ANTARCTIC NON-GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY NEWS
Tourism Industry |
Brief news items on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic
non-government expedition activities.
ANAN 51
Wednesday, 18 July 2001
News in this edition:
51-01 IAATO Opens Up Membership.
51-02 Tourist Body's Membership Categories Revised.
51-03 Site-Specific Tourist Visit Guidelines Proposed.
51-04 Start To Fly-Cruise Operations Proposed In 2001-02.
51-05 US Near To Finalising Non-Government EIA Arrangements.
51-06 Ushuaia Pax Numbers Fall, But Upward Trend Continues.
51-07 Norwegian-Chilean New Start Planned For 2000-03.
51-08 Adventurer Plans Stay In Peninsula area.
51-09 Tour Vessel Refurbished For Polar Operations.
51-10 Yacht 'Spirit Of Sydney' Sold, Peninsula Operations Planned.
51-11 2002-03 Macquarie Island Visit Applications Open.
51-12 Coming Events Relevant to Non-Government Activities.
IN READING PLEASE NOTE: This newsletter is produced in the interest of improved information sharing in the Antarctic and sub-Antarctic community. Inclusion of information in it should not be taken to imply endorsement, by the publishers of ANAN News, of any company, program or associated activity that is listed, nor that the activity has necessarily completed all environmental impact assessments required under the legislation of the 'home' nation concerned.
In a significant move, members of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) voted at its annual meeting late last month to open their ranks to a wider range of companies and other non-government groups.
Following its meeting, IAATO said that its decision to widen its membership, a move which has been under consideration for a number of years in one form or another, is a recognition by its members of the "possibility that there might, in the future, be a steady growth of tourism in the large ship and adventure-based markets". This view is clearly reflected in the new membership categories that IAATO formally established at its meeting. These categories cover sea, air and adventure activities, including large cruise-ship operations (see ANAN-51/02 following).
IAATO also moved last month to establish a sub-committee to develop site-specific guidelines for some of the more frequently visited tourist sites in the Antarctic Peninsula region. This action follows IAATO's increasing concern, shared by researchers and environmentalists, about the potential long-term impact of human visitation, and at a time when there have been suggestions that such problems are already being experienced at some Peninsula locations (see ANAN-51/03 following).
ANAN understands that the decisions taken at IAATO's meeting were not reached easily, that there was considerable debate about the issues amongst those members present, and that discussions went late into the night on a number of occasions. Despite the complexities involved, discussions are believed to have been what one attendee told ANAN outside the meeting as "professional throughout", and it is understood that there was a genuine desire amongst participants to move forward in a positive fashion to meet the challenges facing the industry.
IAATO acknowledges that further work is needed on the operation of large ships in Antarctic waters. It pointed out that under its revised By Laws, any member company who operates ships carrying more than 500 passengers, and lands people at Antarctic sites, cannot be a member of IAATO . In addition, given the large numbers on board such vessels, and the potential for serious problems to occur should such a vessel experience major difficulties in the Antarctic region, IAATO also emphasised its on-going support for the establishment of Antarctic Shipping Guidelines by the Antarctic Treaty System. Those discussions reflect, in part, concerns about large ship operations in Antarctica (ANAN-20/01, 26 April 2000).
Virtually all experts contacted by ANAN were positive about the changes IAATO has introduced, and made it clear that they see the broadening of membership as "just the start" of what they regard as a concerted management effort needed in the non-government field.
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TOURIST BODY'S MEMBERSHIP CATEGORIES REVISED
[ANAN-51/02]
New categories of membership established by the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) are expected to play an important role in enabling the tour body to manage Antarctic tourism following the opening of its ranks to a wider range of operators (see ANAN-51/01 preceding).
IAATO's By Laws were amended at its 27-29 June 2001 meeting to now include seven categories of membership, three covering sea-based operations, two for air activities, one for land-based enterprises, while the seventh, the old Associate Membership classification, has not changed. Categories 1 to 6 will each have Full, Provisional and Probationary sub-levels and these are expected to operate as per long-standing IAATO practice.
To be eligible for inclusion in Categories 1 and 2, expedition organisers must use craft that carry no more than 500 passengers; the first embracing yachts or ships with up to 200 clients and the second, vessels carrying between 200 and 500 passengers.
