Ocean monitoring will improve outcomes if ways of knowing and priorities from a range of interest groups are successfully integrated. Coastal Indigenous communities hold unique knowledge of the ocean gathered through many generations of inter-dependent living with marine ecosystems. Experiences and observations from living within that system have generated ongoing local and traditional ecological knowledge (LEK and TEK) and Indigenous knowledge (IK) upon which localized sustainable management strategies have been based. Consequently, a comprehensive approach to ocean monitoring should connect academic practices (“science”) and local community and Indigenous practices, encompassing “TEK, LEK, and IK.” This paper recommends research approaches and methods for connecting scientists, local communities, and IK holders and their respective knowledge systems, and priorities, to help improve marine ecosystem management. Case studies from Canada and New Zealand (NZ) highlight the emerging recognition of IK systems in natural resource management, policy and economic development. The in-depth case studies from Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) and the new Moana Project, NZ highlight real-world experiences connecting IK with scientific monitoring programs. Trial-tested recommendations for successful collaboration include practices for two-way knowledge sharing between scientists and communities, co-development of funding proposals, project plans and educational resources, mutually agreed installation of monitoring equipment, and ongoing sharing of data and research results. We recommend that future ocean monitoring research be conducted using cross-cultural and/or transdisciplinary approaches. Vast oceans and relatively limited monitoring data coupled with the urgency of a changing climate emphasize the need for all eyes possible providing new data and insights. Community members and ocean monitoring scientists in joint research teams are essential for increasing ocean information using diverse methods compared with previous scientific research. Research partnerships can also ensure impactful outcomes through improved understanding of community needs and priorities.
Active monitoring of transverse stability in fishing vessels is paramount due to its significant incidence in operational accidents. Access to systems for automatic detection of changes in vessel’s stability related parameters would better support the crew during fishing and navigation operations. The paper presents an initial experimental validation of a signal-based transverse stability monitoring system, which consists of an estimator-detector kernel that solely uses measurements of roll motion to identify changes in vessel’s metacentric height by estimating the roll natural frequency. Its performance is evaluated based on experimental data from a towing tank scale model test campaign. The proposed transverse stability monitoring system well performs by identifying the potential risks and changes in loading condition.
The 0.1% limit in sulphur content within Sulphur Emission Control Areas as of 1st January 2015 requires that ship operators either use pricier ultra-low sulphur fuel oil, or alternatively install abatement technologies through substantial capital investments. A part of the resulting higher operating costs are passed on to shippers resulting in increased freight rates. These may lead to modal shifts towards rail or road options competing with Ro-Ro operators. Due to the unexpectedly low fuel prices in the period 2014–2016, Ro-Ro operators were relatively unharmed by the new limits, but nascent research has shown that if fuel prices increase some Ro-Ro services may not survive. This paper examines a set of policy options that can mitigate or reverse the negative effects of the low-sulphur regulation. The measures include internalizing external costs of transport, repaying fuel surcharges to shippers, subsidizing technological investments of ship operators, or increasing the landbased costs of transport via levies. To compare their efficacy, total costs are calculated for each measure. The results show that the proposed measures can successfully reduce the negative effects of the regulation but this would entail significant costs. A combination of subsidies towards shippers and ship operators is shown to be effective at reversing potential modal shifts and can be crucial in case of high fuel prices in the near future. The findings of this work can assist operators to develop new strategies and improve the resilience of their network, and regulators designing environmental policies that may have negative implications on certain sectors.
Background: Fatigue is a concern in ferry shipping as it has a negative impact on crew members health and plays a major role in marine incidents and accidents. Research within land-based occupational settings has found that work-family conflict is an important risk factor for fatigue and that support from leaders constitutes a possible resource with the potential to buffer a negative impact from work-family conflict. Though, the working conditions of ferry shipping are likely to interfere with employee's family life those two factors have received little attention in research on seafarers' health. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the direct associations between work-family conflict as well as leaders' support with fatigue in employees of the Danish ferry shipping industry. Further, the study aimed at testing whether support could buffer potential detrimental associations between work-family conflict and fatigue. Methods: The study design was cross-sectional, and 193 respondents answered to a self-administered questionnaire. Fatigue was measured with the Swedish Occupational Fatigue Inventory. Perceived work-family conflict and perceived supervisor support were assessed with two subscales from the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire. The association of potential risk factors with fatigue was determined using hierarchical multiple linear regression analyses. Results: After controlling for confounding, work-family conflict was found to be positively associated with four of the five subdimensions of fatigue; lack of energy, physical discomfort, lack of motivation and sleepiness, while more support from supervisors was related to less lack of energy, physical exhaustion and lack of motivation. Further, supervisor support was found to moderate the effect from work-family conflict on the physical subdimensions of fatigue. Conclusion: Although restricted by its cross-sectional design and a limited sample, this study provides support for the independent relevance of work family conflict and support from nearest superior for employee fatigue in ferry shipping. Further, there was evidence for a moderating role of such support on the negative impact of work-family conflict on the physical aspects of fatigue. Shipping companies may consider commencing initiatives which reduce conflicts between family life and work obligations, and that leader support may be a relevant component in such initiatives.
