The Great Barrier Reef is the largest collection of living organisms on the planet, forming a 2,900 km-long coral reef off the north-eastern coast of Australia. It is a unique ecosystem populated with a myriad of different species. Safe operation of ships in this vulnerable environment is the responsibility of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA).

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), representing the Commonwealth Government, is responsible for the regulation and safety oversight of Australia's shipping fleet and the management of international maritime obligations. Roger Timms, General Manager, AMSA Maritime Safety & Environmental Strategy, explains In addition to its environmental significance, the Great Barrier Reef is also of economic importance for Australia. It is estimated to contribute around US$ 1 billion per annum to the Queensland economy alone. There is political as well as considerable public pressure to preserve and protect this pristine area from ship pollution and related incidents.

Assessing the risk
In 2000 DNV conducted a risk assessment of pollution-prevention measures in Australian coastal waters on behalf of AMSA. Says Timms, This report was a great help in making our decisions regarding the placement of stocks of spill-mitigation equipment.

Following the grounding of the bulk carrier Bunga Teratai Satu on the Reef in November 2000, AMSA was asked by the Commonwealth Minister for Transport and Regional Services to carry out a review of ship safety and pollution-prevention measures. Says Timms, The aim of the report is to chart what possible courses we can take to minimise the threat of ship incidents in this area. We therefore commissioned DNV to do a risk assessment of the relative merits of ship safety controls in the Torres Strait and the Barrier Reef. This report has become part of the review which is now being considered by the government.
Explains Nicholas Hardy, DNV Melbourne risk consultant, DNVs report analysed traffic data and incident records, covering key geographical areas. It considered the relative merits of the expansion of existing ship safety controls, the adoption of new technology and new ship-management approaches for the shipping routes.

Complex navigation
Every year the inner and outer shipping routes along and adjacent to the Reef see 6,000 ship movements of vessels in excess of 50 m in length. The majority of ships that travel the inner route are bulk carriers, because this route affords them some protection from the elements. The larger tankers usually traverse the outer route. Says Timms, The northern parts of the GBR inner route and especially the Torres Strait can be challenging to navigate as they are narrower, draught-limited and with strong tidal streams. Indeed one of the suggestions in our review is to include the Torres Strait in the Great Barrier Reef particularly sensitive sea area (PSSA) to afford this area better protection.

Over the course of 16 years there have been 39 incidents. In geographic terms and compared to the amount of traffic, one could argue that the rate at which shipping incidents occur is relatively low. It is generally acknowledged that the reef is also under considerable risk from land-based groundwater run-off, fishing and global warming. Says Roger Timms, None of the incidents can be categorised as a major disaster, but on the other hand the consequences of a single oil spill could be devastating. It is impossible to put a price on the natural heritage value of the Great Barrier Reef. We cannot afford to have any harmful incidents of this nature taking place on even an occasional basis, and we have a responsibility to minimise the chance of one ever happening again.

Recommendations for ship safety
AMSAs review of Great Barrier Reef ship safety and pollution prevention measures makes 41 broad-ranging recommendations for improving ship performance.

Timms points out One of the key recommendations is the establishment of the GBR Shipping Management Group. This will be a consolidated group of interested parties, such as AMSA and the GBR Marine Park Authority, which will prepare and see through an overall management plan and framework for the future. Another recommendation is to implement 100% pilotage for all ships travelling through Torres Strait.

The prospect of improving ship performance is good, as the use of new technology such as automatic identification systems, improved shore-based radar coverage and enhanced aids to navigation are also being planned. u
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