Marina grounds vessels of oil tanker owner
The Maritime Industry Authority announced yesterday that it has issued two cease and desist orders against RDC Reield Marine Services, the company that owns the MT Princess Empress which sank off Naujan, Oriental Mindoro......»»
Groups want ban on toxic cargo in VIP
Civil society groups and representatives of fisherfolk have demanded a total ban on tankers carrying toxic cargo along the Verde Island Passage. The ban should spare the island’s marine environment and communities from the risk of oil spill, according to the think-tank Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development, the environmental advocacy group Protect VIP and the Koalisyon ng Mangingisdang Apektado ng Oil Spill. The call was made as the House of Representatives Committee on Ecology and Committee on Natural Resources are jointly investigating the oil spill caused by the 28 February sinking of the fuel tanker MT Princess Empress off Oriental Mindoro. “Tankers carrying toxic cargo like industrial oil and other fossil fuels should be banned from coursing through the VIP,” Gerry Arances, Executive Director of CEED and co-convenor of Protect VIP said Arances said the complexity of responses necessary in the aftermath of a disaster like the Oriental Mindoro oil spill showed that the government should not allow such incidents to happen in the first place. “We’re disappointed that even as it took two long months before Congress called for another investigation, there appears to be no significant progress in exacting justice for affected communities and biodiversity. Coordination among various government and responsible actors still proves to be severely lacking,” he complained. The groups raised alarm over the high volume of fossil fuel and toxic cargo-carrying vessels’ allowed to ply critically biodiverse seas, especially the VIP, without a complete and thorough assessment of these vessel seaworthiness right from its point of departure as seems to be the case for the Princess Empress. Meanwhile, fisherfolks complain of unclear and unjust processes for the delivery of compensation, inedible products in food packs and lack of plans for long-term support for alternative livelihoods. “It is disheartening to see the finger-pointing at the hearing earlier: the discussion of allowing MT Princess Empress to sail despite its no permit to sail between the Philippine Coast Guard and Marina (Maritime Industry Authority), the unclear water testing and results from Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and Department of Social Welfare and Development’s recall of canned tuna after it has been distributed,” Dindo Melaya, convenor of KMAOS, said. Melaya called for a clear and long-term plan such as providing alternative livelihoods to fisherfolks who are yet to resume fishing, retrieval of the sunken tanker and full accountability from the polluters, instead of sending them canned tuna that are unsafe even for their dogs. The groups raised alarm over the high volume of fossil fuel and toxic cargo-carrying vessels allowed to ply critically biodiverse seas. The groups also pointed out that the absence of RDC Reield Marine Services and the oil tanker owner and charterer, subsidiaries of San Miguel Corporation, makes the oil spill hearing unable to genuinely facilitate the exacting of accountability from polluters. “Government agencies and members of our congress can go on with the blame game as much as they want, but there will be no justice if the polluters that caused this ecological disaster are allowed to play truant,” according to Arances. “We sincerely hope that our government will deliver the punitive actions these companies deserve, including the compensation they owe to communities whose livelihoods they robbed and whose welfare they harmed. These polluters should stop sending stand-ins, and instead, stand up and face the consequences of their actions,” he said. The post Groups want ban on toxic cargo in VIP appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
MARINA revokes license of oil-spill vessel owner
The RDC Reield Marine Services, Inc. or RDC — owner and operator of the MT Princess Empress tanker that sank and caused a massive oil spill in Oriental Mindoro and nearby areas — is no longer allowed to engage in domestic shipping. This was after the Maritime Industry Authority-National Capital Region revoked the company’s Certificate of Public Convenience, or CPC last 11 May. In a press statement on Thursday, MARINA disclosed that RDC was found to have operated Princess Empress without authority. MARINA said it is also continuing its investigation into Orient Registry Shipping Incorporated, Navis Engineering and Marine Services, and Reyeld Townsite Shipyard Corp. An initial probe into these companies showed that they were non-compliant with approved standards and pertinent MARINA circulars. A CPC is an authorization issued by the MARINA for the operation of a domestic water transportation service for public use for which no franchise, either municipal or legislative, is required by law. Separately, the Department of Transportation said it will also investigate the possible culpability of personnel from the relevant maritime authorities in the sinking of the Princess Empress. “We have had sinkings before but no one has been held to account. This time all parties, whether private or public, will be held accountable. There