Establishing Offshore Autonomous Communities: Current Choices and Their Proposed Evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo Universidade da Coruna Doctoral Dissertation Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Author: D. Miguel Lamas Pardo, Oceanic and Naval Engineer Translated by: Adriana Sanchez Gomez ESCUELA POLITECNICA SUPERIOR OF FERROL Department of Oceanic and Naval Engineering Dissertation Director: D. Luis Manuel Carral Couce Year 2011 1 / 300 Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo Doctoral Dissertation completed in Ferrol (A Coruna), on July 12, 2011 Dedicated to my daughter Sofia, who was born August 12, 2011 Figure 1: Utopia Project. Courtesy of Yacht Island Design. Logic will take you from A to B, yet imagination will transport you to any place whatsoever Albert Einstein. How inadequate it is to term this planet "Earth", as it is evident that is should be called "Ocean". Arthur C. Clarke. If you want to build a ship, don't drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea. Antoine de Saint-Exupery. La Ciudadela 2 / 300 Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo Panel named by our honored Dean of UNIVERSIDADE DA CORUNA on this____ day of ____________________ , 2011: President: D. Jose Daniel Pena Agras - UNIVERSIDADE DA CORUNA Committee Member D. Jesus Panadero Pastrana - UNIVERSIDAD POLITECNICA DE MADRID Committee Member D. Ignacio Arroyo Martinez - UNIVERSIDAD AUTONOMA DE BARCELONA Committee Member D. Jose de Lara Rey - UNIVERSIDAD POLITECNICA DE MADRID Secretary: D. Abel Mendez Diaz - UNIVERSIDADE DA CORUNA Presented Thesis and Reading on this_____ day o f______________________ , 2011 In Ferrol (A Coruna), Spain. Grade: ______________ PRESIDENTE COMMITTEE MEMBER SECRETARY 3 / 300 Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo Abstract "Establishment of autonomous ocean communities: current options and their future evolution" Dissertation presented as a requirement to obtain a Doctoral Degree in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering. The idea of establishing floating cities in the oceans has been addressed in the past within the ambition of both science and art, though rarely with rigor or detail. The objective of this dissertation is to provide an orderly framework around this idea as to why humanity has sought out to establish such cities. To this end, we have established a more ample definition to the term "Oceanic Colonization" which we define as "The establishment of autonomous communities in the oceans aboard artificial platforms". Additionally, we distinguish four forms of ocean colonization for four distinct purposes: 1) to expand landholdings; 2) to provide mobile settlements; 3) to allow for semi-permanent mobile settlements in order to have access to marine resources; 4) and for the creation of micronations. It is this fourth concept that will serve as a departing point to review the whole idea of oceanic colonization. Thus, the objective of this dissertation is to analyze all the possible options (both present and future) permissible within the scope of Naval Architecture and Oceanic Engineering for the establishment of autonomous offshore oceanic communities which would allow for the creation of oceanic micronations. At the same time, we shall try to project the evolution of the other three forms of oceanic colonization. Figure 2: Floating City "Green Float". Courtesy of Shimizu Corporation. 4 / 300 Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo Acknowledgements This Dissertation has been submitted to the doctoral committee of the Oceanic and Naval Engineering Department of La Escuela Politecnica Superior of Ferrol for the conference of the Degree of Doctor in Naval and Oceanic Engineering by the Universidade da Coruna (Spain). This investigation is the result of the collaboration of the author as an Engineering Researcher at the "Think tank" The Seasteading Institute1 (Sunnyvale, California, USA) from September 2009 when he had his first contact at the Seasteading 2009 Annual Conference at the Flotel Vessels seminar. (1) This Dissertation has also come about through the knowledge acquired in the years employed at the two most cutting-edge-shipyards found within Spain in the last few years: Hijos de J. Barreras S.A. (from 2001 to 2003) and Factorfas Vulcano S.A. (from 2003 to-date), both in Vigo, Spain. I would like to extend my deepest appreciation to my dissertation tutor Dir. D. Luis Manuel Carral Couce, for his valuable advice and encouragement during the drafting of this dissertation; also I would like to