Legislature(2005 - 2006)CAPITOL 124
02/10/2005 01:00 PM House MILITARY & VETERANS' AFFAIRS
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| Start | |
| Overview: Marine Exchange of Alaska | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON MILITARY AND VETERANS' AFFAIRS
February 10, 2005
1:08 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Bob Lynn, Chair
Representative Nancy Dahlstrom
Representative Bill Thomas
Representative Sharon Cissna
Representative Max Gruenberg
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Jim Elkins
Representative Lesil McGuire
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENT
Senator Charlie Huggins
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
OVERVIEW: MARINE EXCHANGE OF ALASKA
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
PAUL FUHS, Board President
Marine Exchange of Alaska
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented an overview of the Marine Exchange
of Alaska.
CAPTAIN ED PAGE, Executive Director
Marine Exchange of Alaska
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Presented an overview of the Marine Exchange
of Alaska.
BILL BENNING, Operations Manager
Marine Exchange of Alaska
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Answered questions regarding the Marine
Exchange of Alaska.
JOHN PARROTT, Vice President/Alaska General Manager
Totem Ocean Trailer Express
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Commented on the Marine Exchange tracking
system.
NICK MARRONE, Vice President
Seafarers International Union
San Francisco, California
POSITION STATEMENT: Asked questions regarding the Marine
Exchange tracking systems.
ACTION NARRATIVE
CHAIR BOB LYNN called the House Special Committee on Military
and Veterans' Affairs meeting to order at 1:08:43 PM.
Representatives Lynn, Dahlstrom, Thomas, Cissna, and Gruenberg
were present at the call to order.
^OVERVIEW: MARINE EXCHANGE OF ALASKA
1:10:04 PM
CHAIR LYNN announced that the only order of business would be an
overview of the Marine Exchange of Alaska.
1:10:22 PM
PAUL FUHS, Board President, Marine Exchange of Alaska, stated
that the organization was formed about three years ago to
provide services to the maritime industry. He commented that
after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the
government was able to track the hijacked airplanes to determine
what had occurred, but that tracking capability had never been
used on the water. He stated that the Marine Exchange of Alaska
has been developing a tracking capability primarily for search
and rescue. The impetus for the project was the 2001 sinking of
the F/V Arctic Rose with 15 people on board. He remarked that
after the sinking, it took six hours to discover that the sister
ship was seven miles away and could have assisted the Arctic
Rose. At that point, the Marine Exchange began working on long-
range tracking and Geographical Information System (GIS) data
systems for plotting data.
MR. FUHS stated that the Marine Exchange of Alaska has received
a grant from the United States Coast Guard (USCG) of $1.3
million to test the tracking system, "which we think will become
the standard for the entire United States." He explained that
one impetus for this system is that Alaska is so vast, with
30,000 miles of coastline. He commented that in some ports a
person could look through a pair of binoculars and see
everything that is coming in, but in Alaska that cannot be done.
He explained that another reason the Marine Exchange of Alaska
was formed was that "no state is more maritime than Alaska." He
said that 90 percent of the goods that come into the state come
by water, and 95 percent of the state's exports leave on the
water. He said that Alaska could not function as an economy
without the local maritime trades.
1:12:07 PM
MR. FUHS said that another reason that the Marine Exchange of
Alaska was formed was because "the only time people ever hear
about the marine trades is when somebody's had a wreck and oil
is spilled all over, or a ship has crashed and ... people are
dying and things like that. But very few people have an
appreciation for what the maritime trades actually bring to
Alaska." He said that the Marine Exchange of Alaska has brought
together all the unions, the employers, all the training
facilities, including Alaska Vocational Technical Center (AVTEC)
and Outside training facilities because there isn't a
coordinated program to provide training for Alaskans to work in
the maritime trades. He pointed out that the Department of
Labor (DOL) found that about 45 percent of maritime jobs are
filled by nonresidents. He said, "These are good jobs but many
of them are licensed jobs, and you can't work unless you have
the license and you have the education. A lot of our kids grew
up on the water ... because we're a maritime state, so it just
seemed like a natural to us."
MR. FUHS commented that there were many people in the audience
who were attending a collaborative consortium, and "we had some
really great meetings today, and we're going to file a report
from that. We've gotten a grant from [Department of Labor and
Workforce Development Commissioner Greg O'Claray] to put this
whole thing together, and it's the first time that it's ever
happened for the maritime trade."
MR. FUHS then introduced Captain Ed Page, who once headed up the
USCG Marine Safety Office in Juneau. He said Captain Page used
to be the Captain of the Port in Long Beach, California, where
he set up "a similar government/private sector consortium." He
remarked, "We've got great companies up here in the maritime
trades. They want to operate safely. They want to contribute
to our state, and they've made a real commitment" to hiring
Alaskans.