will be no exception,” Transportation Secretary Jaime J. Bautista said. “Our policy is zero tolerance to shortcuts, official negligence and disregard of rules. The rule of law, good governance and best practices must prevail throughout the department and its agencies,” he added. Despite not being authorized to operate, the Princess Empress vessel managed to sail at least 17 times before it sank on 28 February. It carried about 800,000 liters of industrial fuel that polluted the ocean. The mishap did not only affect the fishing community but also the tourism industry in Oriental Mindoro as many beaches and resorts were forced to close. According to a recent report of the national task force on the incident, the country’s tourism sector is likely to lose P886 million in revenues within the next six months as 55 tourism enterprises in three regions were adversely affected. Last week, the Presidential Communications Office reported that 62 kilometers of the 74 kilometers, or 84 percent of the oil spill-affected coastline had been cleaned. The PCO also said the Marcos administration already provided more than P516 million worth of early recovery assistance to close to a hundred thousand affected residents. The post MARINA revokes license of oil-spill vessel owner appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Singapore ship ‘hijacked’ off Ivory Coast
Suspected pirates have boarded a Singaporean-owned chemical tanker in the Gulf of Guinea, off Ivory Coast, according to reports. The status of the Success 9’s crew members, including one Singaporean, is unknown since the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore reported its hijacking on Monday. The MPA said late Tuesday it was working closely with the ship’s owner, as well as the Monrovia Regional Maritime Rescue Coordination Center and the Changi Command and Control Center’s Information Fusion Center “to monitor the situation and render the necessary assistance.” Hai Soon Group, a Singapore-registered company that owns the tanker, declined immediate comment, saying it awaited further updates, Channel News Asia reported. A senior Hai Soon executive confirmed that contact with the Singapore-flag chemical/product tanker has been lost and it is presumed to have been hijacked, shipping portal TradeWinds reported. “We are closely monitoring the situation and trying to reestablish contact with the vessel,” the executive said, according to TradeWinds. An Ivorian security source involved in the matter said a patrol boat had been sent out to rescue the tanker but was unable to locate it because its beacon had been turned off, according to CNA. Security company Ambrey said the vessel believed carrying diesel when it was boarded routinely engages in ship-to-ship operations with commercial fishing vessels and other bunker tanker operators in West Africa. “It appears serious attacks are increasing in the Gulf of Guinea. We hope more international warships with helicopter facilities will be able to patrol the area,” Noel Choong of the International Maritime Bureau’s piracy reporting centre told Agence France-Presse Wednesday. In March, pirates seized a Danish oil tanker off Congo and kidnapped six crew members before abandoning the ship. The post Singapore ship ‘hijacked’ off Ivory Coast appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Marina-7 suspends operation of 2 vessels involved in collision at sea
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Regulators suspended the operation of the two vessels involved in a sea collision in Mactan Channel last Sunday, May 21. The Maritime Industry Authority in Central Visayas (Marina-7) on Monday, May 22, announced they have suspended the safety certificates of Supercat’s M/V St. Jhudiel and LCT Poseidon 23 as investigations on […] The post Marina-7 suspends operation of 2 vessels involved in collision at sea appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»
Raps eyed vs MARINA personnel over sunken tanker
Several personnel of the Maritime Industry Authority might be held liable for allowing the sunken motor tanker Princess Empress to sail without a permit to operate......»»
U.S. reinforcing Gulf patrol
The United States military is reinforcing its patrol of the Persian Gulf in response to Iran’s increasing interdiction of oil ships in the sea lane. The US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain, said in a statement that it was “working with regional allies and partners to increase the rotation of ships and aircraft” that patrol the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial chokepoint into the Gulf. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters in Washington, DC on Friday that Iran has “harassed, attacked or interfered” with 15 internationally flagged merchant vessels over the past 15 years. “The United States will not allow foreign or regional powers to jeopardize freedom of navigation through the Middle East waterways including the Strait of Hormuz,” he said. On 3 May, a fleet of high-speed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy craft surrounded the Greek-owned, Panama-flagged tanker Niovi as it traveled empty in the strait from Dubai to Fujairah, another port in the United Arab Emirates. The post U.S. reinforcing Gulf patrol appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Cooperative aim: Improve Cagayan fisherfolk’s lives, livelihood
