Collision Regulations, are not specifically designed for the finding of liability,

1 Maritime Law, Edgar Gold et al. (Irwin Law 2003)

48 BC Shipping News June 2013

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...the following is a general refresher on the legislation governing collisions and some of the requirements that must be met if a collision occurs.

fault, or damages. However, where it is found that a breach of the rules has occurred such a finding often follows. Of specific note is Rule 2 which provides: “Rule 2 — Responsibility (a) Nothing in these Rules shall exonerate any vessel, or the owner, master or crew thereof, from the consequences of any neglect to comply with these Rules or of the neglect of any precaution which may be required by the ordinary practice of seamen, or by the special circumstances of the case. (b) In construing and complying with these Rules due regard shall be had to all dangers of navigation and collision and to any special circumstances, including the limitations of the vessels involved, which may make a departure from these Rules necessary to avoid immediate danger.”

Part B, dealing with navigation, is the section that is particularly relevant in respect of collisions as there will generally be a failure of one or more of these rules when a collision takes place. The rules under Part B deal with, inter alia, maintaining a proper lookout, safe speed, assessing the risk of collision, taking actions (if necessary) to avoid collisions, navigating in narrow channels and navigating in traffic separation schemes as well as conduct

of vessels in sight of one another or alternatively with restricted views.

Canada Shipping Act, 2001 The Canada Shipping Act, 2001 sets out certain requirements to be complied with in the case of a collision.

Section 148 If vessels collide, the master or person in charge of each vessel shall, if and in so far as they can to do so without endangering their vessel, crew or passengers, (a) render to the other vessel, its master, crew and passengers the assistance that may be necessary to save them from any danger caused by the collision, and to stay by the other vessel until the master or person has determined that it has no need of further assistance; and (b) give the name of their vessel, if any, the name and address of its authorized representative, if any, and any other prescribed information to the master or person in charge of the other vessel.

Failure to comply with the requirement under s.148(a) is an offence pursuant to s.151 with penalties upon conviction ranging from a fine up to $1 million or imprisonment for up to 18 months or both. Failure to comply with the requirements under s.148(b) is also

legal affairs an offence pursuant to s.152 with a penalty upon conviction of a fine up to $10,000.

In addition to complying with these requirements, s.29 of the Pacific Pilotage Regulations provides that: “If a ship that is subject to compulsory pilotage or in respect of which a waiver has been granted is involved in a marine occurrence, the person in charge of the deck watch at the time of the marine occurrence shall, at the earliest opportunity, submit to the Authority a full report of the marine occurrence on a report form provided by the Authority for that use.”

“Marine occurrence” is defined, among other things, as “any accident or incident associated with the operation of a ship” and hence it includes a collision or allision.

Furthermore, in the cases of collisions (and depending on the seriousness of any allision) reports are also required to be made to Transport Canada and/or the Transportation Safety Board. Ship owners and operators need to be aware of which reports are required to ensure full compliance with each regulatory agency.

Marine Liability Act The Marine Liability Act is the piece of legislation specifically designed for the finding of liability, fault, and the determination of damages in cases of collisions or allisions.

Not only does the Marine Liability Act deal with liability, fault and damages for personal injuries or fatalities in a maritime context, including collisions and allisions, it also provides for “dependent claims” as well. This means that certain related individuals (as defined in s.4) can make claims in addition to those persons who are injured or killed.

In determining who is responsible in a collision, s.17(1) provides that: “(1) Where loss is caused by the fault or neglect of two or more persons or ships, their liability is proportionate to the degree to which they are respectively at fault or negligent and, if it is not possible to determine different degrees of fault or neglect, their liability is equal.”

Liability of the ship in this instance includes liability of any person

responsible for the navigation, management, fault or neglect of the ship [see s.17(4)].

Additionally, in a situation where a collision occurs between two (or more) vessels, each of which is responsible, and an innocent person is injured, then each of the vessels is liable to the injured party for the full amount of damages.

