HAWAII OCEAN SAFETY TEAM

Advisory Board Meeting

July 14, 2011 (3:00 pm)

Hawaii Yacht Club

Attendees:

Robin Bond                                                  Anne Stevens

Kim Beasley                                                  Ed Underwood

Bill Davis                                                       Chris Woolaway

Richard Davison                                          Robert Broderick

Brad Rimell                                                   LT Scott Whaley

Lt. Kyle Ryan                                                            CDR Bob McFarland

CDR Jason Neubauer                                Michael Cantin

Naomi Wasano                                            Roland Zwicky

Call to Order

Robin Bond called the meeting to order.    No quorum was present.

Approval of the last meeting Minutes

No Minutes were available yet for the last meeting.

Treasurer’s Report

No income or expenditures.    Standing balance is $2,147.03.

Critique of last General Meeting.

The general impression was that the USCG did a great job in presenting information of Hurricane Preparedness Planning. Nikolai Maximenko gave a very interesting presentation on the modeling and simulation of the debris generated by the recent Japan Tsunami. DLNR gave an update on the impact of the tsunami on Hawaii’s small boat harbors. Chris gave a follow-up on what has happened lately on the marine debris plume coming from Japan.

Topics for August 25^th General Meeting

·                     Parasailing Safety is something that the USCG has been working on but they may not be ready to present anything by August 25^th.

·                     Anne Stevens suggested a recap of TransPac Yacht race.

·                     USCG may be doing more active outreach regarding APEC security. It was suggested that the week of APEC may not be a good time to take the boat out off Waikiki.

·                     USCG may give an update on Open Ocean Canoe Racing safety issues

·                     Naomi Wasano will give an overview of what types of safety training programs are available in Hawaii.

 Pending HOST Safety Issues

·                     Flare disposal project – Anne Stevens gave a report on the City & County Fireworks Amnesty Program. The HPD Bomb Squad is unable to assist in disposal of expired flares. HOST will continue to work with POP that may be willing to take in and store expired flares and transport to H-Power. H-Power wants to only deal with one party and they are not set up to deal with the public.   H-power seems to be willing to burn them.

·                     Alpha dive flag issue is still on hold.

 Old Business

·         Falls of Clyde – Chris Woolaway

Still looking for volunteers.   Work is proceeding to patch the deck, replace chafing gear etc.   More volunteers would be helpful.

• Tsunami  Evacuation Plan

We are pretty good at evacuation but work continues on how to coordinate returning to port.  A committee has been formed but work is just beginning.

New Business

·         4^th of July Fireworks Display Confusion

Bob Broderick brought up a concern that happened on the 4th of July off Ala Moana. About 100 vessels went off shore to view the fireworks.  After the display some DLNR vessels blocked the Ala Wai boat channel to be sure that the fireworks barge was secure. No announcements were made before the display or after to alert the boaters that the channel would be closed. It resulted in some confusion and inconvenience to boats that had to turnaround in the channel and wait around off shore. It was agreed that the State or Coast Guard should give a notice to mariners to alert them of the channel closure. This type of communication should be easy to implement. USCG and DLNR will look into it and report at our next meeting.

·            The Hawaii Seafood and Fishing Festival is being held at Pier 38 on October 9, 2011 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. HOST should have a booth as usual.

·            Please review the Boat US article on future reliability of the GPS system across the United States and take action if warranted.

USCG Concerns – No concerns at this time

DLNR Issues

DLNR has initiated a temporary rule banning drinking at the Kaneohe Sand Bar.   This is a 120 day Emergency Rule that essentially bans alcohol on any three day period.  The rule is about to expire and it is not known if it will be revived or turned into a regulatory initiative.

USCG Auxiliary – Nothing new to report

NOAA  –  Nothing new to report

Power Squadron  –  Naomi received a request from the public regarding an un-marked hazard in Kaneohe Bay. They raised the issue as to whether more of the hazards in Kaneohe Bay should be marked.   Discussion followed that DLNR, USCG or NOAA would not mark any of the numerous hazards but rather identify good water and navigation buoys.  The hazard in question  may have been a privately marked reef whose marking is gone.

Announcements – None

            Next Meetings:       AdvisoryBoard Meeting: August 11, 2011

                                              Membership Meeting: August 25, 2011                                     

            Adjourn – 1630 (4:30 pm)