A road map for designing simulator-based oil spill response trainings published

The fourth report in the Kotka Maritime Research Centre publication series is out! Researchers and experts of the SIMREC project have today published a joint report titled as Designing effective simulator-based oil spill response trainings for improved performance, preparedness, and societal resilience. Based on the work conducted and lessons learned during the three-year project, the report provides information, tools and recommendations to support the design and construction of effective simulator-based oil spill response trainings for various teams.

If a major oil spill materializes on the Baltic Sea, it is of utmost importance that different ac­tors can, both nationally and internationally, join their forces and react fast and effectively to minimize its negative impacts to people and environment. The successful implementation of such complex multi-organizational processes under heavy time pressure is based on skilled and experienced operative teams. The development of such teams requires frequent joint exercises and training.

The report states that today’s bridge simulators can provide an effective, cost-effective, and safe envi­ronment for testing and practising various joint tasks related to oil spill management. Applied complementarily to authentic on-board exercises with real vessels, the authors suggest simulator-based training programmes bear strong potential for improving the oil spill response readiness of the Baltic Sea countries, thus also developing societal resilience against oil accidents.

The report is a joint effort of the researchers and experts from the South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences (Xamk), University of Helsinki, Aalto University, and Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE). It is edited by Merikotka’s research director Annukka Lehikoinen. Project SIMREC has been led by Kotka Maritime Research Association and co-funded by the European Union together with the participating organizations.

Access the report by clicking the LINK.

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen

Doctoral dissertation: Systems modelling can support the sustainable development of maritime traffic

The examination of MSc Emilia Luoma’s doctoral thesis in environmental sciences was organized at the University of Helsinki on October 28, 2022. Professor Nina Tynkkynen from Åbo Akademi’s Faculty of Social Sciences, Business and Economics acted as the opponent. The research behind the dissertation has been conducted as part of the projects 30MILES and COMPLETE, led by Kotka Maritime Research Centre (Merikotka). Merikotka’s research director, Associate Professor (Docent) Annukka Lehikoinen was the main supervisor of Luoma’s work.

The thesis, “Developing sustainability through systems thinking – Perspectives to maritime traffic” consists of four scientific articles and a summary section. The entity aims to increase the systemic understanding related to sustainability and sustainable development by applying causal network modeling methods. The case study topics through which the subject is approached in the articles are the management of the biofouling on ships and the sustainable development of marinas. In the summary section Luoma concludes on how causal network modeling methods can help identify factors and measures that prevent or promote sustainability and sustainable development.

“Based on the results, I would say that both qualitative and numerical causal network models support the conceptualization and structuring of sustainability issues in a versatile way,” Luoma states and continues: “My statement is that such a systemic review can increase the understanding of who should be involved in the discussion, what information is needed and what aspects should be considered in order to make decisions that promote sustainable development. The visual representation of the models can also promote the participation of stakeholders and open communication”.

At the dissertation event, Opponent Tynkkynen praised Luoma’s cross-disciplinary thesis as containing information useful for planning and policymaking purposes and offering fresh perspectives on the topic of maritime traffic, which is usually considered from a rather technical perspective. Tynkkynen also hoped that corresponding, non-traditional, and cross-disciplinary approaches could be included in the coming update of the national strategy for maritime research in Finland.

The thesis summary can be downloaded from the University of Helsinki’s publication archive Helda.

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen

SEMINAR: Simulator exercises for oil spill response and preparedness

Welcome to the final seminar of SIMREC -project

Simulator exercises for oil spill response and preparedness

Kotka, Maritime Centre Vellamo (Tornatorintie 99)
Tue 22 – Wed 23 November 2022

The aim of the SIMREC project has been to produce new cost-effective simulator exercises for oil spill response which are based on new risk scenarios. The simulator exercises are cost-effective and enables safe training even in extreme conditions. During the exercises decision-making process and communication between actors has been examined.

Seminar will be held in English.

TUESDAY 22.11.2022 at 13-17

Key Note Speakers
Heli Haapasaari, Finnish Border Guard
Robert Grundmann, Fraunhofer Center for Maritime Logistics and Services

SIMREC project researchers
Annukka Lehikoinen, Kotka Maritime Research Centre
Liangliang Lu, Aalto University
Antti Lanki, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences
Mirka Laurila-Pant, University of Helsinki
Ossi Tonteri, Finnish Environment Institute 

Panelists
Robert Grundmann, Fraunhofer Center for Maritime Logistics and Services
Antti Lanki, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences
Johanna Salokannel, Yrkeshögskolan Novia
Kadi Kasepõld, Tallinn University of Technology 

WEDNESDAY 23.11.2022 at 10-14

Visit to the Simulator Center and to Oil Spill Test Basin. 