1:14:13 PM
CAPTAIN ED PAGE, Executive Director, Marine Exchange of Alaska,
stated the Marine Exchange of Alaska is a non-profit with the
mission to provide information, communications, and services to
help ensure safe, secure, efficient, and environmentally
responsible maritime operations.
1:15:07 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE explained that marine exchanges originated in the
1800s to exchange maritime information. Initially a spyglass
was used to monitor ship arrivals, and then the information
would be exchanged between interested parties. Now the exchange
organizations use telephones, faxes, satellite communications,
and other transponder systems. The Alaska Exchange is part of
the Maritime Information Services of North America, which is a
coalition of non-profit organizations in the United States and
Canada, Captain Page said, and he noted that he is the president
of that group.
1:16:15 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE named the founding members of the Marine Exchange,
and pointed out that the Marine Exchange interacts with
different segments of the maritime community, including tankers,
ferries, USCG vessels, container ships, and cruise ships.
1:17:23 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE emphasized that Alaska needs qualified mariners.
He posited that the exchange's most important program is Pride
in Education to help Alaskans operate vessels that ply Alaska's
waters. He said that once Alaskans have been given information
and necessary tools, they will be safe, secure, efficient, and
environmentally responsible. He listed more of the exchange's
programs: maritime database, printing updated charts, vessel
tracking, and compliance with safety, security, and
environmental regulations.
1:18:28 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE stated that it is "critical to our way of life,
that the maritime industry ... gets our natural resources to
market." He added that his group supports educational programs
and has been going to middle schools to get youth interested.
Regarding security, he said, ships are prime targets. A cruise
ship with several thousand people "could be a 9/11-type caliber
event, especially if you took a couple ... simultaneously."
Tankers, container ships, cargo vessels, and maritime facilities
are targets too, he said. He stated that knowing vessel
locations is important.
1:19:33 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said the threat is being addressed as a shared
commitment. The USCG, the state, and the marine industry has
spent millions in security plans, training, and new equipment
while following the new Maritime Security Act. He said, "We
can't wait until people come right up to our doorstep and see if
they're OK. We want to know where those ships came from, and we
want to know where they are right now to help manage our
threat."
1:20:20 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said Admiral Collins has talked about locating
ships with an automatic identification system and a long range
tracking system that would aid in providing information on
vessels long before they reach our ports. He said the exchange
developed the Automatic Secure Vessel Tracking System, which
tracks vessels around the world at a the low cost of $3 per day.
He said Congress saw the merit of using existing maritime
systems.
1:22:14 PM
MR. FUHS said the Global Marine Distress Signaling System
(GMDSS) is on ships, and by hitting a trigger, the ship's
location can be determined. He said they can also be programmed
remotely.
1:22:45 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said it is easier to protect a vessel by knowing
its location. It can also identify a suspect vessel. The
exchange also uses satellite systems which track a vessel every
two hours for the past year or two. The vessels that don't
share information are then suspect.
1:24:36 PM
MR. FUHS said there is incentive for ships to work with the USCG
because they will have fewer inspections.
1:26:07 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE gave an example of data from the summer of 2004,
and showed the color-coded positions of vessels.
1:26:55 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM asked if there is an identifier for
foreign-flagged vessels.
1:27:38 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said currently there aren't many foreign flagged
ships in the program, but it could be done. "I would think that
everybody who is doing the right thing should participate,"
because they'll get express lane privileges, he said.
1:27:55 PM
MR. FUHS said the exchange is working with USCG, which requires
96-hour advance notification. The ships currently supply
paperwork, but with the new system there is actual knowledge of
everywhere that ship has been.
1:28:31 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said if a ship's system is turned off, it becomes
an anomaly to be watched. He said the satellite can still pick
up the location, but it cannot get identifying information.
When he was in the Coast Guard, he would have to fly for several
hours to track the unknown boats, he said.
1:30:16 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said the Coast Guard called the exchange when a
vessel was adrift and asked it to track it. He said he was
watching the vessel from Juneau and when the Coast Guard called
and said it had sighted the vessel and it was anchored, the
exchange could tell from Juneau that it was actually drifting.
1:30:55 PM
MR. FUHS said the program is accurate to about five feet.
CAPTAIN PAGE said the exchange was working on a different system
that is like an aircraft transponder. Receiver sites need to be
built, and there is a grant from the USCG that the exchange is
working on now.
1:32:49 PM
MR. FUHS said the exchange has a contract with the Office of
Naval Intelligence to provide data.
CAPTAIN PAGE said the exchange works out of two locations in
downtown Juneau. It is password-protected, so companies can use
it for their business only.
1:34:32 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE showed the committee live computer screens of the
output from the system, and walked the committee through the
details. He said the benefits were related to security,
environmental response, efficiency, and safety.
1:37:30 PM
REPRESENTATIVE THOMAS asked if there was any tracking devices on
the crab boat that just went down.
CAPTAIN PAGE said there was not.