On 19 April, the United States government and development NGO Impl. Project Philippines launched a fisherfolk cooperative in Aparri, Cagayan Valley as part of a P22.4 million ($400,000) US-funded program to support resilient fishing communities in the Philippines. Through this cooperative, 26 fisherfolk in Aparri will benefit from strengthened coordination in fishing activities, improved physical security and low-interest loans that will enable members to finance essential needs such as boat repairs. Beneficiaries will also receive training and equipment that will help them improve their catch and enhance their capacity to monitor marine poachers. “The US government is proud to collaborate with Impl. Project Philippines and the municipal government of Aparri on this initiative to support livelihoods and sustainable economic development in Cagayan,” US Embassy Public Engagement Program Officer Nina Lewis said at the Aparri fisherfolk cooperative launch event at the Aparri municipal hall. “We accept the challenge to carry out this project. The equipment and training that we will receive through this program will have a huge impact on us, our families and the whole community here in Cagayan,” Aparri fisherfolk cooperative president Rashep Valencia said. “This project will bring development and growth to the region. The equipment will increase the ability of responders and boat captains to communicate during emergencies, which can save lives,” Philippine National Police Regional Maritime Unit 2 Commander Col. Antonio Dizon said. The cooperative in Aparri is the third cooperative created under this program. In 2020, the US government and Impl. Project Philippines launched the Unified Livelihood Agriculture Cooperative in Masinloc, Zambales. ULAC provided 80 fisherfolk with training, safety equipment, and low-interest loans that sustained their livelihood after the presence of foreign vessels prevented their access to their traditional fishing grounds in Scarborough Shoal. The second cooperative, the Bangsa’Sug Fisherfolks of Patikul Sulu, was launched in Jolo, Sulu earlier this year. [caption id="attachment_122965" align="aligncenter" width="755"] Aparri fisherfolk receive equipment that will sustain their livelihood and improve their efficiency and safety while at sea.[/caption] The post Cooperative aim: Improve Cagayan fisherfolk’s lives, livelihood appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Marina files raps vs sunken vessel owner
The Maritime Industry Authority has filed administrative charges against RDC Reield Marine Services, the owner of M/T Princess Empress that sank in the waters off Naujan, Oriental Mindoro on Feb. 28, and caused a massive oil spill in the province......»»
Marina: Tanker in Oriental Mindoro oil spill had no permit
The sunken tanker that leaked oil that threatens to damage the environment and harm people should have never been allowed to sail in the first place as it did not have a permit to operate, the Maritime Industry Authority said in a Senate hearing on Tuesday......»»
Blame Marina for MT Princess Express sinking
While the focus on the sinking of the MT Princess Express tanker last Feb. 28 remains largely about the cleanup operations of spilled diesel and industrial fuel oil polluting a growing number of island coastlines, very little has been reported on why it happened......»»
Criminal charges mulled vs sunken Empress’ owner
The provincial government of Oriental Mindoro will not hesitate to file criminal charges against the owner of the sunken oil tanker M/T Princess Empress if the company fails to fulfill its obligations, Gov. Humerlito Dolor said yesterday. Dolor said a foreign vessel capable of sealing the leak in the Empress through the use of a remotely operated vehicle is expected to arrive this week......»»
Mindoro oil spill: Mayors to consolidate raps vs vessel owner
Officials of local government units in areas affected by the oil spill from the sunken motor tanker MT Princess Empress have agreed to consolidate the filing of charges against the owner of the vessel......»»
Class suit eyed vs sunken tanker owner
The municipal government of Pola will create a task force to run after the owner of the sunken motor tanker MT Princess Empress for the oil spill in the waters off Oriental Mindoro, according to the Philippine Coast Gurad......»»
2 sea vessels collide near Tampi Port in Negros Oriental
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Two ships collided in the waters off Tampi Port in San Jose, Negros Oriental around 9 a.m. on Tuesday, March 7, 2023, the Philippine Coast Guard in Central Visayas (PCG-7) confirmed. Fortunately, no one was harmed when a passenger roll-on roll-off (roro) ship and an oil tanker figured in a collision near the […] The post 2 sea vessels collide near Tampi Port in Negros Oriental appeared first on Cebu Daily News......»»
Filipino, Malaysian vessels seized for fuel smuggling
A Malaysian cargo vessel and a fuel tanker based in Navotas, Metro Manila have been seized for allegedly attempting to smuggle P29.6 million worth of fuel in the waters off Tawi-Tawi......»»
Raping municipal waters
Over 1,600 fisherfolk groups to date have signed a petition opposing House Bill 7853, which seeks to allow commercial fishing vessels to encroach into municipal fishing grounds by five kilometers, thus amending the current Section 18 of the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998......»»