All vessels under the 500 limit are required to adhere to IAATO's long-standing requirement that "no more than 100" persons be landed ashore at any one site at the one time. IAATO has decided, however, to develop "restrictions" on the "location and timing of landings" that Category 2 operators will be required to adhere to (see ANAN-51/03 following).
Current indications are that in the coming 2001-02 season, fourteen vessels will fall into Category 1, and two, German company Plantours and Partner's 'Vista Mar' and US based Orient Lines' 'Marco Polo', into Category 2. Although the latter vessel is physically capable of carrying up to 800 passengers it normally carries fewer than 500 on Antarctic voyages.
The decision to set an upper limit of 500 for Category 2, rather than the long-standing figure of 400, had nothing to do with getting 'Marco Polo' "under the bar" according to IAATO, rather they say that the move was based on "research on an analysis" of vessel types and capabilities world-wide.
Category 3 is for cruise ships that carry more than 500 passengers, although under the new By Laws an IAATO member that operates such a vessel in the Antarctic is not permitted to land passengers at Antarctic sites. Only one vessel, Holland America Westours' 'Ryndam' is expected to fall into this category next austral summer (ANAN-47/01, 23 May 2001), however, many in the industry believe that other large tour vessels could join it over the next few years.
IAATO's Category 4 applies to what it calls "Land Based operators". This category is expected to include such operations as adventurers landing from yachts, ships or aircraft to conduct activities on the continent, all the way up to companies such as tour and air operator Adventure Network International (ANAN-28/02, 16 August 2000), which rejoined IAATO this year after a two-year absence.
Persons who principally use aircraft for their operations are covered by Categories 5 and 6. Ship's that only operate helicopters to fly passengers to landing sites or for overflights appear likely to operate in the category (1, 2 or 3) determined by their passenger capacity. Organisers of overflights or flight-seeing, such as those currently operated from Australia and Chile, are likely to be included in Category 5. Category 6 is for those companies who provide air/cruise operations. This could include operators who fly clients to and from the continent for a period of sea-based activities on either yachts or ships, an operation that has been mooted in the past but that has yet to be introduced on a routine basis (see ANAN-51/04 following and ANAN-42/01, 28 February 2001).
Category 7 is the old Associate Member grouping for those who are not directly active in Antarctica, such as travel agents, port authorities or others.
Once accepted for membership, companies who join will be given Provisional status as has been the case for many years. Only Full members can vote at IAATO's meetings.
Full or Provisional members who are found to have transgressed any IAATO By Law will, on the agreement of two-thirds of Full members, be transferred to Probationary status, as occurred last year for the former Canadian company Marine Expeditions Inc. As in the past, Provisional and Probationary members are required to carry an official Observer to examine their first season of operations, and a satisfactory report must be forthcoming before they can be considered for elevation to the next highest level of membership.
While details have yet to be finalised, the various membership categories may attract different affiliation fees, although discussion on this issue has apparently not yet been finalised by IAATO.
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SITE-SPECIFIC TOURIST VISIT GUIDELINES PROPOSED
[ANAN-51/03]
Guidelines for visits to a number of popular tourist sites in the Antarctic Peninsula region are to be developed by the International Association of Antarctica Tour operators (IAATO) as a result of decisions taken at its year 2001 annual meeting late last month (see ANAN-51/01 preceding).
IAATO's move stems from observations made by an IAATO member about smaller, more restricted visitor sites in the Peninsula region that are showing signs of overuse. Such reports, and other general concerns, are believed to have led to IAATO's support for, and involvement in, the workshop on cumulative impacts of tourism in the Peninsula area which was held in the US in June last year. That meeting concluded that the matters involved are very complex (ANAN-24/02, 21 June 2000), although it did help to bring some of the issues into clearer focus.
As a result of that meeting, expedition leaders from IAATO member companies were asked to look carefully at the sites they visited during the 2000-01 season and to report any cumulative impact problems that they may have seen. IAATO has established a Site Guidelines Committee (SGC) which is made up of three experienced expedition leaders who are respected by many in the tourist industry for their particular interest in, and concern for, environmental issues. The SGC is expected to provide a report to IAATO's next annual meeting in late June 2002.