Objectives Characterisation of worker injuries on board merchant ships is modest. Using telemedical service contacts in Denmark, we describe the worker injuries patterns and factors related to injury incidence. Methods The data for this study were based on contacts (n=1401) from ships to Telemedical Assistance Service (TMAS) in Denmark in 2004–2014, which were supplemented with data on the annual estimation of all seafarers from the Danish Maritime Authority (n=73 336). The final data included information on broad age groups, occupation and nationality. The outcomes were injuries from any cause and six broad categories of injuries characterised by anatomic location or type of injury. Results During the observation period of 11 years, there were 1401 contacts to TMAS due to injuries, of which 36% were in upper limb, 18% in lower limb and 13% in the head. Age-adjusted incidence rates for all injuries varied between 13.6 and 26.8 incidences per 1000 person-years in 2004–2014. In most types of injuries, younger and older seafarers had higher risk for injuries than seafarers aged 30–49 years. Depending on the type of injury, non-officers had threefold to fivefold increased odds of injuries compared with officers, the risk being highest for head injuries with an OR of 5.00 (95% CI 3.19 to 7.83). Non-officers from the European Union (EU) had higher risk in most types of injuries than non-officers from outside the EU, whereas the pattern of this risk was inverse among officers. Conclusions These findings suggest that non-officers and European seafarers have an increased risk for several types of injuries on board Danish-flagged merchant ships. Additionally, age affected risk with the younger (<30 years) and older (>50 years) seafarers having increased risk.
The abatement of greenhouse gas emissions represents a major global challenge and an important topic for transportation research. Several studies have argued that energy efficiency measures for virtual arrival and associated reduced anchorage time can significantly reduce emissions from ships by allowing for speed reduction on passage. However, virtual arrival is uncommon in shipping. In this paper, we examine the causes for waiting time for ships at anchor and the limited uptake of virtual arrival. We show the difficulties associated with the implementation of virtual arrival and explain why shipping is unlikely to achieve the related abatement potential as assumed by previous studies. Combining onboard observations with seafarers and interviews with both sea-staff and shore-based operational personnel we show how charterers’ commercial priorities outweigh the fuel saving benefits associated with virtual arrival. Moreover, we demonstrate how virtual arrival systems have unintended, negative consequences for seafarers in the form of fatigue. Our findings have implications for the IMO’s greenhouse gas abatement goals.
Aiming at reducing CO2 emissions from shipping at the EU level, a system for monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of CO2 emissions of ships was introduced in 2015 with the so-called ‘MRV Regulation’. Its stated objective was to produce accurate information on the CO2 emissions of large ships using EU ports and to incentivize energy efficiency improvements by making this information publicly available. On 1 July 2019, the European Commission published the relevant data for 10,880 ships that called at EU ports within 2018. This milestone marked the completion of the first annual cycle of the regulation’s implementation, enabling an early assessment of its effectiveness. To investigate the value of the published data, information was collected on all voyages performed within 2018 by a fleet of 1041 dry bulk carriers operated by a leading Danish shipping company. The MRV indicators were then recalculated on a global basis. The results indicate that the geographic coverage restrictions of the MRV Regulation introduce a significant bias, thus prohibiting their intended use. Nevertheless, the MRV Regulation has played a role in prompting the IMO to adopt its Data Collection System that monitors ship carbon emissions albeit on a global basis.
Sustainable biofuel supply chain is a key to sustainable manufacturing and the future of production. Greener production is now becoming an order qualifier for the global competition. Modeling biofuel supply chains that achieve economic, social, and environmental feasibility is a challenge. This article develops biofuel platform planning and optimization that unifies biofuel product, production process and networks design into an umbrella of sustainable supply chain planning. A design of biofuel supply chain networks under various production paths is considered. The modeling results show that an optimum region of composition ratio between rice straws and waste cooking oils can be set within the range from 0% to 50%. Bio-diesel is favored over ethanol by occupying over 40% of the total biofuel outputs. However, ethanol yield is 99.1% and therefore it is sufficient to be directly mixed with gasoline at final depots. In terms of social contribution, it is estimated that the supply chain contribution to the case country GDP is about 0.17%. Looking at the above statistics, future research on global economic impacts and competitiveness of biofuel production is suggested.
Marine space is overall under increasing pressure from human activities and in the way harming the marine ecosystems. Maritime spatial planning is one of the governance elements in the EU Integrated Maritime Policy (2007) that aims to maximize the sustainable use of the seas and oceans. Maritime spatial planning aims to ensure that the increased use of the marine space takes place in a way that is consistent with the sustainable development in the seas and oceans. According to the MSP Directive it is required to follow an ecosystem-based and thus holistic approach. For this to happen, tools are needed, and some tools are available but with various advantages and disadvantages. The aim of the current research has been to develop a comprehensive package of tools to assess the environmental impacts of societal activities under different maritime spatial planning proposals.
Results from Blind Test Series 1, part of the Collaborative Computational Project in Wave Structure Interaction (CCP-WSI), are presented. Participants, with a range of numerical methods, blindly simulate the interaction between a fixed structure and focused waves ranging in steepness and direction. Numerical results are compared against corresponding physical data. The predictive capability of each method is assessed based on pressure and run-up measurements. In general, all methods perform well in the cases considered, however, there is notable variation in the results (even between similar methods). Recommendations are made for appropriate considerations and analysis in future comparative studies.