Upload seminar program (pdf)

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Research article: a decision analysis model to compare biofouling management strategies

Researchers of the Merikotka-driven COMPLETE and COMPLETE PLUS projects published a scientific article where they present a multi-criteria decision analysis model to compare alternative biofouling management strategies in the Baltic Sea. The article is a joint effort of the KMRC researchers from the groups of the University of Helsinki, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Science, and the Kotka Maritime Research Association, in collaboration with Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE), Chalmers University of Technology, and University of Klaipeda.

Biofouling management helps to prevent the spread of potentially harmful non-native species but is important also in terms of ships’ fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. The main biofouling management methods in use are regular cleaning of the underwater parts of vessels, and diverse biocidal or non-biocidal hull coatings. The ecological and environmental risks associated with different solutions and their combinations should be acknowledged when selecting case-specifically sustainable management strategies. In addition, the special characteristics of the Baltic Sea, such as the partial ice coverage in winter, restrict the applicability of some solutions in the area.

The researchers developed a model that enables case-specific comparison of the biofouling control strategies in relation to the risk of new non-indigenous species introductions in different parts of the Baltic Sea, the eco-toxicological risk due to biocidal hull coatings, and the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that increase along the growing friction caused by the organisms attaching the ship’s hull. In addition, for each analyzed scenario, the model estimates the monetary costs for the shipping company, arising from the fuel consumption and the evaluated control options.

In the article, the researchers demonstrate how, with the careful consideration of the hull fouling management strategy, both money and environment can be saved. Biocidal-free coating combined with regular in-water cleaning, using a device to collect the detached organic material, provides a sustainable alternative. However, the optimal biocidal-free coating type and in-water cleaning interval should be evaluated case-specifically.  In some cases, biocidal coating with less regular in-water cleaning appears to be a justifiable solution but even then, the copper concentration and release rate from the coating should be adjusted to the low-salinity conditions of the Baltic Sea.

The article is published in the journal Science of the total environment and is freely available. It is part of the KMRC-researcher Emilia Luoma’s PhD study she conducts as part of the research group of the University of Helsinki. In her thesis Luoma applies participatory system modeling methods to examine environmental and sustainability issues related to marine traffic in the Baltic Sea.

 

Written by: Emilia Luoma and Annukka Lehikoinen

Emilia Luoma to be a project researcher in VISIIRI project

Emilia Luoma, MSc, has been appointed as a project researcher in the VISIIRI project of the Kotka Maritime Research Center. She started in the position on May 1, 2022.

Luoma is transferring from the faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences in the University of Helsinki, where she has worked as a doctoral candidate in the Fisheries and Environmental Management Group. Her PhD thesis aims at deepening the systems understanding related to marine environmental management issues and searching for the methods and practices supporting sustainable development. Luoma has worked in many research projects of the Kotka Maritime Research Center, related to biofouling and non-indigenous species risks in shipping, the sustainable development of marinas and oil spill response.

Tools to encourage intersectoral dialogue are needed in oil spill risk governance

MSocSc Tuuli Parviainen defended her doctoral dissertation in the field of environmental social sciences at the University of Helsinki on December 16th, 2021. The opponent was Doctor Annika E. Nilsson from the Luleå University of Technology, Sweden. Parviainen’s thesis work was supervised by Professor Sakari Kuikka – a member of the Kotka Maritime Research Centre’s management group, from the University of Helsinki. The second supervisor, Adjunct Professor Päivi Haapasaari was also a member of the management group in 2019 – 2020. The thesis work has been conducted as part of the KMRC research network’s joint projects, BONUS BALTIMARI and CEARCTIC.

The thesis, titled as “Coping with contested risks: Exploring how oil spill risks are governed through governmentalities”, consists of three scientific articles and a summary section. The entity demonstrates how under the current governance approach oil spill risks are made better “manageable” by reducing their socio-ecological complexity. The complexity refers to the high level of uncertainty and the ambiguity arising from different, sometimes conflicting, perceptions and understandings of risks. These and the societal values and knowledge systems related to the risks are often ignored and side lined.

In her thesis, Parviainen explores how the current oil spill risk governance could be improved by supporting novel ways of producing knowledge to inform policy and practice. She studies how boundary objects, such as risk models and assessments, could support mutual understanding and collaborative knowledge production among different stakeholders and further on turn the knowledge into actions.

“Science and scientific knowledge play invaluable roles in the governance of oil spill risks”, says Tuuli Parviainen. “However, the risks are often framed in a constricted manner, without considering the alternative framings”, she states and continues: ”The governance processes are also largely based on techno-scientific knowledge, and the knowledge from different scientific disciplines and from outside the academia are not integrated into real-life decision-making processes. The narrow scope of the framing and data have led to pre-determined solutions, where the root causes of risks are not considered.”

Collaborative and participatory approaches involving stakeholders from different fields of the society are seen to better account for the complex nature of many socio-ecological risks associated with global environmental change. The dissertation of Tuuli Parviainen indicates the global need for new, flexible marine risk governance approaches and tools that encourage deliberation and dialogue around competing goals, facilitate collaboration and co-production of knowledge, as well as promote social learning in innovative ways.

