tag:theconversation.com,2011:/au/topics/costa-concordia-2145/articlesCosta Concordia – The Conversation2019-12-02T19:13:30Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1279652019-12-02T19:13:30Z2019-12-02T19:13:30ZIf our plan fails, can we improvise?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/304077/original/file-20191127-112484-k74efv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C2%2C998%2C538&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Oops!</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>There is an old Yiddish proverb that says <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/our-emotional-footprint/201602/man-plans-and-god-laughs">“Man plans and God laughs”</a>. Most – if not all – of us have experienced the truth of this proverb, and faced the failure of our plans. No matter how well we are planning, fluid, changing and unpredictable business environments will prevent our plans being fully implemented. So the question is whether we should continue planning, knowing that circumstances will render our plans unviable. Shouldn’t we just “go with the flow” and improvise our way into the future?</p>
<p>Maybe it isn’t a question of either/or, but rather a question of both/and. In this article we will look at how organisations can plan for the unforeseen, and reconcile thorough planning with <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0148296317304447">improvised adaptation</a>. We propose that modern organisations must be able to combine these two paradoxical elements, if they are to prevail in a business environment characterised by rapid and constant change.</p>
<h2>Searching for creative solutions</h2>
<p>Teams being the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/0471264385.wei1214">pillar organisational elements</a>, it is through teams that organisations create the conditions for an adequate response to changing and unpredictable market dynamics. And they do so using an <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0021-9010.91.6.1189">adaptation process</a> that comprises <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1359432X.2014.1001376">adjusting relevant team processes</a> as a reaction to the disruptions that require such adaptation. However, change is often so rapid, and the responses required so urgent, that teams have no time to plan before acting and are forced to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0148296317304447">plan and act simultaneously</a>, i.e. improvise.</p>
<p>When confronted with a disruption that jeopardises the initial plan, and time is scarce, teams may pursue several options: they may insist on sticking to the same plan, even knowing that the base assumptions have changed; they may try to develop a new plan before implementing it, wasting precious time in its elaboration; they may even freeze in the face of the collapse of organisational order; however, they can also improvise by using the tools available to develop a <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2393339?seq=1">creative solution</a>.</p>
<p>Improvisation can however have negative consequences if the agents of improvisation are inadequately prepared to handle such extreme scenarios. An extreme example of bad improvisation is the disastrous case of the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0007681315001494">fatal sinking of the <em>Costa Concordia</em></a> ship on the shores of Isola del Giglio, an island off the west coast of Italy. The captain ordered a “salute” to the island, which requires sailing near its coast, with dramatic consequences. The case revealed that when team members are poorly equipped to improvise, they can move away from organisational values, or prioritise the satisfaction of personal needs over group goals.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=386&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/304078/original/file-20191127-112531-1h91egi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=485&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The Apollo 13 lunar mission, an example of successful improvisation.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.nasa.gov/">NASA</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>The good news is that <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1468-2370.00017">improvisation can be trained</a> and teams can be prepared to improvise, increasing the likelihood of positive outcomes. Three elements can increase the quality of team improvised adaptation: an experimental culture, minimal structures, and transactive memory systems.</p>
<h2>An experimental culture</h2>
<p>An <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01449290802164487">experimental culture</a> is one that promotes action, in which exploration and creativity are rewarded and mistakes are tolerated. For teams to improvise effectively, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1468-2370.00017">different skills and knowledge are required</a>, which calls for each team member to contribute. As a consequence team members must feel that any potential errors will be regarded as sources of learning, and that their ideas will be supported and encouraged.</p>
