29 Sep 2020 – As the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC-UNESCO) reported earlier this year, COVID-19 has caused massive disruption to ocean observation systems around the world, as research cruises, maintenance visits, and sensor deployments have been delayed or canceled.

According to the IOC-UNESCO, “COVID-19 creates marine data blind spots that can disrupt weather forecasts and hinder our understanding of climate change. “

When borders closed around the Pacific in March as part of COVID-19 curbs, it provided an opportunity to test the agility of an infrastructure maintenance program supporting 13 permanent sea level observation stations across the Pacific.

These stations form the backbone of one of the most important marine monitoring networks in the world. They provide indispensable records and near real-time data for meteorological agencies, emergency services, shipping operators, and all coastal communities concerned with rates of sea level rise and climate change.

Pacific sea level monitoring

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) manages tide gauges in partnership with the Pacific Community (SPC) and Geoscience Australia (GA) through the Pacific Ocean Level and Geodetic Monitoring (PSLGM) project. As one of the oldest sustainable aid investments in the region, the project has provided sustainable and high-quality data on climate, sea level and land movement since 1991, and is currently operating under the Climate and Ocean Support Program in the Pacific (COSPPac).

Prior to COVID-19, technicians from BOM, SPC, or GA would make monthly trips across the region to carry out maintenance, calibration or leveling of any sea level monitoring sites and address any emergency problems that may arise.

But COVID-19 has accelerated the ongoing process of building domestic capacity to maintain and troubleshoot these sites. Here are some of the success stories that have emerged from this project over the past six months.

6 monthly infrastructure maintenance

SPC team members have trained in-country technicians to carry out routine maintenance of sea level monitoring stations for the past two years.

“The maintenance of this critical measurement equipment is an essential component for the continuity of quality data collection,” said Adrien Laurenceau-Moineau, Chair of the Technical Team in the SPC’s Geosciences, Energy and Maritime Division.

Once trained, technical staff from the Meteorological Office and the Department of Land and Surveying perform this basic maintenance every six months, following a specially designed checklist. Sea level observation stations and sensors are cleaned and any damage or deterioration is recorded and reported to the SPC and BoM.

Fiji Meet Service Technician, Amori Nabanivalu, at the tide gauge station Lautoka, Fiji.

Since March, maintenance has been completed at ten locations in the Cook Islands, Fiji, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Samoa, Tonga, Kiribati, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

In August 2020, the Fiji Meteorological Services (FMS) technical team worked with the SPC to carry out 6-monthly maintenance checks at the sea level observation station at Ratu’s jetty in Lautoka.

FMS engineer Amori Nabanivalu said, “The tide gauge station provides valuable data for the work we do at FMS and it is a great opportunity to work with the SPC team to better understand the maintenance of the equipment and processes involved.”

Back to Services

When Tropical Cyclone Harold hit Tonga in April 2020, the old tide gauge at the Queen Salote pier in Nuku’alofa was damaged by the waves. At the new station at Vuna Pier, the waves wash away the gravel that protects the station’s lines and the station goes out due to electricity and communication problems.

The technical team in Tonga repaired the tide gauge station channel at Vuna Pier, Nuku’alofa, which was damaged during TC Harold in April

The domestic team takes the lead to implement the Return to Service procedure set out under the project.

Viliami Folau from the Ministry of Land and Survey of Tonga conducted a field visit and provided pictures to BoM, updating the status of the two tide stations in Nuku’alofa.

“Post-disaster assessments of tide gauges are very important. It documents damage, if any, to infrastructure and ensures a quick return to service from this critical source of real-time data collection, “he said.

Tonga Meteorological Services Technician Enisi Maea was assisted remotely by BoM to investigate and identify faults that caused the system to go offline. In collaboration with Tonga Power and the Ports Authority, Enisi was able to solve the problem and bring the station back online.

Likewise, Solomon Islands Met Services technical officer Barnabas Tahoo is taking the lead in getting the Honiara tide gauge station back online. The contractor had shifted mains electricity to the station for the jetty extension project in March when the contractor suddenly asked to return to Australia due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

Barnabas worked with BoM to troubleshoot a solution and was able to install a temporary power extension from a nearby warehouse until permanent electricity was restored.

Station upgrade

Checking the upgrade work being carried out at the tidal station in Port Vila, Vanuatu

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, a planned upgrade to a number of stations has been able to go as planned with remote support and surveillance.

In Port Vila and Rarotonga, dual radar sensor platforms were installed by local contractors with assistance from the Vanuatu Meteorological Service and the Cook Islands Meteorological service with remote surveillance from BoM. The new platform will provide stations with additional sensors for monitoring sea level as well as GNSS receiving antennas.

Likewise, the Suva and Lautoka stations in Fiji have been updated and dual sea level radar sensor mounts were installed by the local contractor and the SPC surveillance.

