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Maritime Safety in the Strait of Gibraltar. Taxonomy and Evolution of Emergencies Rate in 2000-2004 Period

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Maritime Safety in the Strait of Gibraltar. Taxonomy and Evolution of Emergencies Rate in 2000-2004 Period International Journal Volume 5 on Marine Navigation Number 2 and Safety of Sea Transportation June 2011 Maritime Safety in the Strait of Gibraltar. Taxonomy and Evolution of Emergencies Rate in 2000-2004 Period J. Walliser, F. Piniella, J.C. Rasero & N. Endrina Departamento de Ciencias y Técnicas de la Navegación. Universidad de Cádiz. CASEM – Facultad de Ciencias Náuticas, Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain ABSTRACT: Both SAR’79 and UNCLOS’82 Conventions are specific tools that establish the juridical and technical foundations for the development of reactive aspects related to maritime safety response. These con- ventions set up the search and rescue regions in which coastal states should assume the responsibility to dedi- cate resources, to cover the needs of the SAR responsibilities. 2006 amendments to IAMSAR manual volume I, in force since 2007, June the 1st, established the identification and assessment of risks related to maritime safety as one of the practical principles in maritime risk management. The Strait of Gibraltar is a narrow nav- igational channel connecting the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea between Spain and Morocco. The Strait supports a huge volume of maritime traffic increasing steadily every year. This paper presents the pre- liminary results obtained in relation with the taxonomy and temporal distribution of maritime emergencies re- ported and documented by the Spanish Maritime Administration throughout 2000-2004 period. 1 BACKGROUND Although both conventions regulate the commitments related to maritime search and rescue The active involvement of the coastal states in matters undertaken by the parties, the International safeguarding and promoting the safety of human Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue, life, environment and property related to maritime Hamburg 1979, known as SAR'79 Convention, navigation in the waters in which they exercise which Spain joined in 1993, lays down the basic jurisdiction, sovereignty or sovereign rights, is guidelines to be followed by the Authorities of the shown in a number of international legal texts. coastal states in the process of design and The International Convention on Maritime Search implementation of maritime search and rescue and Rescue, Hamburg, 1979 (Convention SAR'79) services. and the United Nations Convention for the Law of Over the years, this agreement has been amended the Sea, Montego Bay, Jamaica, 1982 are included a number of times. Among the amendments which among those juridical tools. are due to be highlighted, we find those adopted in These two fundamental legal instruments lay 1998. According to these, it is essential to provide down both regulatory and technical aspects of the the centers responsible for carrying out maritime development of reactive response to maritime search and rescue operation with detailed emergencies. operational plans appropriate and adapted to the particularities of each specific search and rescue Both texts establish the principle of division of region. These plans will allow carry out the entire maritime waters, defining areas of these actions effectively. responsibility for maritime search and rescue associated with every coastal nation. These nations These plans should also establish not only the should assign specific resources - human, technical procedures to be followed during mobilization of and legal - to meet the requirements that arise as a rescue units, but also provide the methodology to be result of the liabilities undertaken by the parties. used in developing search and rescue operations. The plans require the establishment of coordination instruments between adjacent rescue centers and 189 procedures and criteria to be used not only during while the eastern one has been considered by the the gathering and evaluation of relevant information opposition Europe Point - Punta Almina. related to the emergency but also alerting ships and The European coast, limited by Cape Trafalgar aircraft transiting the area of the incident and and Europe Point, is 55 nautical miles long, whereas requesting their cooperation in operations. the African coast from Cape Spartel to Punta Almina A rigorous approach to the formulation and is 42 nautical miles long. development of plans and protocols to cope with Its longitudinal axis is divided into two sections. maritime emergency situations requires the The Western section, some 18 nautical miles in application of specific methodological tools that length and oriented approximately east - west, runs would make possible the identification, from the line connecting the Island of Tarifa, located classification and categorization of