<p>Organisations with closed, rigid, and non-experimental cultures will prevent team members from tackling disruptions by adapting team routines to the new situation. By contrast an experimental culture will <a href="https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amr.2005.15281441">provide the capabilities</a> that allow team members to change priorities and plans in order to improvise solutions best suited to unexpected events. This requires organisations to embrace the <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780203361603/chapters/10.4324/9780203361603-16">“aesthetic of imperfection”</a> by treating errors as opportunities, and not regarding imperfection as synonymous with failure. This is particularly the case in situations where circumstances have changed and previous plans are no longer fully viable. A paradigmatic example of successful improvisation is <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Claus_Rerup/publication/279881984_'Houston_We_Have_a_Problem'_Anticipation_and_Improvisation_as_Sources_of_Organizational_Resilience/links/559d0d5308ae9dcf264f0435.pdf">the Apollo 13 lunar mission</a>, in which, faced with failure of the life support system, the astronauts improvised an immediate repair of the system using materials found on the spacecraft. Another example is the successful development of an <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378720617306419">online messaging system by Tencent</a>, a Chinese multinational specialised in various Internet-related services and products. Improvisational methods were prominent and effective in development of the system. The product was known for its rapid adjustment to changing user demands, technologies and competitor activity, and this was recognised as a major success factor.</p>
<h2>Minimal structures</h2>
<p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1468-2370.00017">Minimal structures</a> comprise four key elements: invisible control mechanisms, clearly defined objectives, short-term milestones, and <a href="https://repositorio.iscte-iul.pt/handle/10071/16046">activity critical elements</a>. <em>Invisible control mechanisms</em> ensure that creativity is not limited. For example, establishing a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/009365090017002001">well-defined set of simple rules</a> allows for more creativity, as all team members have a common precisely-understood basis for developing their performance. <em>Clearly defined objectives</em> ensure that while teams are in the midst of disruptive events they remain focused on organisational goals. By themselves these objectives do not define action, so leaving room for improvisation; however, they are strongly <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1468-2370.00017">normative in relation to the outcomes of such action</a>. <em>Short-term milestones</em> foster a sense of urgency and permit the control of actions taken as the situation unfolds. This will allow the detection of deviations from organisational objectives, allowing for timely correction of the course of action.</p>
<p>Also, the fact that these milestones can be planned in advance gives the team some <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2393701?origin=JSTOR-pdf&seq=1">sense of structure and stability</a> within the rather chaotic development of the disruptive situation. Finally, <em>activity-critical elements</em> comprise those elements that are fundamental to the activity, without which the task cannot be performed. For improvisation to be effective, it is important that the number of critical elements is small so that the team can ensure that they are fully executed in a limited time. All members of the team must know what they are so they can rapidly coordinate the elements’ implementation while improvising a new solution.</p>
<p>For example, it has been observed that successful new <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0170840601225001">product development teams</a> often resort to improvisation. In order to be effective they are very autonomous and intensively interactive (invisible control mechanisms), have specific development goals and priorities (clear objectives), progressively develop several prototypes (short-term milestones), and identify critical quality criteria and performance standards (critical elements).</p>
<h2>Transactive memory systems</h2>
<p>Transactive memory systems refer to the knowledge about <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/joms.12211">who knows what</a> on a team. When teams are improvising, access to <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01449290802164487">its members’ knowledge</a> will leverage the team’s ability to recombine their previous experiences and develop new and effective responses. In addition, through having this knowledge, teams can increase their implicit coordination which means their members can anticipate each other’s actions and dynamically adjust their behaviour without expressly communicating with each other.</p>
<p>When teams experience stressful situations, their members may experience high cognitive load. This means that they may find it difficult to process all the information available, preventing them from adequately reacting to the disruptions. By having a clear understanding of who knows what within the team, they are able to more effectively process new information as it arises and thus increase the likelihood of success in <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2013-30650-003">performing improvisation actions</a>. For example, emergency response teams such as firefighters cannot exactly predict what expertise will be need in a particular situation. Therefore, the knowledge of all team members regarding the specific skills of all other members becomes critical to a positive outcome.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/299218/original/file-20191029-183103-1t6i1yl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">During an emergency response, it is essential to know everyone’s expertise in order to deal with uncertainty as effectively as possible.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">M.G. White/Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>When time is abundant and uncertainty is low, planning meets the needs of the organisation almost perfectly. However, as Prussian military leader Helmuth Graf von Moltke so eloquently stated in the late 1800s, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helmuth_von_Moltke_the_Elder">“No plan survives contact with the enemy”</a>. When time is scarce and uncertainty is high, good planning is not enough. Instead, <a href="https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/amr.2005.15281441">“improvisation becomes an alternative or complementary orientation”</a>.</p>