The thesis summary can be downloaded from the University of Helsinki’s publication archive Helda.

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen

Article: Well-organized sewage management advances comprehensive sustainability of boating and marinas

A new article from the Kotka Maritime Research Network recently came out in the international science journal Marine Pollution Bulletin. The article is based on data collected during the 30MILES project, that focused on sustainable development of the marina network in the Eastern Gulf of Finland.

While analyzing the answers of queries and interviews, the researchers noticed the aspects most frequently commented by boaters in connection to sustainability of marinas  were the waste management issues – especially those related to boat-sourced sewage management. Recreational boaters in the study area often seemed to face boat-sourced sewage management issues that the port actors were not aware of. A literature review indicated similar issues are faced by boaters in other parts of the world, too.

Since 2005, discharging boat-sourced sewage in the Finnish coastal areas has been banned by law. The contents of the boat-toilet should be stored in sewage holding tanks for later disposal at sewage pump-out stations. In Finland, the pump-out stations are usually located either in natural harbours or built marinas. In natural harbours, floating stations are maintained most often by an environmental association (Keep the Archipelago Tidy Association). Shore stations located in marinas are maintained by marina operators in accordance with the marina municipalities. Boat-sourced sewage is still often dumped in the sea, locally contributing to the eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. The article of the KMRC researchers explains the reasons and suggests improvements. (Photo: Keep the Archipelago Tidy Association, HL-Metal Oy / Erik Saanila)

The researchers conducted an actor-network theory -driven analysis to understand and describe the mechanisms through which boat-sourced sewage management plays a role in sustainable marina development of the study area. The article presents a comprehensive description of one socio-eco-technical system, in which the various identified actors and factors, in interaction with each other, can either advance or hinder the manifestation of sustainable port operation and recreational boating. Sewage pump-out stations installed in the marinas are recognized as core marina services, valued by boaters. At the same time, they serve as so-called governance artefacts, steering the boaters’ environmental behavior in marinas, but also at sea, which simultaneously affects the sustainability of both marina operation and boating.

The results of the article indicate paying special attention to waste management services in marinas is likely to put forward a positive sustainability loop. This virtuous circle produces synergies between objectives of environmental management, local well-being, and economic development. Adequate environmental management preserves the ecosystem services that are part of the tourism product and prevents them from turning into disservices that would likely make visitors to abandon the site and its surroundings in the long run. Waste management connects concerns of both visiting boaters and locals, enabling the first group an environmentally conscious and legal way of action, at the same time sustaining the good environmental state in the home locality of the latter group.

The article provides evidence-based ideas and recommendations for improving the boat-sourced sewage management, as well as the sustainable development of marinas in general.

 

Original article:

Renne Vantola, Emilia Luoma, Tuuli Parviainen and Annukka Lehikoinen (2021). Sustainability manifesting as a multi-material and -sited network effect: How boat-sourced sewage management facilities serve as governance artefacts advancing sustainability in nautical tourism. Marine Pollution Bulletin 173, Part B. (Open access link)

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen

Doctoral dissertation on the environmental impacts of seabed mining

M.Sc. Laura Kaikkonen defended her doctoral dissertation in the field of environmental sciences at the University of Helsinki on October 29, 2021. The opponent was Professor Anna Metaxas from the Department of Oceanography at Dalhousie University in Canada. One of the supervisors of Kaikkonen’s doctoral thesis has been Professor Sakari Kuikka – a member of the Kotka Maritime Research Centre’s management group, from the University of Helsinki. The thesis work was conducted as part of a sub-project led by Professor Kuikka, in the Smartsea project funded by the Strategic Research Council of the Academy of Finland.

The thesis, titled as “Risks out of depth? A study on the environmental impacts of seabed mining“, consists of four scientific articles and a summary section. Environmental risks associated with seabed mining are assessed in a comprehensive manner, from the structuring of the problem and the synthesis of existing knowledge to the development of a probabilistic risk analysis model. The last article of the entity addresses the attitudes of people towards the state of the mostly invisible and inaccessible seabed environments, and the damage caused to them by mining.

Seabed mining is expected to address globally the growing demand for mineral resources, created by – among other things – the growing battery industry. This creates a call for improved knowledge base and effective methods to support the assessment of the environmental impacts of the ocean mining operations and the need for their regulation. Kaikkonen’s dissertation offers scientifically valid solutions, data and reflection on the topic.

”As ocean mining activities are still in exploratory stages, there are significant uncertainties regarding the exploitation of mineral resources and its environmental impacts,” Kaikkonen says and continues by telling unrestricted mineral extraction can have far-reaching effects on the functioning of the marine ecosystems, which must be clarified before commercial activity can be considered. “An improved appreciation of the risks associated with emerging maritime industries is essential to avoid uncontrolled development and to ensure good status and stewardship of the marine environment,” emphasizes Laura Kaikkonen.

The thesis summary can be downloaded from the University of Helsinki’s publication archive Helda.

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen