Short sea shipping
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Short sea shipping refers to the movement of freight mainly on sea while remaining in the same continent without crossing an ocean. While deep sea shipping refers to maritime activity that crosses oceans. Some short sea ship vessels are small enough to travel inland on inland waterways. Short sea shipping includes the movements of wet and dry bulk cargoes, containers and passengers around the coast (say from Lisbon to Rotterdam or from New Orleans to Philadelphia). Typical ship sizes range from 1000dwt (tonnes deadweight - ie the amount of cargo they carry) to 15000dwt with drafts ranging from around 3m to 6m. Typical cargoes include grain, fertilisers, steel, coal, salt, stone, scrap and minerals (all in bulk), oil products (such as diesel oil, kerosene, aviation spirit - all in bulk), containers and passengers (yes, even ferries are technically short sea ships). Short sea shipping should not be mistaken with inland navigation.
In Europe, short sea shipping is at the forefront of the European Union's transportation policy. It currently accounts for roughly 40% of all freight moved in Europe. In the US, short sea shipping has yet to be utilized to the extent it is in Europe, but there is some development in the area. New York's Port Inland Distribution Network (PIDN), and the private company Osprey Line are the best examples.
The main advantages promoted for this type of shipping are alleviation of congestion, decrease of air pollution, and overall cost savings to the shipper and a government. Shipping goods by ship (one 4000dwt vessel is equivalent to between 100-200 trucks) is far more efficient and cost-effective than road transport (though the goods, if bound inland, then have to delivered by truck) and is much less prone to theft and damage.
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It is noteworthy to realize that while roughly 40% of all freight moved in Europe is classified as Short Sea Shipping the greater percentage of this cargo moves through Europe’s heartland on rivers and not oceans.
In the past decade the term Short Sea Shipping has evolved in a broader sense to include cargo movements from point to point on inland waterways as well as inland to ocean ports for transhipment over oceans. Cargo movements on the Great Lakes Seaway System are an excellent example of this broadening of terminology.
The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation of Canada with its U.S. counterpart the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation has for the past several years promoted this concept under its marketing umbrella ‘Hwy H2O’. The concept is intended to utilize existing capacity on the 3,700-kilometer (2,300 mile) St. Lawrence - Great Lakes corridor in harmony with rail and truck modes to reduce overland congestion.
Great Lakes Feeder Lines of Burlington, Ontario, Canada was the first company to operate a ‘fit for purpose’, European build Short Sea Shipping vessel, named the Dutch Runner, on the Great Lakes Seaway System under Canadian flag. During the winter of 2008-2009 she operated a weekly, fixed service between Halifax and St. Pierre et Miquelon carrying Ro-Ro (Roll on - Roll off), break bulk, containers and reefers. The ship can load and unload herself with her two 35 tonne cranes.
Another Canadian firm, Hamilton based McKeil Marine Inc., operates a fleet of ‘tug and barge’ combinations has been moving commodities such as tar, fuels, aluminum ingots and break bulk cargoes for years on the Great Lakes Seaway System. Along the St. Lawrence River, McKeil Marine transports aluminum ingots from a smelter in Quebec to destinations in Ohio, a distance of 944 nautical miles. One barge carries the equivalent of 220 40 ton trucks.