<p>However, for improvisation to work some conditions must be met: organisations must create an experimental culture in which errors are accepted as part of a learning process; teams must develop minimal structures based on invisible control mechanisms, clear objectives, short-term milestones, and a small number of activity-critical elements; and finally, team members must have a clear knowledge of who knows what within the team, so they can increase implicit coordination. Even if all these conditions are met, positive outcomes are not guaranteed when teams improvise. However, given the uncertainty of unanticipated disruptions and extreme time constraints, the chances of success dramatically increase.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/127965/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>António Abrantes ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Is it possible to plan for the unforeseen? Some basic principles allow careful preparation to be reconciled with quickly shifting circumstances.António Abrantes, Professeur permanent, ICN Business SchoolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/552452016-03-01T13:25:00Z2016-03-01T13:25:00ZTime to rock the boat? Cruise ships can destroy the very destinations they sell to us<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/112974/original/image-20160225-15156-fmhw5e.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">atm2003 / shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Italy plans to cut back on the number of visitors allowed into Cinque Terre, a particularly picturesque section of its north-western coast. Around 2.5m tourists visited the area in 2015; this year, numbers will be <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/17/italy-to-impose-limits-on-visitors-to-cinque-terre-with-tourist-ticket-system">limited to 1.5m</a>. Such a drastic move raises questions about the impacts and benefits of mass tourism – and particularly cruise ships.</p>
<p>This region of the Italian Riviera, characterised by its charming seaside villages set against rugged terrain, was once difficult to access and off the beaten path of mass tourism. Cruises helped change all that. </p>
<p>These ships began docking in the nearby port of La Spezia just a couple of decades ago, and several now arrive every week. This brought immediate economic benefits to the region. However, as the numbers of tourists have grown each year, the strain on local infrastructures has become too much to bear. Last year, <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/11899585/Italys-stunning-Cinque-Terre-coastal-villages-complain-of-being-smothered-by-tourism.html">nearly 650,000</a> of those Cinque Terre tourists came from cruise ships.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113376/original/image-20160301-31050-ua7122.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Ahoy, Cinque Terre! Room for 650,000 more?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/basykes/3701634853/">Bev Sykes</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>These are small villages in precarious locations and therefore lack the necessary water, sewerage, electrical, and transportation services to accommodate such a rise in demand. While there are a few public toilets in Cinque Terre, these are not enough – and residents now report tourists using footpaths and even private gardens to <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/11899585/Italys-stunning-Cinque-Terre-coastal-villages-complain-of-being-smothered-by-tourism.html">relieve themselves</a>.</p>
<h2>Everyday life among tourists</h2>
<p>None of this is new. Venice should already have provided a warning of the damage wrought by too many cruise ships. More than half of the historic city’s population has left since 1980, when its popularity as tourist destination skyrocketed, and fewer than <a href="http://www.citymetric.com/transport/can-smart-mobility-planning-prevent-disneyfication-venice-1456">58,000 people</a> live in the city today. Their numbers are dwarfed by the 100,000 or more tourists per day during the peak summer season, up to <a href="http://www.ibtimes.com/venice-massive-tourism-now-huge-cruise-ships-ruining-citys-priceless-charms-780741">30,000 of whom</a> are on a cruise.</p>
<p>Most major ocean liners hold 3,000 or more passengers. These large ships allow the number of visitors to the city to exceed its physical capacity, as determined by hotel rooms. This makes everyday life cumbersome. Strolling tourists clutter the footpaths, pausing to take photographs. There are lengthy queues for water taxis, the rates of which have risen because of demand. This is reflective of prices throughout the city.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/113284/original/image-20160229-4074-1ass7py.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Modern cruise ships tower over traditional Venice.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">meunierd / shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>Within the city, tourism is prioritised because of the money it brings in. Property prices continue to rise and residents find it difficult to afford housing in the city. Market stands are steadily closing down as they cannot compete for space in the <em>campi</em> with cafés and pubs, let alone the souvenir shops bursting with Venetian masks. Basic services for <a href="https://vimeo.com/24874188">life in the city</a> are diminishing.</p>
