Cowes Harbour Commission Annual Report 2016-2017 | Page 12

Navigation Aids

The Solent Navigation and Pilotage Coordination Committee ( SNPCC ), comprising the pilotage authorities of Portsmouth International Port , Portsmouth Dockyard Port , Southampton , Langstone and Cowes , met twice in 2016 . The SNPCC Operations Group ( SOG ), which considers detailed issues of navigational safety and analyses accident investigations in order to promulgate lessons learned between all members , met four times in the year .

Cowes Harbour Commission ( CHC ) issued 62 Local Notices to Mariners ( LNTMs ) in 2016 . At year-end there were 27 Local Notices in force for Cowes Harbour . In line with CHC ’ s Strategic Plan objective , improving promulgation of Cowes LNTMs was a focal point and CHC has increased the number of email subscriptions to LNTMs by 10 % since April 2016 . Views of Cowes LNTMs on CHC ’ s website have risen by almost 300 % when compared to 2015 , with further plans for encouraging subscription to come .

The annual inspection of local navigation aids was conducted by the General Lighthouse Authority in September 2016 . The aids were found to be in generally good order and only one minor defect was notified to third party owners in the harbour and has since been rectified .

Emergency planning , drills and training

CHC was formally accepted as a member of SOLFIRE in 2013 and continues to participate , coming under ‘ SOLFIRE Cowes ’. CHC continues to manage our own emergency response plans but has the added benefit of having a formal structure for calling on assistance from neighbouring harbour authorities in the event of a major incident .

The following emergency training and audits were conducted in the last financial year : CHC Oil Spill Response Plan audited and reapproved by the MCA in August 2016 . Cowes Harbour Master attended a SOLFIRE table top exercise at ABP Southampton . Four CHC staff attended Oil Spill Response refresher training at Oil Spill Response Limited ( OSRL ) Southampton .

An emergency table top exercise was hosted by CHC covering a series of emergency scenarios attended by representatives of the HM Coastguard , Red Funnel , Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service , Hampshire Police , Isle of Wight Council , East Cowes Marina , Cowes Yacht Haven and the RNLI .

Oil Spill exercise deploying our stock of response equipment was held at Kingston Marine Services .

Quarterly security drills , two Port Security Committee meetings and an annual Port Security exercise were conducted in compliance with the International Ship and Port Security Code .

Safety Initiatives

CHC are investing in a harbour wide CCTV system that , from June 2017 , will provide full 24 / 7 coverage from the Folly Inn to the harbour entrance . The primary objective for the installation of our own high specification CCTV system is to provide the Harbour Master ’ s team with the tools and equipment necessary to carry out full incident investigations , with the CCTV quality and coverage we require , without having to rely on the cooperation of third parties .

The harbour CCTV coverage will deliver a number of stakeholder benefits , including the following :

A visible deterrent for those contemplating breaching our General Directions and other enforceable laws ( such as theft and criminal damage ).

Provision of evidence to enforce and / or prosecute under our General Directions . Provision of information to external agencies on persons / vessels of interest . A supplementation to our patrol capabilities to allow 24 / 7 coverage . Provision of live images to the Harbour Office incident control room in the event of an emergency situation . Capability to provide live images to remote CHC pilots to assess visibility throughout our area . Capability to have live images of Cowes Harbour available on our website for public interest .

The RNLI has set a goal to halve the number of coastal drownings by 2024 . ‘ Respect the Water ’ is the national drowning prevention campaign and CHC will continue to play a key role in helping them to achieve this . CHC was one of the first UK harbour authorities to be working jointly with the RNLI on promoting the Respect the Water campaign . Along with supporting this campaign through advertising and lifejacket clinics , CHC will be sending all of our operational staff to ‘ Respect the Water ’ training sessions hosted by the RNLI . This will ensure that our staff will be able to convey this important safety message and raise awareness amongst harbour users .