Shipping accidents have increased 36.4 percent year-on-year in waters overseen by the city's maritime authority in the first half of 2013, officials said at a press conference.
During the 25 years of the average vessel’s life, it is likely that the economic and even operational rationale which governed her owner’s decision to build her in the first place, will alter – sometimes quite dramatically. Whole industries which keep ships full with their products can vanish or be developed afresh in a far shorter timespan. It is a tribute to the resilience of shipowners and the flexibility of ships that these changes will probably not amount to a complete disaster for the owners, as they will probably be able to redeploy their vessels. By contrast, fixed plant ashore – factories, or even port installations, can become valued little more than scrap as a result of such changes in demand.
The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 or MLC, 2006 is an international labour Convention adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO). It provides international standards for the world's first genuinely global industry.