A Titanic Task: Reviewing Maritime Safety

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In this 100th remembrance year of the infamous sinking of the passenger ocean liner RMS Titanic comes a review of Australia’s century-old maritime safety legislation, the Navigation Act 1912. Also proposed now is the creation of a new national, sea safety regulator, an important agency considering the recent local ship losses which remind us of the continuing importance of safe operations at sea. The loss of the cruise ship Costa Concordia off the Italian coast, while carrying Australian passengers who were fortunately saved, serves to highlight these issues.

National Ports Strategy and planning

On 7 January 2011, the Government released its new National Ports Strategy. The strategy proposes to clear freight bottlenecks and ensure urban development does not stall the ability to expand port facilities, through the implementation of planning buffer zones around ports along with streamlined environmental approval processes.