In such a case, the injured party can collect their entire damage award against either responsible vessel of their choice.

A Court will then determine how fault is split between the offending ships to determine any amount of contribution between them [see s.17(2)].

Federal Courts Act Specific jurisdiction in respect of collisions between vessels, or between vessels and fixed or floating objects, can be found in section 22(2) of the Federal Courts Act: (2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), for greater certainty, the Federal Court has jurisdiction with respect to all of the following: … (d) any claim for damage or for loss of life or personal injury caused by a ship either in collision or otherwise...

Rules pertaining to admiralty practice Rule 498(1) requires that in the case for an action in respect of a collision, the statement of claim used to commence the action need only contain enough information about the collision to identify the parties. However, a party to an action must file a sealed preliminary act within 10 days of a statement of claim or statement of defence.

The preliminary act must state the particulars of the collision, and include pertinent details of weather, visibility, tide, a description of the vessel, as well as the observations of the movement of the other vessel [see Rule 498(2)].

According to subsection (7), the preliminary act shall be read with and form a part of the statement of claim.

The purpose of the preliminary act is “to get a statement from the parties of the circumstances recenti facto, and to prevent the defendant from shaping his case to meet the case put forward by the plaintiff.” (British Oil and Cake Mills ltd. v. Hohn H. Whitaker (Tankers) Ltd., [1964] 1 W.L.R. 1474 at p.1476) If, in giving testimony, a party gives oral evidence that is different from that of the preliminary act, the

When things go wrong...

June 2013 BC Shipping News 49

legal affairs court may hold the party to the admissions in the preliminary act.2 As stated in Coy v. “D.J. Purdy” (The), 19 Ex. C.R. 212, “ A Statement of fact in a preliminary act is a formal admission binding the party making it, and can only be departed from by special leave.”

However, the Court is not bound to what is found within the preliminary acts. Rather, it can proceed to use the information that it deems to be most accurate and trustworthy. A party may seek leave of the Court to amend their preliminary act, but otherwise, it may be used against them if it contradicts the evidence that they, or their witnesses adduce at trial. Where, however, there has been insufficient information provided in the preliminary act, the court may direct a question to be properly answered and the preliminary act amended accordingly (Montreal Transportation Co. v. New Marsden on Collisions at Sea, (12th) ed,, London, 1998, p.596.

2

50 BC Shipping News June 2013

Ontario Steamship Co, 40 S.C.R. 160).

Even where one vessel claims that no collision has taken place, preliminary acts will be required to be filed (British Oil and Cake Mills ltd, supra).

Limitation periods Lastly, everyone should be aware of the time limits for commencing a claim in the case of a collision or allision.

Under s.14 of the Marine Liability Act, the time for commencing a dependant action for personal injury is within two years after the cause of action arose, and for fatalities a dependant action must be commenced within two years from the date of death.

In a collision between two vessels, section 23 of the Marine Liability Act provides a limitation date of two years for claims against the vessel and the vessel’s owner as follows: “Limitation period for claim or lien 23. (1) No action may be commenced later than two years after the loss or

injury arose to enforce a claim or lien against a ship in collision or its owners in respect of any loss to another ship, its cargo or other property on board, or any loss of earnings of that other ship, or for damages for loss of life or personal injury suffered by any person on board that other ship, caused by the fault or neglect of the former ship, whether that ship is wholly or partly at fault or negligent.

Extension of time by court (2) A court having jurisdiction to deal with an action referred to in subsection (1) (a) may, in accordance with the rules of court, extend the period referred to in that subsection to the extent and on the conditions that it thinks fit; and (b) shall, if satisfied that there has not during that period been a reasonable opportunity of arresting the ship within the jurisdiction of the court, or within the territorial waters of the country to which the claimant’s ship belongs or in which the claimant resides or has their

principal place of business, extend that period to an extent sufficient to provide that reasonable opportunity.

