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The Italian navy said Friday it boarded and took control of a Sicilian fishing boat that had been seized earlier in the day by armed men off the coast of Libya. The navy said the fishing boat had been seized by armed men, apparently Libyan security forces, traveling on a tug boat around 90 kilometers (50 nautical miles) northwest of the Libyan port of Misrata. Fighting in Libya has escalated to its worst levels since the 2011 civil war that ended with the overthrow and killing of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

The Italian navy said Friday it boarded and took control of a Sicilian fishing boat that had been seized earlier in the day by armed men off the coast of Libya. The navy said the fishing boat had been seized by armed men, apparently Libyan security forces, traveling on a tug boat around 90 kilometers (50 nautical miles) northwest of the Libyan port of Misrata. Fighting in Libya has escalated to its worst levels since the 2011 civil war that ended with the overthrow and killing of longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

The accumulation of aquatic organisms on the wetted surfaces of vessels (i.e., vessel biofouling) negatively impacts world-wide shipping through reductions in vessel performance and fuel efficiency, and increases in emissions. Vessel biofouling is also a potent mechanism for the introduction and spread of marine non-indigenous species. Guidance and regulations from the International Maritime Organization, New Zealand, and California have recently been adopted to address biosecurity risks, primarily through preventive management. However, appropriate reactive management measures may be necessary for some vessels. Vessel in-water cleaning or treatment (VICT) has been identified as an important tool to improve operating efficiency and to reduce biosecurity risks. VICT can be applied proactively [i.e., to prevent the occurrence of, or to remove, microfouling (i.e., slime) or prevent the occurrence of macrofouling organisms - large, distinct multicellular organisms visible to the human eye], or reactively (i.e., to remove macrofouling organisms). However, unmanaged VICT includes its own set of biosecurity and water quality risks. Regulatory policies and technical advice from California and New Zealand have been developed to manage these risks, but there are still knowledge gaps related to the efficacy of available technologies. Research efforts are underway to address these gaps in order to inform the regulatory and non-regulatory application of VICT.

Ship strikes are a widespread conservation issue for many cetacean species globally. Population level impacts depend on the occurrence and severity of collisions, which may lead to life altering injuries or fatalities. Such impacts are a major concern for large, long-lived, and reproductively slow species like the fin whale. Since 2014, a seasonal feeding aggregation of fin whales has been monitored from February to June off the Catalan coast (Spain), in the northwest Mediterranean Sea. Oceanographical factors influence the occurrence and high density of krill within submarine canyons along the continental shelf, resulting in high whale abundance within a small spatial area. The study area extends 37 km offshore across a 1,944 km2 marine strip situated between the towns of Torredembarra and Castelldefels. This fin whale feeding ground is exposed to high density marine vessel traffic, given its location between the northern Mediterranean shipping lane, which links Barcelona and Tarragona Ports to the Atlantic Ocean and wider Mediterranean Basin. Ship strikes represent the greatest conservation threat for fin whales in the Mediterranean Sea. At least four fin whales have been found dead in Barcelona Port since 1986 due to ship strikes and seven live whales have been documented with injuries in the study area since 2018. Fin whale distribution was mapped with known high-risk marine vessels' (cargo, tanker and passenger vessels) shipping lanes. Vessel density and shipping lanes characterised by speed were considered. Collision risk was estimated monthly based on the predicted fin whale occurrence and traffic density. Several shipping lanes crossed the fin whale feeding habitat every month with an average speed of 15 kn. Cargo vessels displayed the highest ship-strike risk during April, overlapping with the peak of fin whale sightings in the critical feeding area. Slower vessel speeds (8 kn) in waters <200 m depth or along the continental shelf should be implemented al

The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has announced that the Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) of sunken cargo vessel El Faro has been successfully recovered. A deep ocean remotely operated underwater vehicle, CURV-21, equipped with special technology was used to perform the recovery. It was transported to the sinking site off the Bahamas by ocean …

Regional Anti-Piracy Chief in Somalia Says He's Been Fired Over Illegal Fishing Comments.

The badly decomposed bodies of two children were found washed up on the Greek island of Kos on Sunday, the latest victims of a crisis that has seen 630,000 people enter the EU illegally this year. Authorities believe the children were from migrant families that had been trying to reach Kos by dinghy, Greek media reported. Greece has been struggling to cope with a wave of migrants making the dangerous crossing from Turkey.

