Page 60: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (October 2011)

Cosco Busan Bridge Spill Claims Finally Settled The sorry saga of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay bridge collision hascome to an end.On a foggy November night in 2007, the Cosco Busan hit the bridge with itsport bow, spilling 200,000 litres of fuel oil into the San Francisco Bay. It was one of the worst oil spills in Cal- ifornia. Far more destructive than organic crude oil, the fuel sludge coated sensitive beaches and habitats of local wildlife andgenerated the oil-soaked bird images that give the shipping industry its bad name. Oil from the spill washed up on more than 100 miles of beaches and killed al-most 7,000 birds. It was an environmen- tal disaster and evoked fury from the public to environmental agencies to the government. This week, Cosco Busan?s Hong Kong ship management company Fleet Man- agement, and the ship owner, Regal Stone, agreed to pay US$44 million tosettle environmental claims and penalties in a deal with the US Department of Jus-tice and other regulatory authorities. The final step will be to have the deal approved by a federal court, and when that happens it will resolve all outstand- ing claims for damage to natural re-sources and the resulting clean up. The ship?s insurers will pick up the tab. While owned by Cosco, the ship was chartered to Korean shipping company Hanjin. Fleet Management, which was sold last year, was fined US$10 million after pleading guilty to criminal charges that some of its crew falsified documents after the collision. But the pressure forjustice ensured that justice would not be done. Punitive fines for ship owners and even refusing port access for their vessels is one thing, but imprisonment is a step too far. San Francisco Bay pilot John Cota was overseeing the navigation of the ship when it hit the bridge, and foundhimself jailed for 10 months. Cota was found criminally negligent for taking the ship out in thick fog and ig-noring danger signals. Negligent, sure, but criminally negligent? That?s hard to swallow. His name joins a growing list of seafarers who have been unfairly jailed after oil spills whose highly photogenicconsequences have seafarers lynched in the court of public opinion and jailed bycourts of law. The penalties should be se- vere for dereliction of duty, but jail time is taking it all a bit too far. Post by Greg Knowler on September 21, 2011 60Maritime Reporter & Engineering News UtopiaNot so much of a ship than a self propelled floatingstructure, this year?s Monaco Boat Show introduced an unusual concept exhibit - Utopia! A collaboration be- tween the UK companies Yacht Island Design and BMT Nigel Gee it resembles something out of a James Bondfilm. Still at the concept design stage, the 328 ft (100 m) ?diameter? construction gives a volume similar to that of a larger cruise ship. According to James Roy, Yacht Design Director at BMT Nigel Gee, ?Utopia is not an object to travel in, it is a place to be, an island established for anyone who has the vision to create such a place.? The main accommodation and service area are de-ployed over 11 decks with the top deck recreational area and swimming pools covered by a retractable canopy. The public areas offer a selection of retail shopping malls, theater, a number of restaurants and an entertain- ment zone featuring bars, nightclubs and a casino. At the uppermost point, at a height of 213 ft (65 m) on deck13, there is a panoramic observatory offering 360 de- grees of unrestricted views. Travel to and from Utopia may be by helicopter or boat: the design includes more than one landing pad plusa wet dock for visiting vessels. The structure uses a four legged platform arrangement designed to keep motion to a minimum even under more extreme sea conditions. At the base of each leg is an az- imuthing thruster providing slow speed propulsion. The large central section is used to attach the mooring sys- tem and is the main dock. Each leg has a retractable beach area at sea level for bathing and water sports ac- tivities. Posted by Keith Henderson on MaritimePropulsion.comSeptember 29, 2011The center section is used to attach the mooring system andhouses the main dock. At the base of each leg is an az-imuthing thruster providing slow speed propulsion. (Image credit: Yacht Island Design Ltd/BMT Nigel Gee) Project Utopia seen from above, showing helipad and the cen- tral oasis with opening glass roof. MR Oct.11 # 8 (57-64):MR Template 10/6/2011 4:03 PM Page 60