In considering the issues involved it appears that the SGC will be looking at such issues as the precise areas at a site that can be visited safely, the establishment of routes that should be followed by visitors, the level of supervision required, as well as factors revolving around the breeding cycle of key species at a site. Whether such guidelines will also include limiting total visitor numbers allowed to specific sites each season, the closing of sites for key periods of the season, or even for a whole season in some circumstances, is unknown at this stage.
The tour body emphasised, while establishing the SGC, that it is important that the scientific community conduct more work to better understand the more sensitive sites. IAATO is understood to believe that programs to monitor the condition of visitor sites, such as those undertaken by the US-based Oceanites group (ANAN-37/07, 20 December 2000) , the German Environmental Agency (ANAN-36/09, 6 December 2000), the Government of South Georgia (ANAN-16/06, 1 March 2000), and others, were particularly important, and that it would support any such on-going work in this field to the extent that it is able. IAATO member companies have assisted such programs many times in the past by providing transport and other direct support for the field parties involved.
IAATO believes, however, that it is important to realise that not all sites are the same and that some clearly have a larger 'carrying capacity' than others; places such as Whalers Bay on Deception Island and Half Moon Island in the South Shetlands being examples of such 'large capacity' sites. Both are used regularly by US operator Orient Lines' vessel 'Marco Polo' to land between 400 and 500 passengers, although the number of passengers who are on shore at any one time is limited to 100 as required by IAATO By Laws. Marco Polo's operations fit into IAATO's new Category 2 membership class (see ANAN-51/02 preceding).
The report from last year's cumulative impacts workshop is expected to be released sometime next month.
START TO FLY-CRUISE OPERATIONS PROPOSED IN 2001-02
[ANAN-51/04]
Chilean company Turismo Y Hoteles Jose Nogueira (THJN) hopes to commence tourist fly-cruise operations in the Antarctic Peninsula region in 2001-02, activities being centred on the use of the Chilean national program's Teniente Marsh airfield on King George Island (KGI) (ANAN-17/03, 15 March 2000).
THJN has been indicating on its 'Antarctica XXI' web site over the last two months that it was offering eleven six-day Antarctic visits in the eight-week period from 7 November 2001. It appears at the present time, however, that a less ambitious program is more probable with two or three air-linked voyages possibly being conducted in late February and early March 2002.
While 2001-02 operations may now be more limited than originally envisaged, Julio Preller, THJN'S Antarctic Program Coordinator, told the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators' (IAATO) meeting late last month that his company could operate ten to fourteen such voyages carrying a total of between 400 and 600 passengers in 2002-03.
Preller, who is a highly-experienced Antarctic tour specialist, said that THJN, which currently runs hotels in Punta Arenas, Chile, and El Calafate, Argentina, has been discussing the fly-cruise operation with Chilean authorities over the past two years to ensure that "all their requirements" are met. Politicians in southern Chile have been promoting fly-cruise operations as they see economic benefits flowing from them to their region (ANAN-48/01, 6 June 2001).
Julio said late last month that negotiations are "well advanced" to charter a 40-50 berth passenger vessel and to use Chilean Air Force (CAF) C130 'Hercules' for flights on the Punta Arenas to Marsh route for the fly-cruise operation. CAF's operation is to be managed for THJN by the major Chilean air line Lan Chile.
The' Antarctica XXI' web site indicates that the forty-six passenger ship the 'Grigory Mikheev', which is chartered by Netherlands-based company Oceanwide from its Russian owners, is the vessel being considered for the venture. Preller stressed to ANAN that his company's planned program could operate with a ship other than 'Mikheev'.
Schedules distributed to date for 'Mikheev' by Oceanwide for the 2001-02 season indicate that it is to conduct nine voyages from Ushuaia, Argentina, between 20 November and 12 March, although flexibility exists at this stage to adjust voyages in late February / early March to fit in with THJN's requirements.
