Environmental Risks Monitoring of Shipwrecks in Italian Seas

After a description of the international regulatory framework, this paper examines the European project DE.E.P.P. and provides an overview of shipwreck databases in Italy. Afterwards, it reconstructs the recent history of the supertanker VLCC Haven which represents one of the largest Mediterranean shipwrecks. The findings of this paper emphasize the need to unify all the various agencies databases into a national Territorial Information System of potentially polluting wrecks. This System would be completed by all the information available in archives and press, to allow an adequate environmental risk monitoring and classification of shipwrecks in the Italian seas

Development of a fusion adaptive algorithm for marine debris detection within the post-Sandy restoration framework

Recognition of marine debris represent a difficult task due to the extreme variability of the marine environment, the possible targets, and the variable skill levels of human operators. The range of potential targets is much wider than similar fields of research such as mine hunting, localization of unexploded ordnance or pipeline detection. In order to address this additional complexity, an adaptive algorithm is being developing that appropriately responds to changes in the environment, and context. The preliminary step is to properly geometrically and radiometrically correct the collected data. Then, the core engine manages the fusion of a set of statistically- and physically-based algorithms, working at different levels (swath, beam, snippet, and pixel) and using both predictive modeling (that is, a high-frequency acoustic backscatter model) and phenomenological (e.g., digital image processing techniques) approaches. The expected outcome is the reduction of inter-algorithmic cross-correlation and, thus, the probability of false alarm. At this early stage, we provide a proof of concept showing outcomes from algorithms that dynamically adapt themselves to the depth and average backscatter level met in the surveyed environment, targeting marine debris (modeled as objects of about 1-m size). The project relies on a modular software library, called Matador (Marine Target Detection and Object Recognition)

Huddl: the Hydrographic Universal Data Description Language

Since many of the attempts to introduce a universal hydrographic data format have failed or have been only partially successful, a different approach is proposed. Our solution is the Hydrographic Universal Data Description Language (HUDDL), a descriptive XML-based language that permits the creation of a standardized description of (past, present, and future) data formats, and allows for applications like HUDDLER, a compiler that automatically creates drivers for data access and manipulation. HUDDL also represents a powerful solution for archiving data along with their structural description, as well as for cataloguing existing format specifications and their version control. HUDDL is intended to be an open, community-led initiative to simplify the issues involved in hydrographic data access

HUDDL for description and archive of hydrographic binary data

Many of the attempts to introduce a universal hydrographic binary data format have failed or have been only partially successful. In essence, this is because such formats either have to simplify the data to such an extent that they only support the lowest common subset of all the formats covered, or they attempt to be a superset of all formats and quickly become cumbersome. Neither choice works well in practice. This paper presents a different approach: a standardized description of (past, present, and future) data formats using the Hydrographic Universal Data Description Language (HUDDL), a descriptive language implemented using the Extensible Markup Language (XML). That is, XML is used to provide a structural and physical description of a data format, rather than the content of a particular file. Done correctly, this opens the possibility of automatically generating both multi-language data parsers and documentation for format specification based on their HUDDL descriptions, as well as providing easy version control of them. This solution also provides a powerful approach for archiving a structural description of data along with the data, so that binary data will be easy to access in the future. Intending to provide a relatively low-effort solution to index the wide range of existing formats, we suggest the creation of a catalogue of format descriptions, each of them capturing the logical and physical specifications for a given data format (with its subsequent upgrades). A C/C++ parser code generator is used as an example prototype of one of the possible advantages of the adoption of such a hydrographic data format catalogue

A geo-database for potentially polluting marine sites and associated risk index

The increasing availability of geospatial marine data provides an opportunity for hydrographic offices to contribute to the identification of Potentially Polluting Marine Sites (PPMS). To adequately manage these sites, a PPMS Geospatial Database (GeoDB) application was developed to collect and store relevant information suitable for site inventory and geo-spatial analysis. The benefits of structuring the data to conform to the Universal Hydrographic Data Model (IHO S-100) and to use the Geographic Mark-Up Language (GML) for encoding are presented. A storage solution is proposed using a GML-enabled spatial relational database management system (RDBMS). In addition, an example of a risk index methodology is provided based on the defined data structure. The implementation of this example was performed using scripts containing SQL statements. These procedures were implemented using a cross-platform C++ application based on open-source libraries and called PPMS GeoDB Manager

Potentially Polluting Marine Sites GeoDB: An S-100 Geospatial Database as an Effective Contribution to the Protection of the Marine Environment

