05 Aug 13 - 17:14
The routeing system will change extensively
The Dutch part of the North Sea is one of the busiest shipping routes in the world. Moreover, it is now also being used more and more intensively for other purposes, such as wind energy, nature protection and sand extraction. In order to keep the waterways safe for maritime traffic and to ensure a more efficient use of the available space, it has been decided to adapt the shipping routes.
What is to change?
The new shipping routes come into effect at midnight UTC (2 a.m. local time) on 1 August 2013. The main changes are:
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What can happen when you do not comply with the navigational chart Cautionary Notes
The UK Maritime Pilots' Association has issued a cautionary tale about changes to the ship routeing systems in the Southern North Sea
In early 2013 public announcements were made to inform mariners regarding substantial changes to be made to the traffic routeing systems within the Netherlands part of the Southern North Sea.
These changes had been approved by the IMO, the body responsible for establishing international ship routeing measures and authorising such alterations.
It was announced that major revisions would be made to the Maas approach TSS, a new TSS would be established off the Ijmuiden approach area and changes would be made to some of the designated anchorage areas with new ones being established.
Because of the large extent of the changes being implemented it was deemed necessary for a number of new paper admiralty charts to be issued.
The well-established procedure for the implementation of new editions of charts in such circumstances is contained within "Notice 17/13 of the Admiralty Annual Summary of notice to mariners Part 1".
In short it explains that "new editions will be published 4 to 8 weeks prior to the implementation date of the changes. The existing charts carried onboard will be renumbered with an X prefix to easily distinguish them from the new editions".
The intention being that vessels continue to use the X version of the chart until the implementation date of the changes to be carried out, it may also be necessary during the short life of the X version to carry out chart corrections which affect the chart. In February 2013 the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment published a pamphlet "North Sea Route Change", which gave full details including a chartlet explaining how, when and why the implementations would take place.
For more information, please click at Cautionary Tale by UK Maritime Pilots' Association
From 31 July 2013 up to several days after the new routes have come into effect, extra vessels (Emergency Towing Vessels (ETV)) and Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) will be deployed to supervise maritime traffic and, where necessary, lend assistance. In addition, a Coastguard aircraft, a helicopter and the Arca (equipped with anti-pollutant materials) will be on standby should assistance be required.
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