Julio told ANAN that the cruise portion of THJN's proposed operation would involve "standard Lars Eric Linblad" tourist landings and that nothing "too adventurous" such as climbing, camping, kayaking or other pursuits is planned for his company's clients. During the four to five days the ship is away from KGI on each voyage it is expected to operate in the region between Antarctic Sound in the north and Petermann Island in the south; an area where most ship-based tour operations are currently concentrated (ANAN-26/01, 19 July 2000).
While the Marsh-based fly-cruise concept has been around for many years, and in theory has a number of advantages including enabling tourists to visit the Peninsula region without experiencing two often rough crossings of the Drake Pasage, it has yet to be proven in practice due to the impact of weather on air operations to and from Marsh (ANAN-17/03, 15 March 2000).
Julio Preller told ANAN, however, that the CAF, who have been flying into Marsh for many years, believe that "flight schedules can be guaranteed with ninety-five per cent certainty". He stressed that because of this, and because Lan Chile with its "considerable aviation expertise" would be managing the actual flight program, his company "was extremely confident" that it can make the fly-cruise concept work.
As the 'Mikheev' can carry just over forty passengers, and the 'Hercules' up to sixty on the flight route, such a combination would be "near perfect" says Preller, in that it allows a single 'Hercules' flight to serve each of the ship's voyages by carrying both a full load of passengers as well as sufficient cargo needed to 'top-up' ship supplies. According to him the ship can carry sufficient bunkers to allow it to operate in the Peninsula region for up to seventy days. It would therefore only need to return north to Punta Arenas once during a full Antarctic summer to load bulk supplies for multi-voyage operations from KGI.
Under plans drawn up for the operation, both passengers and supplies arriving at Marsh are to be ferried from KGI to the ship by its four inflatable rubber boats, while those who have completed a voyage, their luggage and any rubbish generated on the ship, will be transported ashore in the same way for delivery by air back to Punta Arenas. THJN told ANAN that the ship-shore transfer of passengers and cargo will take place in Fildes Bay as it "is a protected harbour, with many landing alternatives", and that in their assessment there is "little chance" that such operations will be disrupted by weather.
Preller says that the provision of sufficient fresh water for the ship's operations has been a major challenge. This is to be solved by flying linen to and from Punta Arenas for washing, and by the installation of a desalination plant on the ship. "There will be sufficient water for passengers" in a full season he said, "although we will have to watch consumption carefully".
THJN plans to draw most of its cliental for its new venture from the U.S., the main source of Antarctic tourists (ANAN-26/02, 19 July 2000). Package flights from North America will be offered as a standard part of tour operations, and the Antarctica XXI web site indicates that fares for the week-long fly-cruise operation are expected to cost between $US5,300 and $US6,900.
The Chilean company's fly-cruise operation is believed to be different >from that mooted by an Argentinian company from Ushuaia for the 2001-02 season late last year. It was said to involve an eighty-passenger ship and chartered Argentinian Air Force 'Hercules' flights to and from the Argentine national program station Marambio on Seymour Island (ANAN-34/03, 8 November 2000). To date, nothing further has been heard of that proposal.
The problems experienced by two proposed fly-sail operations centred on Marambio last February, due to the presence of heavy pack ice around Seymour Island, may have led to that fly-cruise venture being deferred or possibly even shelved (ANAN-42/01, 28 February 2001), although it has not been possible for ANAN to ascertain the actual situation at this time.
Antarctica XXI's web site is at: http://www.antarticaXXi.com (note the spelling of 'antartica').
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US NEAR TO FINALISING NON-GOVERNMENT EIA REGULATIONS
[ANAN-51/05]
In the next three months the United States is expected to finalise regulations to implement the environmental impact assessment (EIA) requirements of Article 8 and Annex I to the Madrid Protocol for US-based non-governmental activities, including tourism, in Antarctica.
The proposed 'final' rule, which will replace an 'interim' rule that has been in effect for the last four years, is patterned after the 'interim' regulations. It includes a new regulatory definition to ensure consistency between the non-governmental and governmental EIA requirements for Antarctic activities, and a new provision that would allow non-government operators to submit multi-year EIA documentation to address proposed expeditions for a period of up to five austral summer seasons.