Calls for urgent action to reduce ship greenhouse gas emissions have been met with heavy push-back by many states and big industry groups meeting at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). A group of Pacific Island and mainly European states clashed repeatedly with those saying that decisions on immediate measures should await the final iteration of the IMO's comprehensive GHG strategy in 2023, rather than be part of the "initial" strategy in 2018. Green groups Seas At Risk and Transport & Environment, which are members of the Clean Shipping Coalition (CSC), said the most obvious immediate measure is to regulate ship speed, with the feasibility and effectiveness of slow steaming having been proven during the recession.

Reducing speeds across shipping fleets has been shown to make a substantial contribution to effective short term measures for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, working toward the goal adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in April 2018 to reduce the total annual GHG emission by at least 50% by 2050 compared to 2008. I review modeling work on GHG emissions and also on the relationships between underwater noise, whale collision risk and speed. I examine different speed reduction scenarios that would contribute to GHG reduction targets, and the other environmental benefits of reduced underwater noise and risk of collisions with marine life. A modest 10% speed reduction across the global fleet has been estimated to reduce overall GHG emissions by around 13% (Faber et al., 2017) and improve the probability of meeting GHG targets by 23% (Comer et al., 2018). I conclude that such a 10% speed reduction, could reduce the total sound energy from shipping by around 40%. The associated reduction in overall ship strike risk has higher uncertainty but could be around 50%. This would benefit whale populations globally and complement current efforts to reduce collision risk in identified high risk areas through small changes in routing.

Which ports have been most affected by coronavirus?

Study: Fewer Coronavirus Cases if Diamond Princess Had Been Evacuated

Microplastic pollution in the ocean is a critical, global environmental concern. Although believed to be a comparatively small contributor, the paints applied to commercial ships have been identified as a source of microplastics because polymers are used as binding agents in all anticorrosive and antifouling marine coatings. Furthermore, the release of microplastics from coatings may be amplified by in-water cleaning operations to remove biofouling. A comprehensive, detailed assessment and review of the array of commercial ships' coatings, specifically characteristics, behavior, and fate over time, has not been conducted in the context of ocean microplastic pollution. This Policy Brief identifies gaps and proposes actions to better understand the fate of released particles with the goal to inform appropriate and effective solutions.

As the current COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting crew change crisis exacerbates the mental health problem faced by seafarers, various maritime stakeholders have mobilised their resources and strengths to provide a variety of supportive measures to address the issue. This paper aims to find out what measures have been adopted in the industry and how widely they have been experienced/received by seafarers and evaluate their effectiveness. To achieve this aim, this research employed a mixed methods design involving qualitative interviews with 26 stakeholders and a quantitative questionnaire survey of 817 seafarers. The research identified a total number of 22 mental health support measures, all of which were perceived to have contributed positively to seafarers' mental health. However, not all of them were widely available to or utilised by seafarers. The findings also highlighted the importance of family, colleagues, shipping companies, and government agencies, as they are associated with the most effective support measures, namely communication with family, timely crew changes, being prioritised for vaccination, being vaccinated, and a positive and collegial atmosphere on-board. Based on the findings, recommendations are provided.

- National associations and shipping companies have been implementing the use of mitigation measures to reduce the risk of harm to endangered whale species. - ICS encourages the shipping industry to continue to build on these steps that have been taken. - Collaboration is needed to review maritime guidelines and protect marine life.

Marine traffic has been identified as a serious threat to Mediterranean cetaceans with few mitigation strategies in place. With only limited research effort within the Eastern Basin, neither baseline species knowledge nor the magnitude of threats have been comprehensively assessed. Delineating the extent of overlap between marine traffic and cetaceans provides decision makers with important information to facilitate management. The current study employed the first seasonal boat surveys within the Eastern Mediterranean Sea of Turkey, incorporating visual and acoustic survey techniques between 2018 and 2020 to understand the spatial distribution of cetacean species. Additionally, marine traffic density data were retrieved to assess the overlap with marine traffic. Encounter rates of cetaceans and marine traffic density were recorded for each 100 km2 cell within a grid. Subsequently, encounter and marine traffic density data were used to create a potential risk index to establish where the potential for marine traffic and cetacean overlap was high. Overall, eight surveys were undertaken with a survey coverage of 21,899 km2 between the Rhodes and Antalya Basins. Deep diving cetaceans (sperm and beaked whales) were detected on 28 occasions, with 166 encounters of delphinids of which bottlenose, striped and common dolphins were visually confirmed. Spatially, delphinids were distributed throughout the survey area but encounter rates for both deep diving cetaceans and delphinids were highest between the Rhodes and Finike Basins. While sperm whales were generally detected around the 1000m contour, delphinids were encountered at varying depths. Overall, two years of monthly marine traffic density were retrieved with an average density of 0.37 hours of monthly vessel activity per square kilometer during the study period. The mean density of vessels was 0.32 and 1.03 hours of monthly vessel activity per square kilometer in non-coastal and coastal waters respectively. The Easter

For decades, the shipping sector has been incorporated into the global decarbonization process. At present, global shipping - as a whole - aims to reduce its emission levels by 40 % by 2030 in relation to the 2008 level. In reducing greenhouse gas emissions, regulations such as the MARPOL 73/78 Convention and Energy Efficiency Design Index as well as other monitoring and managing schemes already in operation (e.g., Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan and Energy Efficiency Operational Indicator) play a crucial role in measuring fuel consumption and ship engine emission output. Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) is another measure, projected to be ratified in 2023, in-line with decarbonization targets in which the International Maritime Organization has planned a 70 % reduction in emissions level by 2050 using the same 2008 baseline. For this to happen, ship speed may need to be reduced, a decrease of fleet capacity may also need to be considered, and new ships may need to replace older ones already in service. The costs of implementing these types of reforms are obviously significant to the sector. Such change will augment the overall shipping overhead, effecting subsequent transportation and consumer costs. This paper aims to specify the scale of the expected costs of implementing EEXI globally. The current maritime fleet has been analyzed in terms of energy demand, deadweight tonnage, and expected CO2 emission reduction marginal abatement costs (MAC). Two pathways to achieve the desired EEXI values are presented, including the most common and available technologies to reduce demand. These technologies are subjected to MAC valuation and presented quantitatively for the world fleet. The research also investigates alternative fuel options in regard to lessening the CO2 impact, developing wind support systems, and avoiding conventional advancements to ships (e.g., upgrading the propeller or the propulsion system). At length, the target of the work is t

With increasing demand for exploration and utilization of marine resources, achieving direct and efficient communication between water and air has been an urgent need. Sound waves, as the only propagation way with low attenuation in both water and air, has been considered the most practical way to achieve water-air communication.

Cruise tourism is becoming increasingly popular worldwide. However, the health and safety of thousands of cruise tourists have been put in jeopardy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The refusal of cruise ships calling has been the most significant reason behind the health hazards faced by passengers. Moreover, some coastal States have decided to close their borders, leaving passengers to their own fate in the case of a COVID-19 outbreak on board. Situation analysis contributes to demonstrating obstacles encountered in public health governance on cruise tourism. Information is collected from official websites of governments and international organizations to investigate the reasons behind the non-compliance of these countries with the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005). Academic literatures showcase different views on the necessity of revising the IHR (2005). Statistical analysis is used to assess core capacities required by the IHR (2005) of the coastal States. Coastal States reserve their rights to refuse foreign cruise ships to enter ports and to prevent the persons aboard from embarking or disembarking so long as conditions under Article 43 are met. However, some foreign cruise ships were directly refused to call by various coastal States without scientific evidence. This practice stems largely from the high risk of COVID-19 outbreaks in cruise ships and the resulting burden from the cruise pandemic response. Compared with improving IHR (2005), especially its dispute settlement mechanism, helping coastal States to boost their core capacities is more conducive to solving the problem of cruise public health governance. The improvement of core capacities can be carried out from the aspects of surveillance of cruise ships and risk assessment, medical examinations on cruise travelers, cruise design and cruise tourism management.

- The MSF-operated search and rescue ship, Geo Barents, has been detained by Italian authorities in port. - A court appeal has been lodged against the detention of the Geo Barents. - MSF urges the Italian government to annul the law under which the Geo Barents is detained, and for the European Commission to scrutinise this law.

Today, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) released the findings of the new, comprehensive 2016 Asia Cruise Trends study. Once again, the data reveals the cruise industry in Asia is growing at a record pace and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, according to the latest study, Asian source markets experienced the most growth year over year in ocean cruise passengers with an impressive 24 percent increase from 2014 to 2015 and a total of 2.08 million passengers in 2015. Asian cruise deployment, capacity and destinations have been showing remarkable growth too.

Today, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) released the findings of the new, comprehensive 2016 Asia Cruise Trends study. Once again, the data reveals the cruise industry in Asia is growing at a record pace and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, according to the latest study, Asian source markets experienced the most growth year over year in ocean cruise passengers with an impressive 24 percent increase from 2014 to 2015 and a total of 2.08 million passengers in 2015. Asian cruise deployment, capacity and destinations have been showing remarkable growth too.

Governments have been urged to ratify the London Protocol treaty which regulates the dumping of wastes at sea.

Governments have been urged to ratify the London Protocol treaty which regulates the dumping of wastes at sea.