Work Boats Dry Docks Barges
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
simple isn't always easy... But furuno radars are a simple choice Your objective is simple…Deliver your vessel and its contents safely and on time. While it might sound simple, we know it’s not easy! Whether you’re navigating the open ocean, busy harbors, or through congested inland waterways, being aware of your surroundings is paramount. Your number one line of defense is a Radar you can rely on, from a company you can depend on. Furuno’s award winning Radar technology is built to perform and withstand the harshest environments, keeping you, your crew and your precious cargo safe. With unique application features like ACE (Automatic Clutter Elimination), Target Analyzer, and Fast Target Tracking, Furuno Radars will help make that simple objective easier to achieve. Ultra High Definition Radar FAR22x8BB Series FR19x8VBB Series FAR15x8 Series www.furunousa.com U10 - Simple Isnt Always Easy - Professional Mariner.indd 1 3/1/19 3:46 PM CoProfessionalnt Marinere December/Januarynts 2020 Towing 4 20 Subchapter M glass ‘half full’ amid progress and challenges BY CASEY CONLEY 20 Industry Signals Trends & Currents 4 Global sulfur cap brings uncertainty over fuel prices, blending 54 All-electric tugs and pilot boats: Are they ready for prime time? 9 EPA plans regulatory relief for certain BY DAVID TYLER Tier 4 engines, vessels 12 Navy opts for physical throttles on destroyers after fatal collisions 14 Waterways need more investment to stay competitive, USDA says 18 World’s last sail-driven tanker docked in limbo at Hawaii pier 12 58 Correspondence 58 Recent cases hold clues for deter- mining liability in Conception fire BY ANDREW NORRIS A Mariner’s Notebook 64 A Christmas sea story: Lessons from the past, present and future BY CAPT. KELLY SWEENEY 54 www.professionalmariner.com 1 PROFESSIONAL MAJOURNAL OF THER MARITIMEIN INDUSTRYER Subscription Department Toll-free 866-918-6972 [email protected] Editorial [email protected] Editor Rich Miller Associate Editor Casey Conley Copy Editor Kate Murray Art Director Kim Goulet Norton Gulf Coast Photographer/ Correspondent Brian Gauvin West Coast Photographer/ Correspondent Alan Haig-Brown Columnist Capt. Kelly Sweeney Advertising [email protected] West Coast/Canadian/ International Susan W. Hadlock 207-838-0401 East Coast Charlie Humphries 207-939-1929 Gulf/Midwest Arthur Auger 207-577-3257 Publisher Alex Agnew 207-450-5363 Circulation/Events Events & Marketing Lee Auchincloss Coordinator 207-772-2466 x225 Business Business Office Lee Auchincloss Customer Service: 1-866-918-6972 All Other Departments: 207-772-2466 www.professionalmariner.com PROFESSIONAL MARINER (ISSN 1066-2774) This magazine is printed in the U.S. Professional Mariner is published in February, March, April, May, June, August, September, October and December, with an annual special issue of American Tugboat Review in July and an annual special issue of American Ship Review in November for $29.95 per year by Navigator Publishing LLC, 58 Fore St., Portland, ME 04101. Periodicals postage paid at Portland, Maine, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Please send address changes to Professional Mariner, P.O. Box 461510, Escondido, CA 92046. Copyright © 2019 by Navigator Publishing LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any way without written permis- sion from the publisher. Multiple copying of the contents without permission is illegal. Call 207-822-4350 x219 for permission. BRING ON THE HOLIDAYS. Subscription rate is $29.95 for one year (nine issues) in the U.S. and its possessions. Canadian subscription rate is $44.95 U.S. funds. Other foreign service is $49.95 U.S. funds. Overseas airmail is $94.95 U.S. funds. Multi-year Visit www.icomamerica.com/marine discounts are available, call 866-918-6972 for details. Distribution: Newsstand distribution, domestically and internation- ally: Coast to Coast Newsstand Services LTD., 5230 Finch Ave. East, Suite 1, Toronto, ON M1S 4Z9. Phone (416) 754-3900; fax (416) 754-4900. ©2019 Icom America Inc. The Icom logo is a registered trademark. 21003 Contributions: We solicit manuscripts, drawings and photo graphs. Please address materials to Editor, Professional Mar iner, P.O. Box 569, Portland, Maine 04112-0569. Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee the safe handling of all contributed materials. 