In order for the US to comply with its obligations under the Madrid Protocol, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the 'interim' rule in 1997, contemporaneous with US ratification of the Protocol. Although the US domestic legislation involved gave the EPA two years to develop and promulgate EIA regulations, Washington opted to implement 'interim' measures in order to ratify the Protocol at the earliest opportunity, and thus ensure that as soon as it came into force internationally, appropriate measures were in place for EIAs for US-based non-governmental activities.
To that end, the EPA released in April 1997, without public consultation, an 'interim' rule for non-government EIAs, although it made clear at that time that a 'final' rule would be developed and that the process for promulgating it would involve a period of public consultation.
Under that 1997 'interim' rule, and as included now in the proposed 'final' rule, US-based operators, including ship-based tour operators, who are planning activities in Antarctica are required to prepare an EIA and submit it to the EPA for scrutiny well prior to their departure for Antarctica (ANAN-3/07, 1 September 1999).
In the succeeding three-and-a-half years, EPA has carried out the promised consultation process which has included two public meetings and preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) which detailed five potential options for the 'final' rule, one of them, as required by US law, being the agency's 'preferred alternative'.
The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) was prominent in those discussions, hiring a Washington D.C. based lawyer to advise it on the issues involved. The majority of IAATO's high-profile member companies are based in the US and US citizens make up close to half of all tourists who currently visit Antarctica (ANAN-26/02, 19 July 2000).
In mid-February this year the EPA released the Draft EIS for public comment. After assessing feed-back received on this discussion paper, EPA's 'preferred alternative' was proposed on 29 June as the final rule and the EPA is accepting public comment in the US on this proposal up until 30 July. A copy of the proposed final rule can be downloaded at the following URL: http://www.epa.gov/oeca/ofa. A copy of the Draft EIS is also available at that website.
After considering the comments received on both the Draft EIS and the proposed rule, the EPA will issue the Final EIS in August and promulgate the final rule sometime in September-October. Both documents will be mailed to those on EPA's mailing list for this rule-making, and will also be available at the above website.
EPA contact points for these issues are either Joseph Montgomery (montgomery.joseph@epa.gov), or Katherine Biggs (biggs.katherine@epa.gov).
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USHAUIA PAX NUMBERS FALL, BUT UPWARD TREND CONTINUES
[ANAN-51/06]
The number of Antarctic tourists who passed through the southern Argentinian port of Ushuaia during the 2000-01 austral summer fell eleven per cent compared with numbers for the previous season, a trend that was expected following the record 1999-2000 'Millennium' season (ANAN-25/02, 5 July 2000). Despite the decrease, last season's figures continue the long-term upward trend, rising twenty-five per cent on the number recorded just two seasons ago (ANAN-5/02, 29 September 1999).
Figures for Ushuaia, which were released late last month by the Tourism Board of Terra Del Fuego (INFUETUR), show that fourteen ships carrying 11,489 passengers involved in a total of 106 Antarctic voyages visited the port last season. This compares with 9,139 passengers, fourteen ships and 93 journeys in 1998-99, and 12,967 passengers, seventeen ships and 120 journeys in 1999-2000.
Antarctic tour operations from the southern Argentine port in 2000-01 ran over four months, a few weeks less than in 1999-2000. During that time the ships involved visited Ushuaia to embark and disembark passengers and take on provisions on all but a handfull of days.
Ushuaia has been the major tourism gateway to Antarctica for ship-based operations over the past decade with INFUETUR putting at over 73,000 the number of such passengers who have passed through the port over the past nine years. That figure represents just over 90 per cent of all tourists who are believed to have visited the continent since late 1992.
Initial data available suggests that 15 to16 Antarctic tour ships may operate from Ushuaia in the coming 2001-02 season. If that eventuates, and should load levels of the past few seasons be maintained, it is possible that overall Antarctic-related visitors passing through the port could therefore approach those of the record Millennium season. Some observers, however, are closely watching the economic situation, particularly in North America, as they feel that this could impact on overall passenger numbers next season.
A full copy of this year's INFUETUR Antarctic report is available at: http://tierradelfuego.org.ar/antartida/publications.htm.
