“VII MEETING OF MESOAMERICAN & CARIBBEAN SEA HYDROGRAPHIC COMMISION”

(MACHC)

Acapulco, Mexico; from October 4TH to 7TH, 2006.

DRAFT REPORT

I. INTRODUCTION

The “VII MesoAmerican & Caribbean Sea Hydrographic Committee (MACHC) was held jointly with the “Seminar for Chairmen of the National Hydrographic Committee, National Maritime Safety Committee or equivalent”, in Acapulco, Mexico, at the Naval Base of the Mexican Navy, in Acapulco (Mexico) organized by the “Secretaria de Marina- Armada de Mexico”, the “VII MACHC Meeting was chaired by Rear Admiral Javier del Ángel Rivas (México). There were attended representatives from Antigua & Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, France, Grenada, Guatemala, Jamaica, Latvia, Mexico, Netherlands (The), Trinidad & Tobago, UK, USA, Venezuela, as well as representing of the International Hydrographic Bureau (IHB), with headquarters in the Principality of Monaco, the Fedération Internationale des Géométres (FIG) and of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and commercial companies attended the meeting like CARIS and the University of New Hampshire, U.S.A. (Assistance List Annex A)

In the welcome speech, Rear Admiral Javier del Angel Rivas, on behalf of the Dirección General Adjunta de Oceanografía, Hidrografía y Meteorología (DIGAOHM); and as Chairman of the MesoAmerican and Caribbean Sea Hydrographic Committee (MACHC), emphasized that the Globalization has directed focus to our efforts towards the marine development, the marine commercial routes and the construction of great vessels, force to us to generate every time greater quality cartographic products, using the modern computer science technologies, in the development of our hydrographic activities, to contribute to increase the Security to the International Navigation, as well as to the Security to the Human Life in the Sea.

Also, he mentioned the importance of the hidrography on a world-wide level, the Directive Committee of the Hydrographic Bureau announced to the International Hydrographic Organization Member States (IHO), that the General Assembly of the United Nations, in the area that deals with the Oceans and the Law of the Sea, adopted the A/60/30 Resolution of November 29th, 2005, it includes the following declaration: Welcome to the adoption of the "The World-wide Hydrographic Day”, by the International Hydrographic Organization, that will be annually celebrated on June 21th, with the target to give an appropriate publicity to its work, at all levels, and to increase the cover of hydrographic information starting from a world-wide base, and encourage to all the States to work with that organization to promote a safe navigation, specially in the international navigation zones, ports and where are vulnerable or protected marine zones; reason why, the International Hydrographic Bureau organized by this year, relative activities to give a great diffusion to this important day, through the National Hydrographic Services and the compatible organizations.

On the other hand, he gave the welcome to the Captain Raúl Eduardo Benmuyal, representative of the Naval Hidrography Service of Argentina, who participate like observer during the activities of this Meeting.

II.  SEMINAR FOR CHAIRMEN OF THE NATIONAL HYDROGRAPHIC COMMITTEE, NATIONAL MARITIME SAFETY COMMITTEE OR EQUIVALENT

The Seminar for Chairmen of the National Hydrographic Committee, National Maritime Safety Committee or equivalent, coordinated by the International Hydrographic Bureau, is one of the efforts of the IHO for the progress of the present hydrographic capacities in the MesoAmerican Region and the Caribbean. Like a primary target has to increase the preoccupation at governmental level about the importance of the hidrography in relation to the security of navigation and national economic development and exploring initiatives of regional common interest.

Thanks to the initiative of the IHB I, as well as through the conducted technical visits to several countries of the region, this seminary was including in the program of work of the Capacity Building Committee. With this seminary, the IHB looks to increase the interest of the governmental scope about the importance of the Hidrography with respect to the security of navigation and the national economic development, as well as to operate initiatives of Regional common interest.

This seminary, through the exhibition of the hydrographic general concepts, the importance of the Security in Navigation, the importance of the Marine environment, the responsibilities of the States with respect Rule 9 Letter 5 of the Agreement for the Security of the Human Life in the Sea (SOLAS); as well as the responsibilities of a National Hydrographic Office; it looks to transmit and to increase the interest for the hidrography in them Governments, allowing us to explode it in a joint way, the hydrographic surveyings in the Region; as well as to provide cartographic products to provide greater Security to the International Navigation and the Security of the Human Life in the Sea.