those risks that on the Spanish coast, with Cala Grande, on the must be controlled or the mitigation of their African coast, towards the Atlantic Ocean. The consequences. Eastern section runs from west by southwest to east On the other hand, at the request of the interested by northeast, along some 15 nautical miles to reach countries, and with the aim of facilitating the the eastern Strait boundary. adoption of the necessary measures for the The channel presents its maximum width, 24.2 adaptation of the standard and promoting nautical miles, on its western limit, between Cape harmonization in a global environment, the Trafalgar and Cape Spartel, while the narrowest International Maritime Organization (IMO) and section is defined by the line connecting median International Civil Aviation Organization point between Tarifa and Punta Guadalmesi River, (ICAO) published in 1999, the International on the northern coast, and Punta Cires, on the Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue southern coast. At this point, the channel is 7.45 Manual (IAMSAR), a dynamic document that over nautical miles wide. The eastern embouchure has a the years has undergone several modifications which maximum width of 12.5 nautical miles. enabled it to improve and adapt to changing reality. On the northern coast there are significant shoals Among these changes we can find the 2006 and reef areas alternating with broad bays and sandy amendments, in force since June 1, 2007, which set beaches. On this coast are located the ports of out the practical principles to be followed in the Algeciras- La Línea, Tarifa and Gibraltar. implementation of aeronautical and maritime search and rescue services and addresses the need The southern coast, geologically very similar to to identify and asset the risks related to maritime the northern one, has, however, a much more rugged safety. In such a way that these amendments state and inaccessible coastline. On this coast we find the that the effectiveness of the response to maritime ports of Tangier, located east of Punta Malabata, emergencies depends, among others, upon the Tangiers – Mediterranean, close to Punta Cires, and knowledge of type and frequency of those marine Ceuta, located by Punta Almina, on the eastern end incidents that may result in a risk for human life at of the African coast. sea, safety of navigation and protection of marine and coastal environment. This paper presents the preliminary results of the study carried out over the emergency rates in the Strait of Gibraltar, approaching the taxonomy and distribution of incidents and accidents documented by the Spanish Maritime Administration from 2000 to 2004 in the geographical area of the Strait of Gibraltar. 2 ENVIRONMENT 2.1 Geographical environment The Strait of Gibraltar (Figure 1) is the natural passage which links the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean. Although its boundaries have never been formally established, for the present research Figure 1. General overview of the Strait of Gibraltar study the western boundary has been defined by the line connecting Cape Trafalgar with Cape Spartel 190 2.2 Traffic patterns 120.000 106.332 The maritime traffic through the Strait of Gibraltar 105.954 96.188 follows a clearly defined pattern which is 100.000 94.157 conditioned by four basic parameters: the last port of 80.000 call of the ship, destination port, the routeing 72.698 65.732 67.354 measures established and prevailing 63.179 weather conditions. 60.000 38.600 In general the flow of maritime traffic follows 40.000 33.634 30.978 two fundamental axes (Figure 2). The most 30.456 important in terms of traffic density, is the 20.000 longitudinal axis defined by the tracks of the ships passing from the Mediterranean Sea towards the 0 Atlantic Ocean and vice versa. 2005 2006 2007 2008 TRANSITS FERRYS TOTAL The second axis is defined by the tracks of the EW/WE HSC vessels, mainly ferry ships and High Speed Crafts, connecting the ports located on both sides of the Figure 3. Traffic evolution. Years 2005-2008 Strait. Source: Tarifa VTS. Figure 4. Traffic separation scheme and precautionary areas in Figure 2. Cumulative maritime traffic radar surveillance picture the Strait of Gibraltar Source: IMO. Source: Tarifa VTS 3 HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF MARITIME The combination of a very high traffic density EMERGENCIES IN THE STRAIT OF area (94,157 transits identified through year 2005) GIBRALTAR (Figure 3), the existence of high concentration of crossing tracks and occasionally very unfavorable 3.1 Documentary sources and research structure weather conditions within a narrow channel, have forced the Spanish and Moroccan governments to The historical analysis of emergencies in the Straits promote, through the International Maritime has been developed on the basis of the information Organization, the establishment of several marine provided by three historical data sets: traffic
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