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NORWEGIAN-CHILEAN NEW START PLANNED FOR 2002-03
[ANAN-51/07]
A joint Norwegian-Chilean venture plans to commence ship-based tour operations in the Antarctic Peninsula region in the 2002-03 austral summer. Eight voyages are planned in that first season and the partners expect around 2,400 passengers to take part in the voyages, a significant increase in overall berth availability for the region.
Ofotens og Vesteraalens Dampskibsselskab ASA (OVDS), a company that has operated the combined passenger, cargo and ferry services around the Norwegian coast between Bergen in the south-east and Kirkenes in the far north for the last 107 years (http://www.hurtigruten.com), and CPT Maritima (CPTM), a Chilean company, are proposing to use one of OVDS's six coastal ships, the 'Nordnorge', for Antarctic voyages. The joint company has not been named as yet, although Steinar Saeterdal, OVDS's Marketing Manager, says that it will probably be registered in Chile.
OVDS is confident it can attract more than adequate passenger loadings >from the "very large, world-wide, client base" it has from its well-known Norwegian coastal operations that are very popular with tourists from all over the world. "We know that many of our passengers are interested in visiting Antarctica" said Saeterdal "as they have told us so".
Nordnorge's Antarctic Peninsula operations are expected to be slightly different from most Peninsula tourist voyages in that they will be of fourteen days duration and are to include visits to the Chilean fjords as well as Antarctica. Four to five days of each two-week voyage are to be spent in the north-west Peninsula region.
Each 'Nordnorge' voyage is to operate between Puerto Montt in central Chile and Ushuaia, Argentina, travelling through the fjords region and visiting Punta Arenas, Chile, en route. Half of the voyages are to commence in Ushuaia and the other half from Puerto Montt.
'Nordnorge', which is ice-strengthened and is a combination of passenger and cargo ship, was built in the Kvaerner Klevan Ship Yard in Ulsteinvik, Norway, in 1997, and is capable of carrying up to 464 passengers. For Antarctic operations, however, it will carry fewer than 400, as well as a number of tour guides and lecturers, and a mixed Norwegian-Chilean crew of around sixty. It is 123 m long, 19 metres wide, and has a draft of just under five metres.
OVDS operated the tour ship 'Disko' for the former Canadian company Marine Expedition Inc. in Peninsula waters in the 1998-99 austral summer and it also has experience operating in Greenland and the region around Svalbard.
Steinar Saeterdal told IAATO that 'Nordnorge' is registered in Norway and that the technical standards required by his nation's marine regulations are "above" general world-wide standards. He also said that as required by Norwegian law, an environmental impact assessment will be carried out for the Peninsula operation and that discussions have already commenced with Norwegian Antarctic authorities on the issues involved.
The planned combined OVDS/CPTM company was accepted as a Provisional member of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) at the tour body's annual meeting late last month (see ANAN-51/01-03 preceding).
Information about OVDS can be obtained at http://www.ovds.no, while details of CTPM's parent company is at http://www.agunsa.cl and CTPM itself at http://www.cpt.cl.
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Norwegian adventurer Liv Arnesen, who has twice sledged to the South Geographic Pole and last season almost completed a traverse from Dronning Maud Land to Ross Island with Ann Bancroft (ANAN-42/04, 28 February 2001), is expected to spend a week kayaking in the Antarctic Peninsula region early in the New Year.
Arnesen plans to travel south from Ushuaia, Argentina, on 28 December as a lecturer on board Norwegian company Polar Star Expeditions' (PSE) vessel 'Polar Star' (ANAN-48/05, 6 Jun 2001). Just prior to the ship's departure north for Ushuaia on that voyage, she and her husband Einar are to leave it to spend the period 4-10 January ashore, joining the vessel again on its next journey south to lecture during that voyage back to Ushuaia where they are due on 15 January.
Arnesen's publicist told ANAN earlier this month that the "chief purpose of the [venture ashore] is to continue to spark interest and participation in the educational curriculum developed by the Bancroft-Arnesen Expedition for students world-wide". Liv, who has lectured on tour ships in the region on two previous occasions, plans to send reports and images back to the Bancroft-Arnesen web site during her time in the Peninsula area (http://www.yourexpedition.com).