thank all those that during my professional development have guided me with their insights and advice and at the shipyards of Barreras y Vulcano (impossible to mention all here) of whom I have elucidated such valuable knowledge about Naval and Oceanic Engineering which have been invaluable and applied, in part, through the dissertation. My appreciation is also is extended to la Escuela Politecnica Superior de Ferrol, as well as my fellow classmates throughout these years, to whom I presented this body of work as an end of degree-project on a cruise ship (2). In part, this was the trigger that led me to commence this dissertation. • I would also like to extend my gratitude to the board of directors and community members of the Seasteading Institute for their advice and motivation, especially: • Patri Friedman - Executive Director, Chairman of the Board • Eelco Hoogendoorn - Engineering Researcher • James Hogan - Senior Director • Brad Taylor - Governor Researcher • Eric Jacobus -Operations Manager • Max Marty - Director of Business Strategy • George Petri - Director of Engineering • Jeff Chan - Community Member • and to all of those people that have provided information about their projects, that have shared their ideas, experiences and advice, all whom have motivated me with their encouragement. I include a brief list: • the members of the Colegio oficial de in genieros Navales y Oceanicos of Spain, for allowing me to present some of these ideas at their conferences: o State of the Art of the Ocanic Industry for the Establishment of autonomous Communities in open oceans (3) at the 49th Congress (2010). o Market segmentation and Economies of Scale in the Cruiseline Industry of the XXI Century (4) at the 50th Congres (2011) • Mark Staunton-Lambert and Eric Tupper, Technical Director, assistants respectively of the Royal Intitution of Naval Architects (London, UK), for having provided guidance in the publication of my article titled offshore, and Coastal Floating Hotels: Flotels published in the International Journal of Maritime Engineering (5). 1 For more information in regards to this Silicon Valley, “think tank” we shall refer the reader to chapter 2. 5 / 300 Establishing offshore autonomous communities: current choices and their proposed evolution Doctoral Thesis by Miguel Lamas Pardo • Mike Simpson (Naval Architect), Marine Director of Houlder Ltd (London, UK) for his insights and information regarding nursery ships for eolic parks. • David Foxwell, Editor Supervisor of Offshore Support Journal (London, UK) for the publication of the article Class quandary for monohull accommodation vessels (6) • Dominique Roddier (PhD Naval Architect) of Marine Innovation & Technology (Berkeley, California-EE.UU.) for the use of the material on Clubstead and Windfloat and for his aid and comments regarding semi-submersibles. • Jose Luis Lamas Rodriguez, preliminary plan Supervisor of IZAR-Fene until 2003, for sharing information regarding Flotel 9 • Robin Reeves, CEO of Marine Asset Corporation (Singapore) for the information regarding Compact SemiSubmergible, CSS. • Rodrigo Perez (Doctor in geniero Naval - ETSIN, Madrid, Spain), for his aid, input and support, particularly with the publication of the article Behavior of Large Floating Structures At Sea (7). • Luciana Teperino, Architecture student at Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais (Brasil) who has engaged in a graduation project related to floating cities concurrently with me which has allowed us to exchange information and various points of view on the topic. • Juan Antonio Becerril (Doctor in geniero de Caminos, Canales y Puertos), Director of Revista de Obras Publicas, for his great kindness in accepting the task of proofreading my article Very Large Floating Structures (VLFS): Floating Ports and Airports (8). • Olga Sanchez de la to rre, of Servicio de Publicaciones del CEDEX (Centro de Estudios y Experimentacion de Obras Publicas, Madrid), for her kindness in accepting the task of proofreading my article on Concrete offshore Structures (9) to be published in Ingeniena Civil magazine. • Ignacio Arroyo Martinez, president of Asociacion Espanola de Derecho Mantmo and editor of Anuario de Derecho Mantimo, for his insights and acceptance for publication of my article Micronations in Artificial Islands and Maritime and International Law (10). • Manuel Laranjinha, Senior Engineer, and Kristen Amundr0d, Principal Lead Naval Architect of Grenland Group, (Sandefjord, Norway) for comments and teachings regarding GG4-A and in general about semisumergibles. • Justin Back, Chartering