1:38:14 PM
MR. FUHS showed the past data of the M/V Tustumena in the Alaska
Marine Highway System. He proposed an "adopt a ship" program
where students can track individual ships for education
purposes, including email communications from the boats. It can
also report on weather from all weather buoys.
1:38:53 PM
MR. FUHS said weather buoys provide wave period, atmospheric
pressure, wind speed, direction, wave height, air and water
temperature, and ice accretion. Each data point is no more that
six minutes old, he added.
1:39:56 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said this is all about exchanging information with
new technology. He said the exchange has been working with the
federal government and now wants to get Alaska involved.
1:41:14 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE said there is a whole suite of indexes and
overlays. He said they are putting transponders on buildings.
MR. FUHS said it can also calculate a ship's speed.
1:43:15 PM
NICK MARRONE, Vice President, Seafarers International Union, San
Francisco asked what the cost is to the vessel.
CAPTAIN PAGE said the Automatic Identification Systems (AIS)
equipment is $8,000. Other equipment is required, and some of
it is old equipment being reprogrammed. He noted that the
equipment is being tested all the time.
MR. FUHS said the AIS system is expensive but there are cheaper
systems for $500.
1:45:45 PM
REPRESENTATIVE THOMAS asked about the Alaska Department of Fish
and Game using the tracking system to track fishery violations.
CAPTAIN PAGE said there is another system for fisheries, but it
is one-way information, and it doesn't go to the USGS. Captain
Page said he told the department that there is a better system.
1:47:36 PM
MR. FUHS said the USGS is spending more money on false rescues
than real ones, but the new system can help verify the
situation.
CAPTAIN PAGE said the information is being archived, mostly for
security. It is easier to archive data that come in every two
hours, but not so much for the AIS data that come in every 12
seconds. He said the system is in a "growth mode."
1:50:51 PM
MR. FUHS said the exchange is asking the state for homeland
security money from the state's allocation. "We can make this a
24/7 operation for about $250-300,000. The Marine Highway
System wants the capability, he added.
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM asked where the funding request is
coming from.
MR. FUHS said it is being made through the administration, and
the Department of Transportation is supporting it, and the
Department of Military & Veterans' Affairs has the homeland
security money.
1:52:10 PM
CAPTAIN PAGE, in response to a question, said kayaks are the
smallest vessels that can be tracked.
BILL BENNING, Operations Manager, Marine Exchange of Alaska,
said the AIS might be affected by weather but satellites aren't.
The biggest hurdle in Alaska is mountainous geography.
1:53:39 PM
MR. BENNING said the system uses a variety of satellites.
CAPTAIN PAGE said some satellites are better for Alaska than
others.
1:54:57 PM
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA asked about weather overlays.
MR. FUHS said it is hard to get broadband to a vessel, but
emails can be sent with a satellite, and therefore vessels can
get weather buoy information.
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA said she is reading The Perfect Storm, and
said weather information can help people on the high seas.
1:56:12 PM
REPRESENTATIVE DAHLSTROM asked about a documented procedure that
must be followed regarding homeland security.
CAPTAIN PAGE said they are constantly in contact with the USCG.
He explained that the systems are still evolving; it is all new.
The AIS contract started in October, and there are now six sites
up. The Alaska Exchange is a leader in these systems.
1:59:31 PM
CHAIR LYNN asked what the legislature can do.
MR. FUHS said to "encourage the Department of Military &
Veterans' Affairs to accept our proposal to advance the system."
Some people in the department have seen this presentation.
CAPTAIN PAGE said there have been several requests into the
department, and he listed staff who have seen the presentation.
2:00:37 PM
REPRESENTATIVE THOMAS asked if the system tracks military
vessels.
CAPTAIN PAGE said the system tracks some USCG vessels, but no
other military vessels.
JOHN PARROTT, Vice President/Alaska General Manager, Totem Ocean
Trailer Express, Anchorage, said the exchange in Alaska is one
of the youngest exchanges but it is leading the field. He said
as a founder of the organization, he is "very proud of what
these guys have done." He added that his ships are tracked with
zero impact on their operation. It is a very good system, and
he said he hasn't found any difficulties.
2:02:08 PM
REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG asked how much need there is for
maritime training facilities, and if there is a need for
merchant marine or mariner academy in "this part of the
country."
CHAIR LYNN said there is interest in such an academy in Kodiak.
CAPTAIN PAGE said there are many jobs available for people with
maritime training, and "training in Alaska is our goal." He
said he doesn't want to hear about people flying to New Orleans
to get training. Maritime jobs pay well and are critical to
Alaska's well being, he concluded.
2:05:28 PM
MR. FUHS had numerous people in the audience introduce
themselves. He said there is also interest in maritime training
within the secondary schools in Alaska.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Special Committee on Military and Veterans' Affairs meeting was
adjourned at 2:08:26 PM.
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