HOST General Membership Meeting Minutes of February 1, 2001

Attendees:   29

Call to Order:              

The bi-monthly HOST General Membership meeting was held on Thursday, February 1, 2001.  The meeting was called to order by Robin Bond, Chair, at 1414, at Club 14, USCG ISC Honolulu. 

Discussion:         

Mr. Robin Bond, Chair for the HOST Advisory Board opened the meeting by introducing Mr. Brad Rimell as the Facilitator of this meeting.

Ocean Day:               

Mr. Bob Murray informed the membership of Ocean Day, which is held on the first Wednesday of each June.  Ocean Day is an activity of PACON (Pacific Congress of Marine Science and Technology), and detailed information was provided on the background of PACON and its chapters around the world.  Mr. Murray would like HOST to provide a speaker for Ocean Day.  They are specifically interested in speakers who have built their business in the ocean.  For more information on PACON, please visit their website at www.hawaii.edu/pacon.

Subcommittee Update:  Recreational Vessel Safety Req Update:                 

Mr. Bill Mossman informed the membership of the new subcommittee that was formed to address requirements for recreational boaters, and was asked to provide input for SB 216 relating to all vessels operating in and beyond state waters, which was introduced by Senator Cal Kawamoto.  

At their last meeting on January 30th, representatives from key agencies were asked to participate.  The group felt that the use of EPIRB’s only was quite a reach, and the meeting resulted in major modifications.  The amendment would address vessels operating at 1 mile out and beyond, which would require the use of a VHS radio or a Cospas-Sarsat approved EPIRB.   

Upcoming Maritime Industry Legislation:         

Mr. Kraig Kennedy, Chairman of the Maritime Committee, Chamber of Commerce informed the membership of upcoming legislation of concern for the maritime industry.  He specifically wanted to focus on two areas of concern: The container yard and the increase in passenger cruise ships.

The container yard is quite packed now and there is a need to expand.  This is a concern since almost 99% of what we eat, wear, use and recreate with are brought over to the islands over the water.  If the goods cannot be unloaded, the things (commodities) cannot get out the door, to the stores and to the consumers.  As the increase in passenger cruises increase, there will be a need for berth space for the ships.  If the passenger cruise ships can’t get into the harbor, they cannot bring people in and visitors to Hawaii.  The poor conditions of the small boat harbors add to the problem, since the pier at Lahaina is so small, and part of the pier at Kailua-Kona is closed.  

There are 16 bills that pertain to the maritime industry, but Mr. Kennedy decided to talk about a few of them.  Senate Bill (S.B.) 752 pertains to the expansion of non-maritime use of backup lands.  This would allow private investors to come in and help local businesses and support improvements at the pier.  This would be helpful in areas such as Kailua-Kona, where half the pier is condemned.  The focus of the bill is to find new sources of revenue to get the harbors improved, and not expand it. 

The S.B. 754 refers to establish that maritime lands be used for maritime activities.  Therefore, before any thing is built on the waterfront, such as a golf course, the maritime community needs are considered.  The concern is that many piers don’t have a wide enough berth.  So if space were taken away from the maritime industry, the industry would have to find ways to do with less.   

There is a Capital Advancement bill that is designed to allow new revenues for the harbor.  A maritime agency would be allowed to use their own funds to make things better for their own business, but the public will also need to benefit from the improvements. 

The S.B. 1170 refers to the designation of Kapalama Land for a DLNR Industrial Park.  It will take away land available for containers. 

International Safety Management:        

The intent of the International Safety Management (ISM) plan is to create a safer environment.  Brad Rimell shared with the membership the experience the towing industry had with the ISM.  In order to haul petroleum products, a company has to be ISM certified. 

In the past, some people from the towing industry had the attitude that accidents happen, and the Captain was responsible for whatever occurred on the vessel.  However this type of attitude is no longer tolerated by the industry.  The industry has to believe that all accidents are preventable, since they are due to human error.  There has to be an accountability system from the top-down and bottom-up. 

People need to be responsible and say what you do, and do what you say.  Now the companies and their management are held accountable for accidents that occur.  Management may not have trained their staff properly, staff may not have been able to perform the tasks required of the job, or may not have provided the staff with the appropriate equipment to do the job.

Brad informed the membership that there are costs associated with the development of an ISM plan.  The cost will vary according to the size of the company, and would require input from their Human Resources Department.

Lt. Bill Jeffries briefly informed the membership of what he looks for when conducting ISM certifications.  He looks at the ships safety management certificates

Capt. Gilbert Kanazawa cautioned the membership of what could happen if a company was to lose their ISM certification.  An East Coast tanker with a contract to supply oil to Wake Island lost their certification while out at sea.  The ship had no place to go; could not go to a foreign port; so had to stop in the middle of the ocean.

Announcements:          

Captain Kanazawa informed the general membership of two upcoming activities of interest to the maritime community.  The Hawaiian Maritime Industry Day will be held on March 1, 2001, at the Hawaii Convention Center.  The Financing Freight Transportation Improvements Conference will be held in St. Louis, Missouri on April 29 – May 2, 2001. 

Adjournment:             

The meeting was adjourned at 1602.

The next General Membership meeting will be on April 5th, at 1400.