The Beacon May-Jun 2005
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PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID WILMINGTON, DE PERMIT NO. 1635 THE MARITIME EXCHANGE Serving Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania 240 Cherry Street BEACON Philadelphia, PA 19106 ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED May/June 2005 http://www.maritimedelriv.com [email protected] CBP Rulemaking Perplexes Some Carriers Bill Harrison’s On April 7, the U.S. Bureau which was developed in imme- Though the requirement of Customs and Border diate response to the events of for electronic reporting of this Legacy to the Port Protection published a rule 9/11. information has long been which, among other require- “We applaud the fact that anticipated, the ultimate form Recalled ments, mandates the use of CBP and Coast Guard have it would take remained electronic reporting systems to worked together to streamline unknown. As a result, many submit crew and passenger certain data reporting through carriers have been unable to manifest. The rule offers two a single portal,” said Exchange do much in the way of options: air and passenger Vice President Lisa Himber, advance planning. And acc- vessel carriers, which for the “and we encourage these agen- ording to Terminal Shipping most part have long since auto- cies to continue along this line. President Rob Herb, the 60- mated crew and passenger However, as is often the case day implementation period manifesting, can utilize the when federal agencies imple- provides insufficient time to Advance Passenger Infor- ment new automated reporting determine the most efficient mation System, or APIS. systems, the new requirements reporting process or to address Carriers may also transmit this require a dramatic change in many of the questions which data through the Coast Guard business practice for the tradi- have arisen since publication electronic Notice of Arrival/ tionally less automated bulk of the rule. Departure system (eNOA/D), and breakbulk trades.” continued on page 9 William A. Harrison, who served as president of the Maritime Exchange Holds Spring Mixer on the Waterfront Exchange from 1967 until his retirement in 1994, passed away on April 9, 2005. During his tenure at the Exchange, Bill Harrison was involved in every major issue that affected ports along the Delaware River and Bay. Whether it was the proposal to deepen the Delaware River main channel to 45 feet or adequate rail service for terminal operators, Bill was a consistently strong and effective voice with policy makers from Philadelphia City Hall to Washington, D.C., according to Exchange President Dennis Rochford. At Bill’s memorial service, long-time friend and colleague Bill Anderson, President of General Marine Refrigeration, spoke to his active role with so many port organizations involved with promot- ing trade and commerce on the Delaware River. “Bill Harrison was respected by all parties -- management and labor, govern- ment and private sector,” Anderson said. “If you had a problem or The Maritime Exchange Spring Mixer held in May provided members with an informal setting to network and blow situation that needed to be addressed, he was the guy to see . off a little steam. The mixer, co-sponsored by General Marine Industrial Services, Mattioni, Ltd., the Pilots’ and this is why he was asked to serve in so many leadership posi- Association for the Bay and River Delaware, and Western Fumigation was held on the waterfront in Essington, tions with various port and regional organizations and associa- Pennsylvania and was attended by about 60 people. tions.” Among the organizations, Anderson cited the Mariners’ Advisory Committee for the Delaware River and Bay, the Joint Executive Committee for the Improvement and Development of NMSAC Completes 30-day Task the Philadelphia Port Area, the Belt Line Railroad, the National Association of Maritime Organizations, the Ports of Philadelphia Credentialing Work Group Recommendations Adopted May 6 Maritime Society and the Vessel Owners and Captains Association. Sworn in at the March inaugural meeting of based on twelve specific components of the pro- Those associated with the Maritime Exchange during the time the National Maritime Security Advisory gram. NMSAC members responded to the chal- Harrison served as president remembered the challenges facing Committee, members agreed to take on a full lenge by creating a Credentialing Working Group the maritime industry and the opportunities the port community range of issues associated with implementing which was tasked to complete its work by April 30. was able to translate into progress. policies designed to enhance the homeland securi- In 1977 when the Delaware River froze and all but brought ty and improve communications between govern- continued on page 10 commerce to a halt, the Maritime Exchange, along with the Pilots’ ment and industry while at the same time