MarEx eNewsletter - February 12, 2009

February 12th, 2009 Vol. 7, No. 6, Hot New Job Postings from Faststream! Reality Check: Still Doing More with Less… A busy week highlights the many and varied missions of the U.S. Coast Guard and also serves as a stark reminder that while it is sometimes easy to find fault with the nation's fifth uniformed, military branch, it is also important to understand the breadth of its responsibilities. ... Read More>>>Back to Top MarEx February PRINT Edition is on the Street! The latest MarEx print edition, featuring Tom Crowley on the cover, provides a unique, three-pronged focus on the environment – and a host of other critical issues. As always, you get our now familiar regular features, too! The latest edition of THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE is in distribution. ... Read More>>>Back to Top INTERTANKO Provides Model Piracy Clauses The frequency and seriousness of the piracy attacks in the Gulf of Aden and off Somalia need no introduction. Whilst the marine and technical teams at INTERTANKO have responded with practical advice and assistance, INTERTANKO's Documentary Committee has responded quickly to the need for a model piracy clause. This was ... Read More>>>Back to Top Somali Pirates Release Ukrainian Cargo Ship M/V FAINA released after ransom paid While, the pirates demanded $35 million, they released the Ukrainian cargo ship for $3 million ransom. The FAINA was transporting military cargoes to Kenya when it was seized by pirates on September 25, 2008. The ship's crew consists ... Read More>>>Back to Top Featured MarEx Print Article: Washington Insider with Winston & Strawn's Larry Kiern Washington attorney and MarEx columnist weighs in on a variety of controversial subjects. This month's column concentrates on certain maritime aspects of the nation's economic stimulus plan and the EPA's new Vessel General Permit for vessels operating in the United States. Kiern says, "With the November elections ... Read More>>>Back to Top Container Ship Collides with LNG Tanker Accident takes place about six miles from Jebel Ali Port on Tuesday afternoon. The Singaporean flagged container ship, MV SIMA SAMAN, collided with the MV KASHMIR, an LNG tanker, coming from the Jebel Ali Port in Iran. There were no fatalities, but there two crewmen sustained minor ... Read More>>>Back to Top Former U.S. Maritime Administrator To Join Class Society Connaughton To Join ABS ABS has announced that Sean T. Connaughton, who served as U.S. Maritime Administrator from 2006 until his resignation with the recent change of Administration in Washington, will join the class society as Corporate Vice President for Government Affairs, effective 17 February. ... Read More>>>Back to Top Industry Dinner To Promote U.S. Merchant Marine MITAGS to Host February 18th 2009 Event with AWO and USMMA-AF Chesapeake Chapter. • USMMA-AF Chesapeake Chapter & The American Waterway Operators (AWO) present! Maritime Dinner Program * Special * Event! A Joint Program presentation. The USMMA-AF Chesapeake Chapter & The American Waterway Operators ... Read More>>>Back to Top MarEx Mailbag: Reader Response to Last Week's MarEx Editorial and Other Articles, Too The MarEx mailbag is heavy this week. Last week's lead editorial, entitled "Attacking Piracy: The Long Road to Nowhere," garnered a significant number of "hits" from our readers and was even picked up by MARAD's February 11th Newswatch vehicle. The editorial talked about a recent House Subcommittee ... Read More>>>Back to Top SCI Celebrates 175th Anniversary In 2009, the Seamen's Church Institute (SCI) celebrates 175 years of service to the maritime community, assisting the world's over 1 million mariners with innovative programs and services. From early days as a small, grassroots mission of the Episcopal Church, SCI has grown to be the largest and most comprehensive ... Read More>>>Back to Top Acting MARAD Administrator Gives Statement on Maritime Piracy and Takes Questions from Congress Text of James Caponiti's statement before last week's sub-committee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation hearing on International Piracy is provided below: Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and Members of the Sub-committee. I am pleased to have the opportunity to appear before you today to discuss the serious ... Read More>>>Back to Top Actions to Reduce Mariner Credentialing Process Time Coast Guard responding to multiple mariner complaints and begins to ramp up to solve mariner credential backlog time. February 10, 2009: Over the past 6 months, the National Maritime Center (NMC), the Coast Guard's new centralized mariner credentialing processing facility in Martinsburg, West Virginia, has issued over ... Read More>>>Back to Top NTSB ADVISORY: Meeting on Cosco Busan Allision to Take Place The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a public Board meeting on its investigation into the accident in which the Cosco Busan container ship spilled thousands of gallons of fuel oil into the San Francisco Bay after striking a bridge support tower. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, February ... Read More>>>Back to Top St. Lawrence Seaway: Two Important Notices Seaway gives "Notice of Proposed Revisions to Seaway Practices and Procedures to be Effective March 30, 2009," and says that Seaway Notice will be issued during the week of February 16th, informing stakeholders of the opening date for the 2009 navigation season. Under agreement with the U.S. ... Read More>>>Back to Top Attractive Offer for New American Exhibitors International maritime exhibition Europort creates USA Pavilion From 3 until 6 November 2009 the complete maritime world will come together again in Ahoy Rotterdam during the international exhibition Europort. Over 85% of the trade fair is already reserved again by leading exhibitors and country pavilions. Now a ... Read More>>>Back to Top Pirates Apprehended in the Gulf of Aden USS VELLA GULF, At Sea - The guided missile cruiser USS Vella Gulf (CG 72) apprehended seven pirates in the Gulf of Aden today after responding to a distress call from a nearby merchant vessel. The event marks the first time CTF-151 has apprehended suspected pirates. Read More>>>Back to Top THE UN-COMFORT ZONE with Robert Wilson Bleed It Out Half a century ago marketing consultant, James Vicary, pulled a hoax on the American people as a way to promote his advertising agency. He reported that he flashed the words "Drink Coca-Cola" and "Eat popcorn" on the screen for a millisecond during a movie ... Read More>>>Back to Top Retail Container Traffic to Fall 11.8 Percent in First Half of 2009 After ending 2008 down 7.9 percent, cargo volume at the nation's major retail container ports is expected to drop at an even faster pace during the first half of 2009 as the economic recession continues, according to the monthly Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and ... Read More>>>Back to Top INTERTANKO Pushes for Simplification of Inert Gas Regulations The catastrophic incidents on a significant number of small product tankers and chemical tankers, some of which have led to a tragic loss of life, have highlighted the fact that the industry needs to update the current application of inert gas regulations to new oil and chemical tankers. ... Read More>>>Back to Top Massachusetts Maritime Academy Will Host Maritime Education Summit BUZZARDS BAY, MA – Massachusetts Maritime Academy is pleased to host a Maritime Education Summit this April 15 -17, 2009. Focused on Trends and Pedagogy for the Future, this innovative conference will attract participants from all segments of the maritime sector. The Maritime Education Summit will promote ... Read More>>>Back to Top DOT: Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) Fell 2.3 Percent in December from November Wednesday, February 11, 2009 - The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) fell 2.3 percent in December from its November level, falling for the second consecutive month, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today. The December decline, the fourth monthly decrease in five ... Read More>>>Back to Top U.S. Coast Guard: 99 Percent of Towing Licenses in Compliance NEW ORLEANS - The Eighth Coast Guard District recently completed Operation Big Tow, a three-month long effort designed as a result of a collision between a cargo vessel and a loaded oil barge on the Mississippi River that spilled more than 282,000 gallons of #6 fuel oil to spill into ... Read More>>>Back to Top EMAIL UNSUBSCRIBE Copyright © 2009 The Maritime Executive. 3200 S. Andrews Avenue, Suite 100 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33316