West Highland Anchorages and Moorings Association

News

April 2010 - Latest update September 4th 2010

WHAM appeals to members who have not paid their fees to remedy this or we will not be able to afford the scones at the AGM.

The AGM will take place at the Marine Laboratory, Dunstaffnage at 10.30am on Saturday 27th November. Coffee and tea 9.30 - 10.30.

Navtex

UK Inshore Waters transmissions from Malin Hd do appear to be giving a better service on the coast though, paradoxically, Portpatrick also seems to have improved!

North Moidart

In the entrance to North Moidart, just before the sharp turn to port, there used to be an old floating platform in a pool which is/was said to be occasionally used as a support for fish keeps. This is in an unstable condition and, if it were to break free, would be a genuine hazard to navigation. The secretary would be grateful to know if it is still there preferably before he gets there himself sometime this spring/summer.

Stop Press: The raft is now gone thanks to the Crown Estate.

Ob n'a Acarseidh, Ardheslaig, Torridon (Pipes at Fish farms)

As a result of a visit in March to this fish farm site, owned by Lighthouse Caledonia (LC), and very constructive discussions involving LC, Crown Estate, NLB, RYAS and WHAM a practical solution has been found to the obstruction of this anchorage by feed pipes. The pipes will be replaced by a feed barge by 2014 latest and during the interim period two new Fl.Y5s marks have been laid marking the extremities of the farm site.

By leaving these marks to starboard when approaching from the northwest, leisure craft can access the anchorage inside the farm and even pick up a mooring buoy kindly provided by LC if they wish.

The editors of the Sailing Directions have been advised of this.

Cuan Sound

The inference that the Hydrographer was not aware that parts of the Sound close to the ferry slips were shallower than charted has been met with consternation as has the idea that a causeway might result. The consulting engineers engaged by A&BC have subsequently established (no doubt expensively) that the charted depths are as shown and what is now happening is unclear at the time of writing.

However, notwithstanding the engineer's report RYAS are collecting transit data and WHAM have made it clear they will oppose anything other than a high level bridge tooth and nail.

Wind Farms off Kintyre and Islay

'Scoping Reports' have been published on the internet by AMEC on behalf of SSE (Scottish and Southern) outlining plans to construct off shore wind farms near Macrihanish and west of Islay. This has caused a stir in some circles in part because the scoping report has been confused with planning consent etc. which is still some distance away. It should be pointed out that no planning applications have yet been made.

Nonetheless it is timely to register your views with AMEC who will digest comments and observations if submitted. The reports are best read on the Internet at www.sse-kinyre.com and www.sse-islay.com. Comments can be e-mailed to KintyreOffshoreWind@amec.com and similarly for Islay. Written comments should be sent to AMEC POWER and PROCESS EUROPE, Hexham Business Centre, St Matthew's House, Haugh Lane, Hexham, Northumberland NE46 3PU.

Time Expired Pyrotechnics (Flares to you and I or TEPs)

Many will have seen the recent notice regarding disposal of these and many more will be mystified and incredulous about the system of disposal now prevailing.

This note seeks to explain some of the background to the current situation and boaters will then have to make their minds up how they wish to proceed.

Some time ago the Health and Safety Executive changed the rules on carriage and storage of TEPs and about the same time the MCA lost Crown Exemption on Coastguard premises regarding storage and the free disposal service by MoD was withdrawn. Manufacturers do not build in the cost of disposal to the price of flares for a variety of reasons associated with internet sales and importation of 'cheap' flares.

Recreational boaters are legally required to dispose of flares safely yet there is no affordable route to follow. Commercial craft have a route but it is costly and it is true that flares can be disposed of via private waste disposal organisations but this is also very costly. MCA are now providing a limited storage facility at some Coastguard locations but the amounts they can handle are severely limited for the reasons stated above i.e. because of restrictions on storage and licensing by external bodies. It is also a fact that MCA are not in business to be a waste disposal organisation per se. Nonetheless a service exists and it is still free although hardly convenient.

Well under half the flares sold are returned by boaters and they are possibly mostly returned on the buy one, return one, basis operated by chandlers. Where the non-returned flares are is unclear, very unclear.

