— dredging facility in dry dock — MARAD Head
THE DIRECTOR General of the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD), Ms. Claudette Rogers has said that the administration’s main dredging facility is presently in dry dock, and as such, there has not been any recent dredging of the Demerara Channel. Ms. Rogers explained that dry docking of the dredging facility, nicknamed “The Steven”, was necessary because “The Steven” was last docked for major overhaul sometime in 2009. She pointed out that, ideally, vessels should be dry docked biennially, because Guyana has been plagued with a siltation phenomenon.
The Senior Hydrographic Surveyor of the Maritime Administration Department, Mr. Troy Clark has also said that the issue of siltation is not restricted to Guyana, and that because of activities taking place in the Amazon River, silt travels along the entire South American coast. This, he added, is usually compounded by migrating mud banks which impede navigation channels.
The comments from these officials came after they were invited by the Guyana Chronicle to speak about the work MARAD was doing along the Demerara Channel.
Recently, outgoing Managing Director of SOL, Mr. Ken Figaro, expressed his company’s frustration at its inability to accommodate larger vessels into its dock.
As a result of “The Steven” being in docks, the MARAD head is advising ships’ captains to take evasive measures to ensure that their travel is not impeded by the shallow channels. “We usually advise shippers, particularly those bringing cargo, to ensure that they utilise the highest tide, or what we call the ‘spring tide’. This is to facilitate them in the carriage of their cargo.”
According to Ms. Rogers, MARAD is working to ensure that “The Steven” is ready to commence operation by the end of February. Both maritime officials are of the view that a vessel like “The Steven” should be docked at least once a year. This would be necessary, given the magnitude of work the vessel usually does. It is also expected that docking once a year will significantly reduce the length of time the dredging facility is absent from the waters.
Meanwhile, Clark explained that whenever an agent makes a booking to have a ship enter Port Georgetown, the Harbour Master usually sets a time of arrival for that ship. This, he explained, is to ensure that the ship meets pilots at a point known as the ‘pilot boarding area’. The pilots are then expected to ferry that vessel across another point, which is known as ‘the bar’. The bar happens to be the lowest point along the channel.
According to him, in the absence of “The Steven”, this adherence to stipulation is necessary for vessels.
The Maritime Administration Department previously dredged for twelve hours a day. However, dredging is now done twenty-four hours daily, thus increasing the efficiency and reliability of the channel. And this has been happening for almost two years now. The twenty-four-hour dredging by the department has been able to increase the chart datum value of the channel to 5.5 metres, and the department is looking to increase that to 6.2 metres, or even 6.5 metres.
Ms. Roberts explained that the MARAD usually conducts regular surveys of the channel, in order to maintain a certain depth along the channel. According to her, when MARAD last dredged the channel, it was at a 4.5-metre depth, and that is what it is anticipated to be at the moment, since the channel takes a reasonable time to resilt.
“The Steven” usually services between thirteen and fifteen facilities, in addition to the Georgetown Channel, according to Troy Clarke, who added that “The Steven” will take, in most cases, a total of ten days to complete once facility.
While in dry dock, “The Steven” is having its dredge pump replaced, porous plates from the hull of the vessel would be removed, and the dredge head would be fixed. These critical works are necessary for the vessel to function effectively.
The Demerara Channel begins 12 sea miles from Port Georgetown, and goes all the way to the Demerara Distillers Limited’s wharf at Plantation Diamond, East Bank Demerara.