protect Association for the Delaware River and Bay and the Mariner’s and promote efficient flow of goods and people Advisory Committee, worked closely with the U.S. Coast Guard across marine terminals throughout the country. and the regional Congressional delegation to find immediate fund- Although only in its infancy, the NMSAC has ing to expand the number of ice buoys deployed to mark the already completed a great deal of work. Foremost boundaries of the main ship channel. “This was a critical time for among the challenges to be addressed by the the oil refineries along the Delaware River, and Bill Harrison Department of Homeland Security is the imple- played a crucial role in helping to keep the river open to commer- mentation of the Transportation Worker cial shipping,” said Jack Galloway, former Vice Chairman of the Identification Credential. Although the Trans- Maritime Exchange and oil company official. He added that “the portation Security Administration has the lead on major petroleum companies had recently initiated ‘just-in-time’ this effort, the agency is working closely with the inventory management programs, the effect of which reduced U.S. Coast Guard to develop rules which will gov- average inventory levels of crude oil at refineries from about two weeks to just several days . so any disruption in the schedules ern the deployment and usage of a national TWIC. of oil tankers moving up the Delaware River would have created To that end, the Coast Guard requested that NMSAC develop a series of recommendations continued on page 11 The Beacon 2 May/June, 2005 Bill Harrison: A Dedicated Leader career, he was the ‘Go-To Guy’ in the port of 14 port authority systems around the coun- community when issues came up that required try on the Customs AMS. Through this sys- a unified effort. One of the reasons Bill found tem today, the Exchange continues to provide himself in this position was because he was this service for Delaware River port customers respected as a man of impeccable integrity – at no charge. not everyone agreed with him on every issue, What didn’t change during the time that but everyone knew exactly where he stood. Bill was president was his commitment to be During his tenure as president, Bill often an advocate for those projects and policies he Bill Harrison served our port for 27 years functioned as the bridge between the past and viewed as critical to the success of the port. with great integrity and distinction. After the the future. He had the opportunity to work There was no greater champion of the Maritime Exchange was chartered in 1875, with those who were doing business in our Delaware River 45’ Main Channel Deepening Bill was only the sixth president; prior to his port at the close of World War II, as well as Project than Bill Harrison. When port unifica- tenure, the only person to serve longer in this with the new generation of business leaders tion was a contentious issue, he brought peo- position was E.R. Sharwood (1877 to 1917). who were coming on the scene toward the turn ple together to find common ground. And as a of the 21st century. founding member of the National Association During the quarter of a century Bill led the of Maritime Organizations (NAMO), Bill and As the times changed, Bill made sure that Exchange, dramatic changes were taking place his colleagues from around the country went the Maritime Exchange changed as well. The in the maritime industry, and as a result, with- to Washington, D.C. to successfully oppose Exchange and the Pilots’ Association, in a col- in the Exchange itself. Containerization the effort to increase the Harbor Maintenance laborative effort, renovated the existing ship changed the face of the Delaware River ports Trust Fund tax. in the early 1970s, new technologies to com- reporting tower in Lewes, Delaware into a municate vessel and cargo information came state-of-the-art high-tech vessel information As we celebrate the 130th anniversary of on line in the 1980s and competition between center that today serves the commercial, regu- the Maritime Exchange, we can say with cer- our regional port and other North and South latory and security interests of our regional tainty that Bill Harrison, as one of the seven Atlantic ports intensified as we entered the port complex. individuals to have led this organization, hon- ored its tradition of service to our regional port 1990s. It was Bill Harrison, working with the port while building a foundation upon which to business community, who realized the U.S. In many respects, the Maritime Exchange enhance the services we provide in the future. was in the middle of these and many other Customs Service initiative in the 1986 to allow issues that directly affected the viability and shippers to clear cargo through the Automated competitiveness of our port. And Bill Manifest System was a project that would Harrison, supported by a strong board of require a regional response.