As the two 'Polar Star' voyages concerned are to operate in the north-western sector of the Antarctic Peninsula the pair will be travelling somewhere in that region between voyages. As yet, however, a decision has not been made on the precise area the two will visit, or what contingency plans are to apply should difficulties be encountered during the time that they are alone.
Liv's participation in PSE tour operations and the opportunity to travel with her is currently being advertised on PSE's web site at: http://www.yourexpedition.com/umbrella_pages/antarctic_cruise.html.
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The vessel 'Polar Pioneer' is to commence polar tourist operations early next week following a two-and-a-half month, $US1.5m, refurbishment in a Russian ship yard. The ship, which has operated in Antarctic waters since the early 1990s under the name 'Akademic Shuleykin', is to be operated by Polar Aurora, a new Russian-registered tour company.
'Polar Pioneer' entered dry dock in St Petersburg in early May and over the last two months a wide range of exterior and interior work has been carried out on her.
All exterior surfaces were sandblasted and repainted and the ship now sports a blue hull, white superstructure and green decks. In addition, the main engine was refurbished, the propeller shaft fully checked, a new auxiliary engine installed, and up-dated communications equipment added. Some of the port-side cabins, the bar, and dining room were stripped and rebuilt, while major modifications were made to the galley and lecture areas.
As a result of the work carried out, 'Polar Pioneer' can now carry up to fifty-six passengers, four more than previously, and it is understood that apart from standard annual checks, it now meets SOLAS requirements for the next five years.
Polar Aurora (PA), which is chartering the vessel from its private Russian owner, is a partnership between Australia-based Aurora Expeditions (AE) and Captain Alexiy Zakalashnyuk who has skippered vessels used by AE in recent years. AE's Greg Mortimer told ANAN early this month that under a recently signed agreement the ship is potentially tied to PA until the end of the 2005-06 Antarctic season.
'Polar Pioneer' is scheduled to conduct nine Antarctic voyages over a 120-day season between 18 November 2001 and 17 March 2002, six focussing on the Antarctic Peninsula, while the others will include visits to the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Orkney Islands. All voyages are to depart from, and arrive back at, Ushuaia, Argentina.
Some of the voyages will involve specialty activities for climbers, kayakers and divers in the Antarctic Peninsula region, while on the first voyage of the season clients are being offered the opportunity to trek along Shackleton's famous 1916 route across South Georgia (ANAN-46/05, 9 May 2001).
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YACHT 'SPIRIT OF SYDNEY' SOLD, PENINSULA OPERATIONS PLANNED
[ANAN-51/10]
The nineteen-metre, Australian-registered yacht 'Spirit of Sydney', which has made eight visits to Commonwealth Bay, George V Land, over the last seven years, has been sold. The yacht, which changed hands last week after almost a year on the market, is to be used for charter operations in the Antarctic Peninsula region commencing in late 2002.
Plans announced by new owner Roger Wallis early this week call for 'Spirit' to visit Commonwealth Bay for a ninth time in January-February 2002. That voyage, which will operate from and back to Hobart, Australia, will be a commercial operation similar to those conducted by the yacht's former owners Ocean Frontiers in the past (ANAN-8/05, 10 November 1999). Berths are being offered on that voyage for $US6,200.
Following that operation 'Spirit' is to be sailed from Australia to South America in May 2002 in the lead up to operations in the Antarctic Peninsula and Scotia Arc region in 2002-03. The craft is expected to be based in Ushuaia, Argentina, and Peurto Williams, Chile, for those activities.
Wallis sailed on 'Spirit' to Commonwealth Bay in 1996-97 as a relief skipper, and has also operated the yachts 'Parmelia' and 'Tooluka' commercially in the South American sector of Antarctica over the last three southern summers in support of mountaineering, kayaking and filming ventures (ANAN-33/13, 25 October 2000). According to him 'Spirit' offers "considerably faster passages, more room, greater storage space for cargo such as sea kayaks, skis, film or scientific equipment, and more comfortable conditions for passengers than [his current yacht] 'Tooluka' ".
'Spirit' was damaged when it was caught in pack ice north of Adelie Land during its last Antarctic voyage in January (ANAN-40/02, 31 January 2001). After her return from Antarctica, Ocean Frontiers carried out extensive repairs to the boat prior to its sale, and Wallis is confident that the craft is ready to return to the Antarctic region.