Definition of “owner” (3) In this section, “owner”, in relation to a ship, includes any person responsible for the navigation and management of the ship or any other person responsible for the fault or neglect of the ship.”

In addition to personal injury claims, s.23 also applies to property claims, specifically any loss to another ship, its cargo or other property on board, or any loss of earnings of that other ship.

Pursuant to s.23(2) the Court has the ability to extend the limitation date.

It should be noted, however, that s.23 only applies to “collisions”. In the case of allisions, there is an argument to be made that the time limit for commencing an action is governed by s.140 of the Marine Liability Act, the catch-all provision.

S.140 of the Marine Liability Act provides that:

*

legal affairs In cases of a serious collision or allision, or a situation where the potential for a claim may arise, it is important that competent maritime counsel be contacted immediately.

“Except as otherwise provided in this Act or in any other Act of Parliament, no proceedings under Canadian maritime law in relation to any matter coming within the class of navigation and shipping may be commenced later than three years after the day on which the cause of action arises.”

These are just a few issues to be considered in the case of a collision or allision. In cases of a serious collision or allision, or a situation where the potential for a claim may arise, it is important that competent maritime counsel be contacted immediately. At the preliminary stage alone, various agencies may be attempting to commence investigation proceedings. Critical tevidence will need to

be obtained not only for these investigations but for any injury claims (property or personal) which may potentially arise. Additionally, interviews may also need to be conducted and liability accurately assessed. Counsel can assist in all such manners as well as provide advice on commencing and/ or prosecuting possible claims.

Paul Mooney is an associate lawyer with Bernard LLP. His practice includes enforcement of maritime liens, debt collection, vessel arrest and security, carriage of cargo, collision, marine insurance, bodily injury, and constitutional issues arising in a marine context. Paul can be reached at mooney@bernardpartners.com.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 51

technology Marine propulsion systems — jet drive technology

W

aterjet propulsion systems have undergone significant advances since first conceived over 70 years ago, especially for commercial applications like workboats, patrol, search and rescue and military craft.

A comparison to the more traditional stern drive or outboard motor shows that today’s jet drives offer greater efficiency at high speed, have superior manoeuvrability, lower maintenance and better shallow-draft capabilities, all very relevant requirements for commercial vessels that require speed, stability and flexibility. To take us through the benefits of jet drive technology, BC Shipping News enlisted the help of HamiltonJet, manufacturers of marine jet units as well as electronic and hydraulic control systems, and Jastram Technologies Ltd., the HamiltonJet’s exclusive Canadian distributer.

The concept of pump-jet engines was developing in the early 1930s by Italian inventor Secondo Campini. It wasn’t until the 1950s however that Sir William Hamilton, founder of CWF Hamilton & Co. Ltd. (of which HamiltonJet is a subsidiary), was the first to develop the concept into a product for commercial application.

To explain how a waterjet works, a good example is to think of the thrust felt when holding a powerful fire hose.

Put simply, the discharge of a high velocity jet stream generates a reaction force in the opposite direction which is transferred through the body of the jet unit to the craft’s hull, propelling it forward. In a boat hull the jet unit is mounted inboard in the aft section.

Water enters the jet unit intake on the bottom of the boat, at boat speed, and is accelerated through the jet unit and discharged through the transom at a high velocity. Steering is achieved by changing the direction of the stream of water as it leaves the jet unit. Reverse is achieved by lowering an astern deflector into the jetstream after it leaves the nozzle. This reverses the direction of the force generated by the jet stream, forward and down, to keep the boat stationary or propel it in the astern direction.

52 BC Shipping News June 2013

Early waterjets were limited to small, high-speed boats mainly used in shallow rivers but, as each successive generation has been developed, the benefits of its use for larger commercial vessels have been realized. The technological advances that have enhanced design, performance, cost and durability have led to a viable — and in some cases more suitable — option for commercial craft.

Comparative review Operational flexibility: Without a doubt, when operating in shallow water, jet drives have an advantage over stern drives or outboards whose propellers will hit bottom far sooner.

