Pacific Maritime Magazine – Pacific Maritime Magazine

20 Oct

Shipping Companies Recognized for Reducing Vessel Speeds to Protect Whales

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Over a dozen shipping companies, including MSC, Maersk, Yang Ming COSCO and K Line received awards in September for reducing speeds in and around California waters as part of the “Protecting Blue Whales & Blue Skies” program. A total of 19 shipping companies participated, transiting at 10 knots or less in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Southern California region. The program’s Southern California region extends from Point Arguello in Santa Barbara County to waters near Dana Point, south of the Los Angeles and Long Beach seaports. The “Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies” program is a collaborative effort…

11 Oct

West Coast States Receive Nearly $10M in Federal Marine Highway Grants

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California, Oregon and Washington have received a total of $9.6 million in grant funding from the federal government for a number of marine highway projects, the Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced Oct. 6. The funding is to help expand marine highway services on our nation’s navigable waterways to reduce congestion, alleviate supply chain bottlenecks and move goods more quickly from ships to shelves, MARAD said. Two West Coast projects are receiving funding. They are: M-5 Coastal Connector, which was awarded $5,550,000. The America’s Marine Highway Grant funds will go toward infrastructure upgrades at the Port of San Diego that will be…

01 Jul

USCG Warns of Illegal Vessel Operators in Alaska

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Passengers should be mindful of vessels that could be operating illegally in Alaska this season, the U.S. Coast Guard announced Sunday, June 26. Some boat operators may not have had a proper USCG inspection, training, credentials and/or enrolled in a mandated drug testing program, according to the USCG. “It is important for the safety of all involved that you do your homework before selecting a charter company,” Cmdr. Jason Boyer, Chief of Prevention, 17th Coast Guard District, said. “Your diligence will help ensure the company meets regulations for required safety equipment and Coast Guard credentials. Don’t place your friends or…

01 Jul

SA Recycling Celebrates Milestone at Port of Long Beach

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SA Recycling recently celebrated a major milestone: processing 2.5 million tons of iron ore exports since October 2020 at its Pier T terminal at the Port of Long Beach, the port announced Wednesday, June 29. Reaching the achievement was a big moment for SA Recycling, which has been operating at the port’s Terminal Island since 1998 and began receiving iron ore shipments from the Western U.S. by rail in 2013. The shipments are then placed on bulk cargo vessels headed for East Asia. In a statement, the port said the milestone shows “strong growth in the shipment of a resource…

01 Jul

New Members Sought for National Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory Committee

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This week, the Office of Merchant Mariner Credentialing announced two vacancies on the National Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory Committee. The committee, according to Mayte Medina, chief of the Office of Merchant Mariner Credentialing, offers guidance to the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security through the Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard on issues related to U.S. Merchant Marine personnel such as “training, qualifications, certification, documentation and fitness of mariners.” The advisory committee needs one member to represent the public and another member who is a deck officer that has a Merchant Mariner Credential with an endorsement as Master of…

01 Jul

New BC Ferries Board Chair Appointed

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Joy MacPhail is the new chair of the Board of Directors for British Columbia Ferry Services Inc., or BC Ferries, it was announced Thursday, June 30. MacPhail takes the reins from outgoing Board Chair Brenda Eaton, whose term ended June 23. “The BC Ferries Board thanks Ms. Eaton for her commitment and valuable service as chair and board member,” the ferry services company said in a statement. “Her leadership and strategic direction, particularly during the global pandemic, has helped the company emerge from the challenge well positioned to serve the public interest.” MacPhail previously served as chair of the Insurance…

28 Jun

L.A., Long Beach Ports’ Container Dwell Fee Start Date Delayed to July 1

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Leaders at the Los Angeles and Long Beach seaports have again decided to move the start date of the Container Dwell Fee an additional week, to July 1, it was announced June 24. Officials decided not to implement the fee, which charges ocean carriers for every import that stays at terminals for nine or more days, after seeing that the amount of older cargo has fallen by 31% at both ports since announcing the fee Oct. 25. The fee calls for ocean carriers to be billed $100 for every import that stays past its allotted time, rising in $100 increments…

28 Jun

Imports from Asia Down at Major U.S. West Coast Ports: PMSA Report

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The five busiest seaports on the West Coast saw their imports from Asia decrease in April, according to latest West Coast Trade Report from the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association. “On the import side, USWC shares dipped across the board,” the PMSA explained in a statement. At the adjoining Los Angeles and Long Beach seaports, imports fell a combined 2% from April 2021 to April 2022 according to PMSA data. Meanwhile at the Port of Oakland, imports from Asia fell 1.5% from April 2021 to April 2022. Also, the Northwest Seaport Alliance (the combined shipping operations of the Seattle and Tacoma…

28 Jun

COVID-19 Impacted BC Ferries, Year-End Results Show

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Traffic and revenue were up from the previous fiscal year for BC Ferries, but down from pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, according to the British Columbia transportation agency, which released its year-end FY results Friday, June 24. For the 2022 fiscal year ending March 31, 37% more passengers (17.9 million) and 26% more vehicles (8.5 million) rode BC Ferries than the year before. However, passenger traffic was down 20% and vehicle traffic down 5% compared to the pre-pandemic 2019 fiscal year. Revenue was up 12% to $965.4 million, a $100.1 million increase, from the previous year due to higher traffic and net…

28 Jun

USCG Cutter Steadfast Returns to Oregon from Narcotics Patrol

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After 55 days patrolling the Eastern Pacific Ocean, the crew of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Steadfast returned to its Astoria, Oregon, homeport on June 18. The crew of the 210-foot, 54-year-old Reliance Class cutter patrolled over 11,000 miles providing law enforcement and search-and-rescue operations off Central America coastal waters from Mexico to Costa Rica, according to the USCG. During its counter drug patrol, crew members partnered with Mexican law enforcement to “locate, track, and interdict fast-moving drug smuggling vessels,” work that resulted in 2,747 kilograms of cocaine seized by Mexican authorities. The estimated value of that haul is $109…