Remote capacity development

Although the situation presents many challenges, Jeff Aquilina, PSLGM Team Leader at the Australian Bureau of Meteorology has turned to remote support for the project whenever possible. He noted, “This infrastructure maintenance work builds stronger relationships between us and the technical staff of Pacific Island countries, building equipment knowledge, technical capacity, and a sense of ownership of tidal stations in each country.”

“This is a positive result of investing in training, mentoring, country visits, and building a strong network in the Pacific,” added Jeff. “Ultimately, the goal is to make sure the station is fully operational, recording important data sets.”

“This really underscores the importance of investing in local capacity building,” said Molly Powers-Tora, COSPPac Coordinator and Team Leader for Ocean Intelligence at SPC. “And the fact that overworked national staff are committed to maintaining these stations is a reflection of how valuable this data is to the Pacific.”

Source: Pacific Community (SPC)

The US Secretary of Transportation, Elaine L. Chao, has announced that the Trump Administration will provide $ 335 million in airport safety and infrastructure assistance through the Federal Aviation Administration (SOME) to 80 airports in 25 states.

“This airport infrastructure project funded by $ 335 million in federal funding will improve safety, improve travel, create jobs and provide other economic benefits for local communities,” said Chao. A complete list of grants and an interactive map of US airports receiving funding is available on the FAA website.

The total includes $ 300 million from the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) and $ 35 million in Coronavirus Assistance, Economic Assistance and Security (CARES) Take action provides the equivalent of 100 percent of the federal share. FAA administrator, Stephen M. Dickson, said: “These 61 AIP grants will enable airports across the country to initiate and complete projects that are essential to the safe and efficient operation of our nation’s airports.”

The grants will be used for a variety of important infrastructure and safety projects at airports across the US. These include: Purchase of rescue and fire fighting equipment (ARFF) aircraft; constructing runways and taxiways; improve runways and taxiways; installing aircraft lighting and signage; conduct an airport master plan study; and installing airport perimeter fencing.

This follows announcement in early September 2020 that the Trump Administration will provide more than $ 1.2 billion in airport security and infrastructure grants to 405 airports in 50 states and the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Palau, and the US Virgin Islands.

Since January 2017, the Trump Administration has delivered $ 14.5 billion to American airports to improve infrastructure and safety. Additionally, by 2020, the Administration has delivered $ 10 billion in economic aid to US airports under the CARES Act to respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

EPorts and waters in Europe remain important to global infrastructure and offices of the Roosendaal International Registries, Inc. (IRI) remains focused on safeguarding the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) flagged vessels traveling and trading in Europe even during the most stringent of COVID-19. limitation. RMI received its best ranking on the white list of the latest Paris Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which shows the reputation of the RMI flag is strong and rising.

“The COVID-19 restrictions have a significant impact on the ability of the Port State Control Authority (PSC) to carry out physical inspections and the risk profile of these vessels is important in prioritizing which vessels will be inspected. Knowing that our flag is recognized for its quality helps this risk profile, ”said Chris van Tiel, Deputy Fleet Operations Manager, IRI Roosendaal.

Chris reports that avoiding deprivation and containment in the COVID-19 era looks different than ever. In fact, some of the Paris MoU member states are increasing their focus on the issue of crew contracts with less waivers for COVID-19 reasons, which could lead to shortages and possibly containment.

“We strongly encourage all owners and operators to see RMI’s Marine Safety Advisory on crew contracts and seek support and advice from the Registry prior to arriving at European ports if they are unable to facilitate crew changes,” said Chris. “Crew change remains a challenge, and in situations where it is not possible, it is imperative to have appropriate documentation for the PSC authorities to prove that it is not possible. Flag representatives can provide advice and support documentation collection. “

To further facilitate inspections, Roosendaal’s office has also spearheaded the development of a mobile inspection application for inspectors to use on board ships. The inspection app works on mobile and tablet devices as an Operational Safety Check Electronic Report (MSD 252), which enables inspectors to collect and transmit data without swapping USB sticks, thereby reducing the risk of cyber security breaches. As inspections begin to move remotely to live, clients will see this application in use all over the world.
Source: International Registries, Inc.

Around mid-January cases were confirmed in the US, France, Nepal, Malaysia, South Korea, Vietnam Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand.

Towards the end of the month, a disease expert confirmed human-to-human transmission on Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, around the same time millions of people were traveling to celebrate Chinese New Year.

On January 30 the WHO declared the coronavirus a global emergency and within days, the disease had spread to India, the Philippines, Russia, Spain, Britain, Sweden, Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan and the UAE.

The 12 countries where no coronavirus cases have been officially reported are Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru and Palau – in Micronesia – North Korea, the Polynesian island of Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu and islands in the South Pacific Ocean. Vanuatu.

But countries across Europe are facing a second wave after easing their initial lockdown measures, incl UK, where infections are estimated to increase by between 4% and 8% per day.

Speaking at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Dr Ryan urged European countries to ask if they had taken sufficient steps to avoid lockdown measures, such as effective testing and tracking systems, quarantine measures and social distancing measures.

He added: ‘A lockdown is almost a last resort – and to think that we are returning to the last resort area in September is quite serious thought.’

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