Because the waterjet intake is flush

with the hull bottom, access to shallow water areas is made easier and beach landings can be performed without risk of damage to the drive. The absence of any underwater appendages also reduces hull resistance and, because the jet drive’s propeller is protected, it is safer for operation around people and marine life.

Jet drives are considered better when it comes to maneuverability, including reverse functionalities and precise steering control at all boat speeds. While early models of waterjets were known to be poor performers in maneuverability at low speeds, this is no longer the case in the more modern series. The ‘zero speed’ steering effect provides for 360-degree

Significant differences between jet drives and stern drives are easily identified in the above images. The HamiltonJet model HJ322, above, is compared to a Volvo Penta Model 290.

technology Conclusion The evolution of jet drive technology has outpaced that of traditional stern drives and outboards, especially for commercial craft like search and rescue or patrol vessels. The Pacific Pilotage Authority uses jet drives on all three of their primary vessels (Pacific Navigator, Pacific Scout and Pacific Pathfinder); the RCM-SAR currently has six jet vessels in service with two more under construction and the fireboats that currently service Victoria and Vancouver are also using jet drives. The Department of National Defence has six waterjet vessels in their Fleet Diving Units and there are hundreds of HJ 212’s currently installed and in use across Canada for shallow river operation. HamiltonJet has manufactured more than 10,000

thrusting ability for docking and holding stationary. Even sideways movement is possible with multiple jet installations.

Overall, the modern waterjet is comparable to and will deliver the same efficiency as a propeller in an appropriate hull form — and in some cases (depending on hull design, weight and other factors), jet drives will exceed propeller systems at 25-plus knots.

Photo credits: BC Shipping News

Maintenance, length of life: Other than some lubrication of the main bearing and driveline and changing the anodes as needed, jet drives require virtually no maintenance for the first 3,000 hours of operation and will last for upwards of 10,000 hours or operation. In comparison, commercial operators are commonly reporting failures of stern drives within 1,000 hours of operation but, given their greater likelihood for damage to propellers, many are worn out or destroyed long before that benchmark can be hit. A jet drive’s simple construction and design provides for very simple repair and maintenance procedures. The lack of protruding propulsion eliminates impact damage and snags, significantly reducing costly repairs and downtime. While stern drives may generally be less expensive to purchase initially, repairs, maintenance and more complex design (most notably, seals around the prop shaft or rubber bellows can leak, leading to total failure of the drive system) will quickly drive up costs.

units of the HJ 212 (sold through Jastram Technologies in Canada).

As each key technological development has led to greater efficiency, power and speed or jet drives, HamiltonJet has been the leader in this sector — so much so that William Hamilton was recognized for his “services to manufacturing” with a knighthood in 1974.

The New Zealand company that bears his name to this day, has continued on with Hamilton’s research into waterjet design, production and service. Today, they employ over 300 people and have a network of distributors in over 50 locations. For more about Hamilton’s achievements in progressively advancing the capabilities of that technology, please visit www.hamiltonjet.co.nz or www.jastramtechnologies.com.

The Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue (RCM-SAR) uses HamiltonJet model HJ274’s for six vessels currently in operation along the coast of B.C. from Victoria to Prince Rupert. RCM-SAR 27 (Nanaimo) is featured above. The image below clearly shows the advantages of improved access and additional deck space when comparing jet drives to outboard motors.

Additional advantages • The possibility of engine overload — under any condition or weight — is eliminated given that the jet unit impeller is matched to engine power.

The impellers rpm’s are not sensitive to boat loading so a jet can’t overload the engine once they are correctly matched.

• There is no hull vibration, no torque effect and no high speed cavitation, providing for a smoother ride.

• Jet drives have a low underwater acoustic signature.

• Jet drives are easier to trailer and launch given that there is nothing hanging down to drag on the boat launch.

June 2013 BC Shipping News 53

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