Predictable hydrodynamic conditions explain temporal variations in the density of benthic foraging seabirds in a tidal stream environment

VC International Council for the Exploration of the Sea 2016. James J. Waggitt was funded by a NERC Case studentship supported by OpenHydro Ltd and Marine Scotland Science (NE/J500148/1). Shore-based surveys were funded by a NERC (NE/J004340/1) and a Scottish National Heritage (SNH) grant. FVCOM was funded by a NERC grant (NE/J004316/1). The bathymetry data used in hydrodynamic models (HI 1122 Sanday Sound to Westray Firth) was collected by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) as part of the UK Civil Hydrography Programme. We wish to thank Christina Bristow, Matthew Finn and Jennifer Norris at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC); Ian Davies at Marine Scotland Science; Gail Davoren, Shaun Fraser, Pauline Goulet, Alex Robbins and Helen Wade for invaluable discussions; Thomas Cornulier, Alex Douglas, James Grecian and Samantha Patrick for their help with statistical analysis; and Jenny Campbell and the Cockram family for assistance during fieldwork.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Reprocessing of CHP datasets (HI 1567 & 1570) and seafloor substrate interpretation for selected areas : Inner Sound off Skye on the west coast of Scotland

This report describes the methodology for the processing of multibeam echosounder bathymetry, production of multibeam echosounder layers (bathymetry, hillshade, slope, aspect and rugosity) for display and interpretative purposes. Furthermore, an overview of the sea-bed substrate interpretation undertaken by the British Geological Survey (BGS) for three selected areas within Inner Sound off Skye on the west coast of Scotland is provided

A comparison of health data from River Forth pilots in Scotland: in 1988 and 2012

Background: Marine pilots are a special group of seafarers who live ashore and work on board only when piloting. Few studies have reported on their health.Aim: The aim of this study is to compare the health data collected during routine medical examinations in 1988 and 2012.Materials and methods: Data collected from medical examinations of 44 marine pilots in 1988 were compared with data collected from 27 marine pilots in 2012. These data were compared with general population and maritime studies.Results: There was a reduction in number of pilots who smoked, from 41% to 7%. Small improvements in health risk factors were found in reported alcohol intake, prescribed medication, blood pressure and urinalysis. There was an increase in the number of pilots classed as overweight or obese from 45% to 67%.Conclusions: Observed changes suggest that pilots in 2012 have less cardiovascular risk than pilots in 1988. Smoking levels in River Forth Pilots reduced from 41% to 7% between 1988 and 2012. If the Maritime and Coastguard Agency were to collect and store routine health data electronically, rather than on paper, a large database of seafarers’ health data could be analysed in the future

A proposed quantitative methodology for the evaluation of the effectiveness of Human Element, Leadership and Management (HELM) training in the UK

In 2006, a review of maritime accidents found that non-technical skills (NTSs) are the single largest contributing factor towards such incidents. NTSs are composed of both interpersonal and cognitive elements. These include things such as situational awareness, teamwork, decision making, leadership, management and communication skills. In a crisis situation, good NTSs allow a deck officer to quickly recognise that a problem exists and then harness the resources that are at their disposal to safely and efficiently bring the situation back under control. This paper has two aims. The first is to develop a methodology which will enable educators to quantitatively assess the impact of Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA)-approved Human Element, Leadership and Management (HELM) training on deck officer’s NTSs with a view to identifying further training requirements. The second is to determine whether the HELM training provided to develop the NTSs of trainee deck officers is fit for purpose. To achieve these aims, a three-phase approach was adopted. Initially, a taxonomy for deck officer’s NTSs is established, behavioural markers are identified and the relative importance of each attribute is calculated using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Subsequently, a set of scenarios were identified for the assessment of deck officer’s NTSs in a ship bridge simulator environment. A random selection of students that have completed the Chief Mate (CM) programme was performed, and data regarding their NTS-related performance in the scenarios was collected. Finally, the collected data was fed into the evidential reasoning (ER) algorithm, utility values were produced and, having established these values, the effectiveness of the HELM training that the students have received was then evaluated

Beam to Chart: A Case Study of the LIDAR Survey of the Sound of Harris

Tenix LADS Corporation conducted the LIDAR survey of the Sound of Harris in March 2004, for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). The survey was conducted using the LADS Mk II system. The survey area was most complex with many islands, shoals and narrow channels (see Figure 1). Survey data extended from topographic heights up to 50 metres above the sea surface to maximum depths of 25 metres below chart datum.Tenix LADS Corporation llevô a cabo un levantamiento LIDAR del Pasaje de Harris para la Agenda Marîtima y de Guardacostas (AMG), en Marzo del 2004. El levantamiento fue realizado utilizando el sistema LADS Mk II. El ârea del levantamiento era bastante compleja, con muchas islas, bajos fondos y canales angostos (ver Figura 1). Los datos del levantamiento comprendieron desde alturas topogrâficas de hasta 50 metros sobre la superficie del mar, hasta profundidades mâximas de 25 metros por debajo del dâtum de la carta.Tenix LADS Corporation a exécuté un levé LIDAR du passage Harris en mars 2004, pour la MCA (Maritime and Coastguard Agency). Le levé a été effectué à l ’aide du système LADS Mk II. La zone de levé était très complexe, avec de nombreuses îles ainsi que de nombreux hauts fonds et passages étroits (voir Figure 1). Les données des levés vont de hauteurs topographiques atteignant 50 mètres au-dessus de la surface de la mer jusqu’à des profondeurs maximum de 25 mètres au-dessous du niveau de référence des cartes marines

Modelling the reliability of search operations within the UK through Bayesian belief networks

This paper uses a Bayesian belief networks (BBN) methodology to assess the reliability of search and rescue (SAR) operations within the UK coastguard (maritime rescue) coordination centers. This is an extension of earlier work, which investigated the rationale of the government's decision to close a number of coordination centers. The previous study made use of secondary data sources and employed a binary logistic regression methodology to support the analysis. This study focused on the collection of primary data through a structured elicitation process, which resulted in the construction of a BBN. The main findings of the study are that approaches such as logistic regression are complementary to BBN's. The former provided a more objective assessment of associations between variables but was restricted in the level of detail that could be explicitly expressed within the model due to lack of available data. The latter method provided a much more detailed model but the validity of the numeric assessments was more questionable. Each method can be used to inform and defend the development of the other. The paper describes in detail the elicitation process employed to construct the BBN and reflects on the potential for bias