Potentially Polluting Marine Sites (PPMS) are objects on, or areas of, the seabed that may release pollution in the future. A rationale for, and design of, a geospatial database to inventory and manipu-late PPMS is presented. Built as an S-100 Product Specification, it is specified through human-readable UML diagrams and implemented through machine-readable GML files, and includes auxiliary information such as pollution-control resources and potentially vulnerable sites in order to support analyses of the core data. The design and some aspects of implementation are presented, along with metadata requirements and structure, and a perspective on potential uses of the database

Developing a GIS-Database and Risk Index for Potentially Polluting Marine Sites

The increasing availability of geospatial marine data provides an opportunity for hydrographic offices to contribute to the identification of “Potentially Polluting Marine Sites” (PPMS). These include shipwrecks, oil rigs, pipelines, and dumping areas. To adequately assess the environmental risk of these sites, relevant information must be collected and converted into a multi-scale geodatabase suitable for site inventory and geo-spatial analysis. In addition, a Risk Index – representing an assessment of the magnitude of risk associated with any site – can be derived to determine the potential impacts of these PPMS. However, the successful collection and integration of PPMS information requires some effort to ‘normalize’ and standardize the data based on recognized international standards. In particular, there is benefit in structuring the data in conformance with the Universal Hydrographic Data Model (IHO S-100) recently adopted by the International Hydrographic Organization. In this paper, an S-100 compliant product specification for a PPMS geo-spatial database and associated Marine Site Risk Index is proposed which can be used by national hydrographic offices and marine protection agencies

Environmental Risks Monitoring of Shipwrecks in Italian Seas

After a description of the international regulatory framework, this paper examines the European project DE.E.P.P. and provides an overview of shipwreck databases in Italy. Afterwards, it reconstructs the recent history of the supertanker VLCC Haven which represents one of the largest Mediterranean shipwrecks. The findings of this paper emphasize the need to unify all the various agencies databases into a national Territorial Information System of potentially polluting wrecks. This System would be completed by all the information available in archives and press, to allow an adequate environmental risk monitoring and classification of shipwrecks in the Italian seas.Tras una descripción de la estructura regulatoria internacional, este artículo estudia el proyecto europeo DE.E.P.P. (Development of European guidelines for Potentially Polluting shipwrecks) y proporciona une vision de conjunto de las bases de datos de restos de naufragios en Italia. Posteriormente, reconstruye la historia reciente del superpetrolero VLCC Haven, que representa uno de los mayores restos de naufragios del Mediterráneo. Las conclusiones de este artículo destacan la necesidad de unificar las bases de datos de todas las diferentes agencias en un Sistema de Información Territorial nacional de restos potencialmente contaminantes. Este Sistema sería completado con toda la información disponible en los archivos y en la prensa, para permitir un control adecuado de los riesgos ambientales y la clasificación de los restos de naufragios en los mares Italianos.Après la description du cadre réglementaire international, cet article examine le Projet européen DE.E.P.P. (DEvelopment of European guidelines for Potentially Polluting shipwrecks) et fournit une vue d’ensemble des bases de données en matière d’échouement en Italie. Il reconstitue ensuite l’histoire récente du superpétrolier VLCC Haven, l’un des plus importants échouements ayant eu lieu en Méditerranée. Les conclusions de cet article soulignent la nécessité de réunir toutes les bases de données des diverses agences en un Système territorial d’informations sur les échouements potentiellement polluants. Ce système serait complété par l’ensemble des informations disponibles dans les archives et la presse afin de permettre une gestion appropriée des risques environnementaux et la classification des échouements dans les eaux italiennes

Huddler: a multi-language compiler for automatically generated format-specific data drivers

The Hydrographic Universal Data Description Language (Huddl) permits description of data organization in existing and future hydrographic data formats. Huddler represents an implementation of one of the many advantages of having such format descriptions: a compiler that automatically creates drivers for data access and manipulation. The compiler is based on an XML parsing library that loads into memory the format description (frontend), and a code generator (backend) that creates code able to access the data in three different types of computer languages: procedural ANSI C, object-oriented C++, and multi-paradigm Python. The system is designed to admit other languages readily. The compiler is accessible via command line or a GUI application, named Hush (Huddl Schema Handler), which provides additional tools and information to the user. The compiler is here demonstrated with a variety of data formats from sonar manufacturers (e.g., Kongsberg EM Series) and acquisition software companies (e.g., HyPack) both legacy and in active development, both binary and ASCII. Finally, a community-oriented website to access, catalogue, and disseminate hydrographic data formats resources and Huddl-specific information has been developed and is now publicly available