The Seminary was development in 8 Units:

Unit 1: Introduction to the Seminary

Unit 2: Generalities associated with the Hidrography

Unit 3: The Organization of a National Hydrographic Office

Unit 4: Use of the products and hydro- cartographic services

Unit 5: Economic benefits associated to the products and hydro- cartographic services.

Unit 6: The National Committee or equivalent

Unit 7: Regional situation and opportunities

Unit 8: Development of the Bases for a Regional Project.

Captain Hugo Gorziglia carried out an exposition about the CBC Seminar performed an exhibition on the results of the Seminary of the Capacity Building Committee (CBC), to mark again the importance of the report of the information from the Member States of the MACHC to the direct Plan of the Capacity Building Committee (CBC) of the IHO, in which is necessary to reflect the actions to being executed by the MACHC, as well as the necessity of the originating financial support for the IHO - CBC.

III.  Welcome and Introduction by the Chairman

Rear Admiral Del Angel Rivas gave the welcome to all the presents and then the Captain Enrique Tejada Vélez gave the summary of the last meeting, which was unanimously approved.

Rear Admiral Del Angel Rivas read the propose Agenda for the VII meeting of the MACHC requesting to the assistance them opinions. On the matter the Captain Enrique Tejada Vélez (Colombia) took part proposing to incorporate a point in the Agenda, where were analyzed the Action Program, which the work of the Commission of the MACHC, it could be characterized. Captain Fernando A. Angli Rodriguez (SEMAR) suggested to the Chair of the MACHC to make an adjustment in the Plan of Work of the Agenda on October 5th, instead of dedicating 1 hour and 30 minutes to analyze the work of the International Chart incorporate in that time the analysis of the Plan of Work for the Design of Strategic Actions of the MACHC. Miss Katheryn Ries (NOAA) proposed to eliminate from the Agenda the item of the report Group of Task 1, related to the Electronic Chart and in its place to incorporate the analysis of the work of the Capacity Building Committee of the MACHC. Once including the proposals in the Agenda, it was unanimously approved. (Agenda of Work: Annexed B)

Rear Admiral del Ángel Rivas read the actions derivated from the last conference in Veracruz, and gave the word to Captain Carlos Enrique Tejada Vélez, (Colombia) on behalf of Rear Admiral Daniel Iriarte Alvira, salient chairman of the MACHC, in his intervention, Colombia made an analysis of the fulfillment of the actions undertaken by the Presidency of the MACHC, during the period of the 2004 - 2006, mentioned the reactivation of the Groups of Tasks of the MACHC and the incorporation of the Pilot Project Gulf of Honduras.

Captain Hugo Gorziglia (IHB Director) performed an exhibition on the results of the Seminary of the Capacity Building Committee, just concluded, to mark again the importance of the report of the originating information of the Member States of the MACHC to the Direct Plan IHO-CBC, in which are due to reflect the necessary actions to being executed by the MACHC, in this sense and the necessity of the originating financial support of the bottom of the IHO-CBC.

Rear Admiral del Angel Rivas made a revision of the Documents of the MACHC and then gave the word to Lieutenant Commander C.G. EHC Rafael Ponce Urbina (Mexico), who mention the proposals on the Term of Reference, first the Capacity Building Committee (CBC-MACHC) and second the Electronic Chart Committee (ECC-MACHC); then the documents of the Proposal Statutes of the Annex A, where the limits of the MACHC Region are modified to include Brazil (Annex A, B and C).

Dr Hilario Calderón (Cuba) expressed a gratefulness and congratulation of the work made by the salient Presidency of the MACHC (Colombia), under the MACHC passage from a period of organizational work to a period of concrete actions results, demonstrated in their majority of the data, then he talks about the Terms of Reference of the Electronic Chart Committee and the Proposal of Modifications of the Statutes, where he gave the welcome to the Delegation from Brazil to the MACHC, but emphasizes that the systematization in the glided fulfillment in the governing documents, specifically according to the Statutes Article 1 Paragraph B, raises the Geographic Region of Commission MACHC, will be defined by the Region of the International Chart Scheme OHI A1 and B, and the zone of responsibility of Brazil, corresponds to Zone C, which indicates to perform a more detailed analysis to modify the statutes, before exposed demonstrates that the amendments proposal is not a simple variation of the scheme limits of the Region.