<h2>Ocean life also pays the price</h2>
<p>Each year cruise ships dump about <a href="http://libcloud.s3.amazonaws.com/93/ac/7/4988/Cruise_Ship_Report_Card_2014.pdf">1 billion gallons</a> of waste into the sea. They’re supposed to eject it into the deep ocean, however sometimes they dump closer to shore, presenting <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X11003754">serious health risks</a>.</p>
<p>When the Costa Concordia struck ground off of Italy’s coast in January 2012, the disaster once again shed light on the ecological damage cruise ships can cause. After human-rescue efforts were exhausted, marine biologists, fearing toxins (such as petrolchemicals and human waste) would enter the water, worked quickly to move coral and sponge species to safer areas nearby. In particular, about 200 giant <a href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2012/11/01/giant-mussels-rescued-from-around-shipwr?videoId=238824032">fan mussels</a> were manually relocated.</p>
<p>The waters and fragile coral reefs around Caribbean islands can be particularly affected by big cruise ships. Coral reefs are a crucial tourism attraction, and an essential part of their marine ecosystem, but two-thirds of the region’s coral is <a href="http://www.wri.org/publication/reefs-risk-caribbean">threatened by human activity</a>.</p>
<p>In one incident last December, the Zenith, a 12-deck vessel carrying more than 1,800 passengers <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3354133/Zenith-cruise-ship-anchor-damages-coral-reef-Cayman-Islands.html">dropped anchor near the Grand Cayman’s coral reef</a> and destroyed large chunks of it as the anchor and its chain dragged across the ocean floor. While there are regulations against damaging the Cayman’s coral reef, the ship was inside the anchorage area. Thus, there remains no compensation for the damage, just a public statement of grievance about the incident.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/U3l31sXJJ0c?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Local scuba instructor Scott Prodahl documented the damage to the reef.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Some places have even deliberately demolished their coral reefs. Falmouth, on Jamaica’s north coast, has dredged its port to clear the way for the very largest ships, such as Royal Caribbean’s 6,000-passenger Allure of the Seas and the Oasis of the Seas. While trade journal Port Technology assures that <a href="https://www.porttechnology.org/technical_papers/jamaican_cruise_ship_terminal_respects_environment/">care was taken</a> and modules installed to help rebuild coral elsewhere, environmentalists say the project destroyed <a href="http://archive.onearth.org/article/dreamboat?page=3">35m cubic feet of coral reef</a> and two square miles of mangroves.</p>
<h2>Sustainable cruise shipping?</h2>
<p>Cruise ships aren’t all bad, of course. They are a part of the mass tourism trend that has democratised travel and opened up activities which were once reserved for the wealthy. Cruises provide a way for millions of people to go abroad and experience different cultures. This is not without merit. </p>
<p>But the industry’s tremendous growth is rapidly degrading its destinations – the very products it promises. Its continued financial success is based on the sustainability of these destinations. If the cruise industry does not see this as enough reason to impose regulations, then the international community has a responsibility to step in, both for the people who live in destinations that depend on tourism and for ourselves as tourists who want there to be a world to see well into the future.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55245/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jillian Rickly does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Large ocean liners with several thousand passengers can overwhelm small towns and vulnerable coastlines.Jillian Rickly, Assistant Professor in Tourism Management and Marketing, University of NottinghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/375122015-02-17T00:39:32Z2015-02-17T00:39:32ZIf a company causes death at sea, don’t assume that means jail time<p>Late last week, an Italian court <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/12/costa-concordia-captain-jail-francesco-schettino-sentence-appeal-italy">sentenced</a> the captain of the Costa Concordia cruise liner, Francesco Schettino, to 16 years’ jail after finding him guilty of multiple charges of manslaughter.</p>
<p>On January 13, 2012, the ship ran aground and keeled over off the coast of the island of Giglio, Italy. Thirty-two people drowned.</p>
<p>Twenty-eight years ago, on March 6, 1987, the passenger car ferry Herald of Free Enterprise left the Belgian port of Zeebrugge, bound for Dover. Tragically, her bow doors remained open and she <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/6/newsid_2515000/2515923.stm">keeled over</a>, trapping and drowning 188 passengers.</p>
<p>In June 1989, seven individuals and their employer, P&O European Ferries, were charged with what is referred to as “corporate manslaughter”. But a year later the English judge <a href="https://www.em.gov.au/Documents/Preventing_disaster_by_building_a_risk_prevention_ethnic.pdf">dismissed the charges</a>, having become satisfied that the prosecution had failed to establish its case.</p>