Explosion rocks tanker off Saudi port
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — An explosion rocked a Singapore-flagged oil tanker off the Saudi port city of Jeddah Monday, the vessel’s owner said, in the latest in a series of attacks on energy infrastructure in the kingdom. No group has so far claimed responsibility for the blast on the tanker BW Rhine, but it […] The post Explosion rocks tanker off Saudi port appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Egypt unveils ancient mummification workshops and tombs
Archaeologists in Egypt have unearthed two human and animal embalming workshops, as well as two tombs, discovered in the Saqqara necropolis south of Cairo, the government said on Saturday. The vast burial site, at the ancient Egyptian capital Memphis, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and home to more than a dozen pyramids, animal graves, and old Coptic Christian monasteries. Mostafa Waziri, head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, told reporters the embalming workshops, where humans and animals were mummified, "date back to the 30th dynasty" which reigned around 2,400 years ago. Researchers "found several rooms equipped with stony beds where the deceased lay down for mummification", Egypt's tourism and antiquities ministry said. Each bed ended in gutters to facilitate the mummification process, with a collection of clay pots nearby to hold entrails and organs, as well as a collection of instruments and ritual vessels. Early studies of the other workshop suggest it was used for the "mummification of sacred animals". The discovery also includes the tombs of two priests dating back to the 24th and 14th centuries BC, respectively. The first belonged to Ne Hesut Ba, who served the fifth dynasty as the head of scribes and priest of the gods Horus and Maat. The tomb walls are decorated with depictions of "daily life, agriculture, and hunting scenes", said Mohamed Youssef, director of the Saqqara archaeological site. The second tomb, that of a priest named Men Kheber, was carved in rock and features depictions of the deceased himself on the tomb walls, as well as in a one-meter-long (three-foot) alabaster statue, Youssef told reporters. Egypt has unveiled a string of major archaeological discoveries in recent years. Critics say the flurry of excavations has prioritized finds shown to grab media attention over hard academic research. The discoveries have been a key component of Egypt's attempts to revive its vital tourism industry amid a severe economic crisis. The government recently launched a strategy "aiming for a rapid increase in inbound tourism" at a rate of 25-30 percent a year, Tourism and Antiquities Minister Ahmed Issa said at the site on Saturday. Egypt aims to draw in 30 million tourists a year by 2028, up from 13 million before the Covid pandemic. The crowning jewel of the government's strategy is the long-delayed inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum at the foot of the pyramids in Giza. The post Egypt unveils ancient mummification workshops and tombs appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Chinese aircraft carrier passes through Taiwan Strait: Taipei
Three Chinese ships, including the Shandong aircraft carrier, passed through the Taiwan Strait on Saturday, the island's Ministry of National Defence said. China claims self-ruled democratic Taiwan as its territory, and in recent years has ramped up air and sea incursions around the island. "A (People's Liberation Army Navy) flotilla of 3 ships, led by the Shangdong aircraft carrier, passed through the Taiwan Strait around noon today," the ministry said in a statement, referring to China's navy. The flotilla went "to the west of the median line, heading northward", it added, referring to the unofficial border in the middle of the strait. While the presence of Chinese warships is constantly monitored and announced near-daily by Taipei, the passage of the Shandong through the 180-kilometer- (110-mile-) wide Taiwan Strait -- which separates the island from continental Asia -- is unusual. Taiwan's armed forces "have monitored the situation and tasked (civil air patrol) aircraft, navy vessels, and land-based missile systems to respond to these activities," the ministry said. The post Chinese aircraft carrier passes through Taiwan Strait: Taipei appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Phl Navy @ 125: Activates 2 FAIC-M platforms
The Philippine Navy on Friday commissioned into service its two brand new Israeli-made fast attack interdiction craft missile (FAIC-M) platforms as it celebrates its 125th anniversary at the Commodore Divino Pier in Manila. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. graced the formal activation of the country’s new capable boats—the third and fourth addition to the existing components of Acero-class Patrol Gunboats (PG) of the Fleet's Littoral Combat Force. Marcos sees the commissioning of the vessels as a significant naval aspect of the country’s military operations. “This endeavor will pave the way for the holistic transformation of our AFP into a stronger, modern, and formidable organization. By then, the AFP will be more effective in its military aims and more responsive to our national goals,” Marcos said. Earlier this month, the Philippine Navy christened these two ships—the BRP Gener Tinangag (PG903) and BRP Domingo Deluana (PG905), named after the Philippine Marine Corps heroes and Medal for Valor awardees for bravery and sacrifice beyond the call of duty, late Cpl. Gener Tinangag and late Sgt. Domingo Deluana. PN spokesperson, Capt. Benjo Negranza said the vessels will be deployed to the vital choke points, major sea lines of communication, and littoral domains of the country. “These 32-meter long gunboats will provide added muscles to the Navy's capability to secure the seas with their quick intercept ability, remote stabilized weapons, and short-range missiles,” Negranza added. Meanwhile, Navy Chief, Vice Adm. Toribio Adaci Jr., said the two newly-commissioned vessels “symbolize the promising future of our maritime defense and efforts toward enhanced capabilities, increased resilience, and stronger presence in the maritime domain.” The newly commissioned vessels are part of the Philippine Navy’s FAIC-M acquisition projects, along with the procurement of nine Israel-made Shaldag Mark V missile boats worth P10-billion. This project is under the Horizon 3 of the modernization program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The post Phl Navy @ 125: Activates 2 FAIC-M platforms appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»