Sea Technology

FEB 2013

The industry's recognized authority for design, engineering and application of equipment and services in the global ocean community

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���I hope the initial Sandy Service Assessment was not terminated because it was too independent, or because it was asking questions that the government found uncomfortable,��� Broun wrote. ���The new service assessment charter lacks suffcient independence given that nongovernmental participation has been scaled back, confdentiality clauses have been added, and management infuence has grown. NOAA has also narrowed the focus of the assessment to the point that it may not substantively inform future agency actions.��� US Congress Extends Wind Energy Tax Credits As Part of Fiscal Cliff Bill The U.S. Congress has included the extension of the wind energy production tax credit and investment tax credits as part of a bill passed to avert the fscal cliff. This would cover all wind projects that start construction in 2013. Manufacturers and installers of wind turbines sought that defnition to allow for the 18 to 24 months it takes to develop a new wind farm. The House of Representatives passed the bill in January with a 257-167 vote, after the Senate passed it with a vote of 89 to 8. It was then signed into law soon after by President Barack Obama, who supported the wind energy tax credits. Nine offshore project proposals in U.S. state and federal waters are in various stages of development, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said. Of the contiguous 48 states, 28 have a coastal boundary, and they use 78 percent of U.S. electricity. If shallow-water offshore potential is included in the wind-resource mix, 26 of these 28 states would have the wind resources to meet at least 20 percent of their electricity needs. The potential generating capacity from offshore wind totals 4,150 gigawatts, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory said. In context, the total electric-generating capacity of the U.S. was 1,025 gigawatts at the end of 2009. US Coast Guard Gets FY 2013, 2014 Funding Under USCG and Maritime Transportation Act The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and Maritime Transportation Act of 2012 (H.R. 2838), which has been signed into law by President Barack Obama, authorizes $8.6 billion in fscal year (FY) 2013 and $8.7 billion in FY 2014 for the USCG. The bill, introduced in the U.S. House by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John L. Mica (RFla.) and Coast Guard Maritime Transportation Subcommittee Chairman Frank LoBiondo (R-N.J.), will provide USCG reforms, reduce regulatory burdens on small business and port workers, and require a decision to either reactivate or decommission the USCG���s sidelined heavy icebreaker. H.R. 2838 also eliminates the Transportation Security Administration requirement for maritime workers to make multiple trips to a Transportation Worker Identifcation Credential (TWIC) enrollment center to receive the TWIC ID card, includes compliance deadlines for new USCG regulations on fshing vessels and extends the duration of medical certifcates so mariners can continue to work while the USCG reduces its backlog of applications. The bill also extends for an additional year the moratorium for fshing and small commercial vessels��� compliance with Environmental Protection Agency regulations governing vessel incidental discharges, such as rainwater runoff. n www.sea-technology.com FEBRUARY 2013 / st 69

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