Feature Story – Professional Mariner

Bumpy year for offshore wind lets maritime infrastructure catch up

For America’s nascent offshore wind industry, the last year was the best of times and the worst of times. In the past 12 months, American offshore wind development reached some key milestones. Foundations were laid and turbines were installed at the nation’s first two commercial-scale offshore wind farms and those farms generated their first megawatts. The first U.S.-flagged turbine installation…

Shaver Transportation puts newest towboat to work on the Columbia and Snake rivers

Capt. Steve is named for Steve Shaver, the company’s longtime president The Shaver Transportation Company has added a new towboat to its fleet. Founded in 1880, Shaver Transportation is the oldest family-owned and operated tugboat and barge company on the West Coast. Headquartered in Portland, Ore., Shaver provides service for the Columbia Snake River System. With the addition of the…

Technology, innovative designs advance maritime firefighting, training

Fires while aboard a ship are a serious hazard that concerned mariners have to train for — and, in the event of an emergency, fight with while out on the water. Protecting the vessel and crew can come down to having the right equipment, proper training and appropriate systems in place. Technology and innovative designs have helped progress firefighting tools…

Regulatory changes impact FM-200 fire suppressant systems

The U.S. Coast Guard has alerted ship operators of plans to “phase down” the use of FM-200, a fire suppressant common in extinguishers and overhead sprinkler systems that lets loose a gush of greenhouse gas emissions. FM-200 is still allowed on vessels and there are no plans to prohibit it in the future, Pock Y. Utiskul, a fire protection engineer…

No quick fixes seen for shipping bottlenecks, port congestion

From the hills of San Pedro, Calif., you can see the problem firsthand: Towering cranes unload containerships at every available berth, and stacks of containers swell in the freight yards. Loaded containerships occupy every available anchorage inside and outside the long seawall. The number of ships waiting to unload in recent weeks at the adjacent ports of Los Angeles…

Port of Virginia avoids major container backlogs

Dozens of ships are waiting for berths off Los Angeles. Puget Sound is so overloaded, rarely used anchorages have filled up. And now, the cargo backlogs are spreading to the East Coast ports of Savannah and New York-New Jersey. The Port of Virginia, meanwhile, continues to operate normally despite similar surges in cargo that have bedeviled other ports. Joe Harris,…

Locked and overloaded

The Soo Lock in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., is the busiest lock system in the world by cargo tonnage. It’s known as the “Linchpin of the Lakes” for its importance to Great Lakes maritime commerce. After a lengthy wait for Congressional funding, there is now money to build a new lock chamber. Once complete, sometime around 2030, the new…