Enhancing the Safety, Security and Sustainability of Apia Port
Project background
The Government of Samoa is
embarking on a project to enhance the safety, security, and sustainability of
Apia Port. In addition to infrastructure upgrades (e.g. a breakwater upgrade
and the redevelopment of the terminal yard), the project also includes the
identification and implementation of Green Port Initiatives to facilitate the
transition towards a ‘Green Port’.
The identification and
implementation of various Green Port Initiatives (GPIs) is included in the
scope of work being delivered by Royal HaskoningDHV. This iReport provides
stakeholders with an update on progress.
The first steps in the
project included setting a Vision for Apia Green Port and establishing a Green
Port Initiatives Working Group (GPIWG) that includes key stakeholders. The
vision focuses on three key pillars:
·
Disaster Management through preventative and preparatory
measures that ensure timely and effective response to disasters in a
coordinated manner
·
Adopting Green Port practices through environmental
sustainability, operational efficiency, safety in operations, and resilience
against future climate change.
·
Institutionalising Gender Equality in Green Port operations and
management.
Background
The Project aims to improve the climate resilience, safety and efficiency of SPA's ports through the simplification and streamlining of relevant physical and non‐physical components of the Port’s operation. A green port policy (GPP), alongside green port initiatives (GPIs), will be developed to promote environmentally sustainable practices and optimise operational and energy efficiency for the Samoa Ports Authority (SPA). Enhancing opportunities for women is also a key element of this Project, with gender initiatives to be developed to ensure that, as a ‘Green Port’, SPA's ports are also gender equal ports.
The GPP and GPIs have been developed based on an audit of SPA’s performance against green port indicators based on international best practice and maritime conventions ratified by Samoa. This included gender analyses to ensure that the initiatives identified enhance opportunities for participation by women and address any impacts of port operations on women. As the Project progresses, it will provide training opportunities for state‐of‐the‐art operations and environmental management practices. Key to this will be the development of a Green Port Practice Manual (GPPM) to assist with day-to-day operations.
Also key to the Project is the development of a Multi-Hazard
Disaster Preparedness Plan (MHDPP) which will run in parallel with the
development of the GPP, GPPM and GPIs. Disaster preparedness is crucial for the
safety of SPA's ports as well as business continuity and sustainability.
The Project has three key themes, for SPA's ports to be:
(i) 'green' ports
(ii) prepared for disasters from multiple hazards
(iii) gender equal
Note: Whilst this Project was initially intended to
focus on Apia Port, the focus is now on all of SPA's ports. Any reference
to Apia Port should therefore be read in the context of how it could also apply
to SPA's other ports.
A fundamental first step for the Project was the development of a vision for the Green Ports with SPA. Defining the vision is the framework for all other activities carried out during the Project. In recognition of the three focal arears of the Project, the Green Port Vision is thereefold, as follows: