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14Maritime Reporter & Engineering News SS New York Helps Commemorate 9/11Crew members aboard the amphibi- ous transport dock ship USS New York (LPD 21) man the rails and pres- ent honors while passing The World Trade Center and the National Sep- tember 11 Memorial and Museum asthe ship arrives in Manhattan. (U.S.Marine Corps photo by Sgt. RandallA. Clinton/Released) WWII Mine Disposedof at Site of World?s Largest Windfarm Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) specialist Ramora UK(www.ramorauk.com) reports that it has safely disposed of an unexplodedWorld War II mine onsite at one of the world?s largest offshore wind farm. The four-man Ramora UK team useda Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) to place a countermining charge next to the 1,500lb (680kg) mine which hadbeen assessed as high-risk due todamage previously sustained to it. Throughout the procedure a 1,500m safety zone was maintained to pro- tect other vessels in the area. ?The expansion of the offshore re- newable energy sector is creating an increased requirement for rapid and safe disposal of the UXO that is verycommon in coastal waters," saidDavid Welch MIExpE, Managing Direc- tor of Ramora UK. "This mine wasparticularly hazardous because of damage that had occurred to its booster release mechanism. We are very pleased that our experiencedoperators were able to deal effi- ciently with it.? A controlled explosion was then initiated from a safe dis- tance, leaving an underwater crater65ft (20m) wide by 13ft (4m) deep.The German, ship-laid, ground mine was detected in 115ft (35m) ofwater, 20 miles (33km) off Harwich in Eastern England, on the site of theGreater Gabbard Windfarm which will be the world?s largest offshore wind- farm when it is completed next year. www.ramorauk.com NEWSNew clean fuel regulations in Califor- nia and voluntary slowdowns by shipping companies substantially reduce air pollu-tion caused by near-shore ships, accord- ing to a new NOAA-led study published in Environmental Science & Technology . The study examined a container ship operating under a 2009 California regu- lation requiring that ships switch to low- sulfur fuels as they approach the California coast, and also adhering to avoluntary state slowdown policy, in- tended to reduce pollution. The research team found that emis- sions of several health-damaging pol- lutants, including sulfur dioxide andparticulate matter, dropped by as much as 90%.In May 2010, a NOAA research aircraft flew over a commercial container ship, Maersk Line?s Margrethe Maersk, about 40 miles off the coast of California. Re- searchers on the aircraft used sophisti-cated custom instruments to ?sniff? the ship?s emissions before the ship switched to lower-sulfur fuels (by law, within 24 miles of the California coast) and slowed down voluntarily. A few days later, sci- entists aboard the NOAA-sponsored Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute?s research vessel Atlantis sampled emis- sions of the same ship as it cruised slowly within the low-sulfur regulated zone. Sulfur dioxide levels, which were ex- pected to drop, did do so, plummeting 91 percent from 49 grams of emissions per kilogram of fuel to 4.3 grams. Sul-fur dioxide is best known as a precursor to acid rain, but can degrade air quality in other ways, directly and indirectly through chemical reactions in the atmos-phere. In particular, emissions of sulfur dioxide lead to formation of particulatematter in the atmosphere which poses se-rious public health concerns. Particulate matter pollution dropped 90 percent from3.77 grams of emissions per kg of fuel to0.39 grams. Unexpectedly, black carbon levels also dropped, cut by 41 percent, the team reported. Black carbon comprisesdark-colored particles that can warm the atmosphere and also degrade air quality. Thinking ?Inside? the BoxPhilippine school made from APL cargo containers inaugurated Somewhere, Malcom McLean, "the fa- ther of containerization," is smiling. Lastmonth the NOL Group celebrated withthe Philippine Christian Foundation (PCF) the inauguration of the containerschool called ?Philippine Technical Col- lege.? The campus is unique in that it is built exclusively from APL cargo con- tainers. NOL Group donated 53 containers toPCF and subsidized the purchase of 26more. The Group also sponsored a class- room for students and shipped three 40-foot-containers of building materials to Manila to assist in the school?s construc- tion. ?We?re privileged to support this land- mark project in a unique way,? said Edgar Milla, APL?s Managing Director for the Philippines. The containers were sheathed in con-crete for added strength and used as pri-mary construction material for the school.The design of the facility meets the stan- dards of the Philippine Department of Ed-ucation. The four-storey facility is near an area Momentum CompletesOffshore Install for PCPP Momentum recently completed the off- shore installation of the DANA LWS (Light Weight Structure) for PCPP. PCPP is a joint venture between Petronas Cari- galli, PetroVietnam and Pertamina of In- donesia. Momentum loaded thestructure on to a Barge and installed the structure using a Jackup drilling rig. Tra- ditionally, the installations of these struc- tures are done using a Derrick Barge at a far greater expense to the client. ?Mo- mentum continually seeks innovative andcost effective solutions for their clients,? said Jimmy Larsen, Deputy Managing Di-rector. The combined weight of the unit (jacket, platform, boat landing) was 300tons which was installed in 50m ofwater depth and the project was com- pleted on time under budget and withzero incidents. www.momentumdubai.com Air Pollution PlummetsWhen Ships Shift Fuels, NOAA ReportsMR Oct.11 # 2 (10-17):MR Template 10/5/2011 11:11 PM Page 14