Now it is possible to look forward a little. Demos of flares by RNLI have also now ceased for similar reasons to those outlined above and, indeed, the use of flares in anger has sharply declined in recent years. They are not cheap - a RORC offshore pack is about £200 while an inshore pack is £50+ and they are not even easy to use in practice. In three years you write that off. Recreational boaters are not mandated to carry flares, though coded craft are but for how much longer is unclear.

An obvious way forward is to recognise that flares are of limited use in alerting the safety services-no coast watch has existed for decades-and to utilise alternative means of alerting the SAR services. EPIRBs, PLBs and DSC VHF are the obvious means as they give all the information the SAR need, position, direction etc. and keep doing it till the battery fails or power fails. It goes without saying that registration of the EPIRB is quite essential. Based on the cost of a RORC offshore flare pack you get your EPIRB cost back pretty quickly! Beyond EPIRB and DSC VHF are more sophisticated options such as Radar SART and AIS SART though these will be of limited interest to most boaters. Then there are laser torches in development while the dye marker still has its place and it is neither flammable nor tricky to use.

Finally it should be pointed out that mobile phones are NOT recommended for maritime distress use. They are not always near an aerial, they do not give direction or position and should only be used as a last resort.

Meantime we are faced with a very limited and inconvenient flare disposal regime but it is still preferable to fly tipping in every way.

Referrals

30 referrals have been seen to date and no objections made. One at Keillmore was given a qualifying comment. At Glenuig SG have given permission for some moorings and SNH have agreed to a survey of the bay paid by Crown Estate and this will be conducted shortly. Thereafter we can expect further discussion!

Aids to Navigation (AtoN)

The 2010 review of AtoN by the Northern Lighthouse Board contains some interesting proposed changes.

They include the following:

Lighting Branra Rock and the entrance to Craighouse.

Possible additional light at the S end of S of Kerrera.

Replacing Ardluing green buoy by a S Cardinal and moving it to the 20m contour.

Changing Bogha Ghair to an E cardinal-WHAM and RYA have expressed some concerns about the visibility in daylight from the south of a cardinal here based on the visibility of the Bono Rock cardinal.

Discontinuing Bo Rocks buoy at Salen.

Assessing the need for additional buoyage near New Rocks such as a S cardinal at Little Stirk.

Investigating the need for a light on Am Balg, S of Cape Wrath.

Reducing the light range of the major Lighthouses to not less than 18M.

Establishing a sector light at Red Rocks, Stanton Channel.

Lighting or buoying Sg Ulibhe, Bo Golach, B Dubh Sgeir, Sg Thraid and Sg Ghoblach unlit beacons.

Discontinuing Cope Passage buoyage.

Cuan Sound Crossing

A&BC, having now financed consulting engineers twice on this issue, have at last decided to take another hard look at the renewal of the ferry and slips. The threat of a causeway has receded for the time being but the data on transits is being retained by RYAS lest causeways rear their head again (or low level bridges!).

Puillodobhrain

Boaters who use this well known anchorage will be glad to know that, as a result of discussions with WHAM, the Crown Estate has agreed to finance the sweeping of the entire anchorage. This action should finally rid the anchorage of sundry pieces of debris which have created problems for anchoring vessels from time to time.

Moidart North

The Crown Estate have agreed with WHAM to bring about the removal and destruction of the old platform which occupies the pool to starboard immediately before the final narrows. It had the potential to become a serious hazard to navigation if its remaining (very corroded) chains had given way and it had drifted out to sea.

Kames Bay and its implications

The Crown Estate took a small number of owners of moorings in Kames Bay, Bute to the Court of Session as the owners had doubted the right of the Crown Estate to manage, regulate and, if necessary, remove moorings on the sea bed.

The Court of Session found in favour of The Crown Estate on 4 June 2010 confirming that the seabed at Kames Bay is the property of the Crown and The Crown Estate is entitled to manage the moorings, including removing unauthorised moorings.

Indiscriminate and unthinking behaviour

Sound of Ulva Moorings Association are becoming increasingly concerned about indiscriminate anchoring in their area and unauthorised use of moorings. Recently a yacht used one overnight known to be unserviceable without seeking permission. It was potentially dangerous and divers were awaited. There is a well recognised anchoring area mentioned in the pilots and yachts should use it! Using an (unsafe) mooring without permission is not simply rude but will invalidate an insurance in the event of an accident. This type of behaviour does visiting boats no favours and tends to antagonise an otherwise sympathetic neighbourhood