Evaluating the Efficacy of Sustainability Initiatives in the Canadian Port Sector

Maritime ports are critical nodes in the Canadian resource-based economy that can have significant environmental impacts near coastal communities and marine ecosystems. To address these impacts, Canadian Port Authorities (CPAs) assess their environmental performance using the Green Marine Environmental Program (GMEP). Reliance on this program necessitates its evaluation as an effective initiative to address sustainability in its broader context. An analysis was performed to identify links between United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG) targets relevant to the Canadian Port Sector and GMEP performance indicators. Results indicate that there are significant gaps in the GMEP, with only 14 of 36 relevant SDG targets directly linked to the program. Findings suggest either an expansion of the GMEP to incorporate these broader sustainability goals, or the development and inclusion of a new framework for CPAs to bridge gaps between the GMEP and SDG targets to improve sustainability in their maritime port operations.

Diversity of Biofilm-Forming Bacteria in Chinnamuttom Harbor of Southeast India

Biofilms are species rich, partially due to highly effective powers of diffusion of the microorganisms and have wide tolerance to marine environmental conditions. Characteristically, the first organisms to respond to and convalesce from stress. The present study aims to isolate and identify the biofilm forming bacterial species, collected from surface water and substratum of the ship hull for four seasons at Chinnamuttom fishing harbor, Southeast coast of India, during June 2015 to May 2016. Among the mean concentration of bacterial isolates of both water and substratum of the station, maximum in monsoon and minimum in summer seasons. Totally 16 isolates were obtained, based on the adherence property, 8 isolates from surface water and 8 isolates from substratum of the ship hull. The samples were plated on Zobell marine agar medium for bacterial isolates of study area. The isolates of Bacillus sp., Flavobacterium sp., Pseudomonas sp., Aeromonas sp., Micrococcus sp., Vibrio sp., Salmonella sp., Staphylococcus sp., Shegella sp., Klebsiella sp., Corynebacterium sp., Enterobacter sp., Chromohalobacter sp., Bacillus sp., Escherichia coli and Bacilus sp. were reported in all the seasons at study area. The major diverse bacterial isolates were further characterized through morphological and molecular identification. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequences. Biofilm bacterial isolates were confirmed as Bacillus sp., and Pseudomonas sp.

EVALUATION OF THE POTENTIAL HAZARDS OF SHIP-GENERATED WASTE IN MARITIME INDUSTRY USING A TYPE-2 FUZZY ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS

Ships create a large amount of pollutions to marine and coastal environment where its pollutants have negative effects to human and maritime habitat. Depending on the nature of ship-generated waste, rules and regulations determine discharging procedures. This paper focuses on evaluating of potential hazards of ship-generated wastes on the environment whether it may be discharged into the sea or disposed of on port facilities. Thus, marine and costal environmental effects can be discussed analytically to improve human and ecological health. To achieve this purpose, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) extended with interval type-2 fuzzy sets (IT2FSs) is used. While AHP method is used for prioritizing the potential ship- generated waste, the IT2FSs deal with uncertainty and vagueness in the process of obtaining expert decision. Beside assessment of the environmental impacts, the paper contributes to enhance coastal and marine environmental awareness with respect to the ship-generated waste.

The Relationship between Environmental Factors and Catch Abundance of Hairtail in the East China Sea Using Empirical Dynamic Modeling

The East China Sea population of hairtail (Trichiurus lepturus, also known as T. japonicus) is a commercially important element of Chinese fisheries. Hairtail has long been widely exploited. Due to overfishing, however, its production declined over the years. One of solutions to this dilemma is to institute reasonable fishery policies. Generally, skillful short-term and long-term prediction of fish catch is a central tool for guiding the development of fishery policy. Accurate predictions require a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between fluctuations in fish catch and variability in both fishing effort and marine environmental conditions. To investigate the combined impact of fishing effort and marine environments on hairtail catch and to develop models to predict hairtail catch, we applied empirical dynamic modeling (EDM) to data on East China Sea fisheries, including hairtail catch, fishing effort, and marine environmental factors. EDM is an equation-free approach that enables the investigation of various complex systems. We constructed all possible multivariate EDM models to investigate the potential mechanisms affecting hairtail catch. Our analysis demonstrates that all key environmental factors (salinity, summer monsoon, sea surface temperature, precipitation, and power dissipation index of tropical cyclones) have an impact on nutrient supply, which we suggest is the central factor influencing hairtail catch. Finally, our comparison of EDM models with parametric models demonstrates that EDM models overwhelmingly outperform parametric models in analysis of these complex interactions.

Jurisdiction and Applicable Law in the Settlement of Marine Environmental Disputes under UNCLOS

Part XII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on the protection and preservation of the marine environment contains provisions that are worded in a general manner. As “the problems of ocean space are closely interrelated and need to be considered as a whole”, these provisions need to be interpreted in harmony with the wider corpus of international law. However, when marine environmental disputes are brought before the UNCLOS dispute settlement bodies, their jurisdiction is limited to disputes arising under UNCLOS. The tribunals, therefore, have to navigate between deciding disputes in a hollistic manner and remaining within their jurisdictional limits. This article discusses the techniques used by UNCLOS tribunals to resort to other sources of international law when settling marine environmental disputes. It will then assess whether, in doing so, the tribunals have remained within their jurisdictional parameters and the wider implications of this practice.

Advancement of the Duty to Cooperate in Marine Environmental Protection in the Jurisprudence of ITLOS

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea sets forth an unprecedented regime for marine environmental protection that compels parties to cooperate and includes mandatory dispute settlement procedures with binding decisions. Although the Convention does not contain a specific article stipulating a general duty to cooperate, cooperation permeates the logic of the document. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) has recognised the importance of cooperation to marine protection and preservation in several cases. It could be suggested that the States Parties have a positive obligation to cooperate and a need to implement a range of actions to this end. ITLOS has consistently interpreted the duty to cooperate as comprising specific obligations: to consult, to exchange information, to monitor and assess relevant activities, to develop measures to prevent pollution or other environmental harm; which offers both the basis for the implementation of the duty to cooperate and the criteria for determining compliance.

Perceptions about marine environmental issues by citizens who are mostly from Minas Gerais state (Brazil)

Despite the marine ecosystems’ importance, the anthropogenic actions have been impacting these environments negatively. However, these impacts could be mitigated through Environmental Education (EE), which is able to change behaviors that are harmful to the environment. This study aimed to describe environmental perception of the majority population in Minas Gerais state, in order to provide subsidies for marine environmental education's promotion. The methodology adopted was through questionnaire's application via Google forms. The studied subjects totaled 122 people over 18 years old, although they had conceptual domain, they showed an utilitarian tendency about marine resources.