2 Professional Mariner December/January 2020 21003 ProMar_Holiday_1119b.indd 1 10/10/19 7:58 AM 26 CProfessionalo ntMariner December/Januaryents 2020 43 26 Wind in the winches: Towing up the mighty Columbia BY BRIAN gAuVIN Maritime Casualties 34 NTSB: Fatal fire started on California dive boat as crew slept 43 Twenty-four rescued after vehicle carrier capsizes off Georgia coast 47 Capsizing of Fraser River tug highlights risk of girding 49 Barge tow destroys riverside yacht club near Cincinnati 26 52 Crane collapses after faulty weight assessment, injuring three Vessels at Work 3224 32 New SIT towboat bewitches with hull ‘voodoo,’ z-drives BY Brian gAuvin ON THE COVER Kevin Maki, a deck hand on the tugboat Captain Bob, makes up a four-barge tow on the Columbia River in Vancouver, Wash. The 110-foot tug is the most powerful vessel in the Tidewater Transporta- tion fleet, delivering up to 5,000 horsepower to overcome strong currents and winds that can exceed hurricane force along the waterway. See story, page 26. Photo by Brian Gauvin www.professionalmariner.com 3 i n d u s t r y Signals Oil refiners have adapted their pro- duction processes, with new fuel blends, in advance of IMO 2020. But “pockets of non- availability” are expected for com- pliant fuel in the short to medium term in some regions of the world, according to Kathy Metcalf, Courtesy Pixabay president and CEO of the Chamber of Shipping of America. Global sulfur cap brings uncertainty over fuel prices, blending t has taken decades to build using fuel oil containing 0.5 per- operators in the United States to Ithe fuel supply chain for the cent sulfur or less by Jan. 1, 2020. decide between opting for compli- 50,000-vessel global merchant fleet. Contained in Annex VI to the ant fuel or burning high-sulfur fuel The pending 0.5 percent sulfur cap International Convention for the oil (HSFO) while using a scrubber on marine fuel stands to upset this Prevention of Pollution from Ships system that removes sulfur oxide entrenched structure, with price (MARPOL), the regulation reduces from exhaust, according to Kathy volatility likely as a result. the sulfur limit from its current level Metcalf, president and CEO of the To comply with a 2016 regula- of 3.5 percent. In response, fuel Chamber of Shipping of America tion enacted by the International suppliers have adjusted refining pro- (CSA). Maritime Organization (IMO), ves- cesses, while operators are adapting “Either option comes at a cost to sels must either treat their exhaust, to changes in fuel prices and quality a vessel’s budget, although it is pre- use an alternative fuel such as lique- before the cap takes effect. dicted that scrubbers would pay for fied natural gas (LNG), or begin The sulfur cap forces bluewater themselves ... no longer than three 4 Professional Mariner December/January 2020 years from the initial investment and shipowners and fuel suppliers in Metcalf did not have data on installation,” she told Professional Canada and the U.S. scrubber use for the 70 U.S.-flag Mariner. According to Metcalf, the trend vessels trading internationally. She Installing a scrubber can cost any- in the U.S. fleet is toward scrub- said that about 15 percent of the where from $2 million to $5 million. bers. Adoption has not happened global fleet will be using scrubbers According to Metcalf, the expected as quickly as expected, however, as in 2020 and that more U.S. opera- price of compliant fuel could a result of installation issues and tors are expected to adopt the tech- increase next year by at least 30 per- environmental concerns related to nology next year. cent over current HSFO prices. open-loop scrubbers, which dis- In the tugboat sector, coastal Vessels sailing within 200 nauti- charge washwater into the sea. Mul- operators should already be in com- cal miles of the U.S. and Canadian tiple government bodies throughout coasts will continue to comply with the world have banned open-loop the 0.1 percent Emission Control scrubbers, the most common type Sulfur cap Area (ECA) sulfur limit that has of scrubber system, due to their at a glance existed since 2015. Given this histo- impact on marine environments. ry, Chamber of Marine Commerce Connecticut and California have Under the new global limit, all ships President Bruce Burrows said he banned scrubber discharges in their will have to use fuel oil on board with does not foresee many compliance waters, while Hawaii has enacted a sulfur content of no more than 0.5 issues in Canada next year. While standards for washwater. The IMO percent, against the current limit of most Canadian operators have has agreed to open discussions on 3.5 percent, which has been in effect decided to burn compliant fuel, he harmonizing global rules governing since Jan. 1, 2012. said the scrubber decision largely scrubber discharges, and these talks The interpretation of “fuel oil used depends on fuel costs. are expected to conclude in 2021. on board” includes use in main and “If for some reason fuel costs sky- Prices are expected to decline for wholesale (W) rocket for low-sulfur fuel, then the auxiliary engines and boilers. Exemp- and retail (R) high-sulfur fuel oil (HSFO) through tions are provided for situations involv- notion to put scrubbers on (vessels) the end of 2020, according to 20/20 Marine ing the safety of the ship or saving life may be more attractive,” said Bur- Energy.