'Parmelia' was sold last year while 'Tooluka', a 14.5 m steel sloop, is for sale now that 'Spirit of Sydney' has been purchased. 'Tooluka', which is in Valdivia, Chile undergoing a major refit, was expected to conduct a charter to South Georgia sometime in the coming 2001-02 season, however, it is understood that as yet no voyages to the Peninsula have been arranged for it. That voyage was, however, cancelled this week and charters for the yacht are currently being sought for the Peninsula region, South Georgia, and the coastal regions of southern South America.
Images and further details of operations planned for 'Spirit of Sydney' can be obtained on line at: http://www.tooluka.com.
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2002-03 MACQUARIE ISLAND VISIT APPLICATIONS OPEN
[ANAN-51/11]
The Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service (TPWS) in Australia, which has responsibility for the management of sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island, is currently calling for expressions of interest from non-government operators who plan visits to the island in 2002-03.
The TPWS currently limits the number of tourist and other non-government visitors to Macquarie Island each austral summer to 750. While the actual number of visitors in recent years has not reached that level, pre-season requests for the last two austral summers have exceeded that number, leading to a tightening of the application process last year.
In order to assist its decision making, a set of criteria has been established for visit applicants and the TPWS encourages those applying to frame their submissions accordingly. TPWS says that in the event that there are more visit applications than places available in 2002-03 the information contained in submissions will be critical in deciding just who is finally allocated visits.
A revision of the guidelines that apply for tour operations at the island is also currently under way. When finished the new guidelines, which will not come into effect until the 2002-03 season, will be circulated for comment to interested parties. Following that consultation process the guidelines will be finalised and issued well prior to the 2002-03 season getting under way.
Persons wishing to apply for 2002-03 visits and obtain details of visit selection criteria, or a copy of the draft visitor guidelines when they are available, should contact Peter Grant at TPWS via e-mail at: Peter.Grant@dpiwe.tas.gov.au.
Applications for 2002-03 visits close on 24 August and TPWS currently plans to finalise its selections about two months after that.
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COMING EVENTS RELEVANT TO NON-GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES
[ANAN-51/12]
Please forward notice of events via e-mail to: tourism@aad.gov.au. Up-dates are made to ANAN's web site at
http://www.antdiv.gov.au/goingsouth/tourism/Research/BibConf/Confer/default.asp as soon as new information comes to hand.
YEAR 2001
20-24 August (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
COMNAP XIII (including the sub-committee on Tourism and
Non-Government Operations).
Contact: jsayers@comnap.aq (Jack Sayers).
27 August - 1 September (Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
VIII SCAR Biology Symposium (Session on "Antarctic research, human impacts and environmental policy").
For registration contact: vu_conference@dienst.vu.nl
September [Dates to be finalised] (Brittany, France)
Second international exhibition for polar philately.
Contact: philex.pole@laposte.net
12-16 November 2001 (Wilton Park, U.K.)
Conference: "40 Years On: The Antarctic Treaty System in the 21st Century".
Participation by invitation only.
YEAR 2002
30 January 2002 (King George Island, Antarctica)
Fifth Antarctic Marathon and Half Marathon.
Contact: marathon@shore.net (Thom Gilligan).
Last week of June [Dates/location to be set] (Europe).
IAATO year 2002 annual meeting.
Contact: iaato@iaato.org (Denise Landau)(invitation required).
8-19 July (Shanghai, China).
XXVII SCAR (Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research).
13-18 July (Shanghai, China)
COMNAP XIV (including the sub-committee on Tourism and Non-Government
Operations).
Contact: jsayers@comnap.aq (Jack Sayers).
YEAR 2003
July [Dates to be set] (Seattle, United States).
IAATO year 2003 annual meeting.
Contact: iaato@iaato.org (Denise Landau)(invitation required).
23 November (Queen Mary and Dronning Maud Land regions).
Total solar eclipse (See ANAN-3/08, 1 September 1999).
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NEXT ISSUE: ANAN-52 to be issued on Wednesday, 1 August 2001
Deadline for items: Sunday, 29 July 2001 @ 2359 UTC. (send any items to tourism@aad.gov.au)