Captain Fernando A. Angli Rodriguez (Mexico) took part explaining that certainly this detail had not been analyzed like so, proposing the Creation of a Group of the Proposal Writing of the Statutes modification, getting up to this group Mexico, U.S.A, Cuba, Colombia and Venezuela.

Captain Rafael Ponce Urbina carried out a presentation about the proposal to the International Hydrographic Commission with respect to the Hydrographic interests between which

Katheryn Ries (USA) comments that the United States agreed to have a greater definition on the hydrographic interests.

Captain Hugo Gorziglia proposes to make an alternative proposal or change to the proposal No. 1, approved in the first meeting, which the rules of the Conference where put under consideration that ties when the amendment is an amendment to a text is considered in the first place and once it is approved no longer considers the previous proposal, being important because in this case the proposal that would have to be an amendment to the proposal of the change that displays the approval in the First General Rule to make amendments to the proposal.

Captain Calvin Thompson (Jamaica) commented to assure that all is good, is necessary to have all kind of definitions and supports the fact by the Member States.

Captain Fernando Angli presented the state of the production of the international charts. In manner of work in point 4, these are the principles of the International charts, the Hydrographic Offices have the obligation to make a series of Navigation charts in order to select a great scale section for the security to navigation for all class of vessels and shipments.

The following objectives were determined for the MACHC International chart. of the MACHC:

·  To select and to give to priority to routes for the International Chart and Electronic Navigation chart production.

·  To unify the criterion to established basic principles.

·  To identify the responsibility in the production of International Charts and Electronic Navigation charts, in the selected routes.

·  To establish who will be the contact point of each Member State to carry out the mentioned project.

The countries will take the responsibility for the elaboration from certain charts, they will be the production and distribution axes of the same one, this idea was presented in the Extraordinary Meeting in Veracruz, where there were several approved proposals and where it was made the commitment to elaborate cartography from the paper nautical charts of 1:1,000.000, once they were finished all the 1:1,000.000 chart schemes would begin sending some copies for its revision and approval, finishing this phase, they will be under disposition in several formats of impression to the Plenary Members of the MACHC. So, any signatory country could print it with the corresponding own seals, being the printing country. As well as, it was agreed to elaborate a state optional model to the statutes of the Convention, where a new project of the International Chart Program is authorized to the producing State, once finished first stage would be elaborated a new project of scale of 1:500,000 or greater. These were the agreements we had in Veracruz, nevertheless it was not very clear, if the greater cartography like the national production of the countries that want it, was approved or not.

The Netherlands and Russia reached commercial agreements, this point was not previously clarified and due to the deficiency information they couldn´t make the corresponding presentation.

In the last meeting in Veracruz was considered who would be the producing and collaborating countries, these are the results that we have now: there were several proposals of charts that were approved for verification and approval for any country in the extraordinary Meeting in Veracruz, The proposal of the cartography 1:500,000 or greater was not very clear if it was approved or not. These are the agreements that we had once finished

In the present situation of the last treated results, the Chart 4011 United Kingdom and Colombia tentatively and the following report appeared until 2006: Chart 4012, producing country Cuba, with the collaboration of cartography in Mexico; INT 4013 already gave in Veracruz, is ready; INT 4015 already exists; 4016 INT is ready; INT 4017 will be produced by Cuba and it considered that during the meeting in the Mexican Navy with personnel of NOAA (EUA) were determined is not information enough to carry out this chart. Cuba would be a plenary but non-producing country of this chart; INT 4021 will be produced by NGA, Cuba and produced by France and NOAA; INT 4022 was produced by Venezuela; INT 4023 is ready and will be distributed by Mexico and Venezuela; INT 4025 will be produced by Colombia and the INT 4017 doesn´t have information enough and it must to redefine the limits. The Electronic Chart Committee of the MACHC will be very pending of the international charts that are pending to conclude.