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<p>Why was there a difference in the outcomes of these two cases? Generally speaking, a prosecutor seeking to get a conviction in such circumstances must be able to single out the culpable decision-making of someone who represents the “guiding mind” of a company. Where many people participate in poor decision-making, it is extremely difficult to establish guilt. On this point there is no significant difference in international legal approaches.</p>
<p>Simply stated, Schettino was an <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/costa-concordia-trial-was-captain-francesco-schettino-really-the-only-one-at-fault-for-the-disaster-10046725.html">easily identified culprit</a>. He made the fateful decision to divert his ship closer to Giglio than was safe. It didn’t help that he abandoned ship ahead of hundreds of his passengers.</p>
<p>In contrast, the criminal negligence of the crew of the Herald of Free Enterprise was shared around. It was impossible to find a “guiding mind”. The prosecution was doomed from the start.</p>
<p>Shouldn’t there be some way that the law could fill this loophole so that appropriate criminal responsibility can be assigned to those who deserve it? The answer is yes, but the path towards “joint” or corporate criminal liability is paved with stumbling blocks. As legal academics Jim Gobert and Maurice Punch <a href="http://www.cambridge.org/au/academic/subjects/law/corporate-law/rethinking-corporate-crime">explain</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>… criminal law was not developed with companies in mind … Trying to apply [it] to companies is a bit like trying to squeeze a square peg into a round hole.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>What is the state of the law in Australia?</h2>
<p>Let me give an Australian example that illustrates the legal difficulties. Excalibur, a 15-metre racing vessel built by Applied Alloy Yachts, a company owned by an Alex Cittadini, <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Yacht-disaster-a-tragedy-waiting-to-happen/2005/03/25/1111692630753.html">capsized off Port Stephens</a> in September 2002 after its keel snapped in high winds. Four of the six crew drowned.</p>
<p>In April 2009, four <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/excalibur-builder-jailed-over-deaths/story-e6frg6n6-1225748318005">manslaughter convictions</a> were returned against Cittadini – notwithstanding Judge Norrish accepting his evidence that he was unaware of the cut. The judge ruled that even if Cittadini did not know about the cutting of the keel, he should have known about it. He sentenced Cittadini to three years jail.</p>
<p>However, the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal subsequently quashed the convictions and directed verdicts of acquittal, determining that the verdict was “unreasonable”. A survivor of the Excalibur tragedy, Brian McDermott, later <a href="http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/boat-builder-wins-appeal-over-deaths-20091218-l1ak.html">expressed deep disappointment</a> that no-one had been held accountable for the deaths.</p>
<p>In 1995, the federal parliament had decided to up the ante and passed into law <a href="http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/C2013C00006/Html/Text#_Toc344980345">Part 2 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code Act</a>, which expands the notion of criminal liability to corporations in a most innovative way. Under this legislation, a company can be convicted of manslaughter where the negligence involved is attributable to more than one person. The “guiding mind” can be an aggregation of minds.</p>
<p>In addition, the code allows culpability to be established by reference to a company’s poor “corporate culture”. That is, a company can be deemed criminally liable for a death if it has a culture that actively or even passively permits or tolerates non-compliance with the law. Imprisonment of managers may result.</p>
<h2>Commonwealth law has a catch</h2>
<p>Why didn’t this law apply to Cittadini? Because there is a catch: the code applies only to Commonwealth offences, and manslaughter is not a Commonwealth offence. In order to give effect to the code’s lead, the states and territories need to adopt its provisions. </p>
<p>To date, the Australian Capital Territory is the only jurisdiction that has chosen to do so, but <a href="http://www.legislation.act.gov.au/a/1900-40/current/pdf/1900-40.pdf">its legislation</a> applies only to deaths in the workplace. The <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2007/19/contents">English law</a> has changed in some similar respects. Also, the law came into effect in 2004, yet there have been <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=_WO5mvdh5KEC&pg=PT144&lpg=PT144&dq=Penalising+corporate+%E2%80%9Cculture%E2%80%9D:+The+key+to+safer+corporate+activity?&source=bl&ots=DYJwEh9Dxq&sig=2bOn_YXS4E6At30TM1WvRVtMkzU&hl=en&sa=X&ei=FGHdVLTVL4fY8gWqqYDADg&ved=0CCsQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=Penalising%20corporate%20%E2%80%9Cculture%E2%80%9D%3A%20The%20key%20to%20safer%20corporate%20activity%3F&f=false">no prosecutions to date</a> that the author is aware of.</p>
<p>This prompts the question whether there is any value in singling out corporate directors for punishment solely by virtue of their status within a delinquent company. Is it not too arbitrary to allow one officer to take the blame for the tragic consequences of a chain of bad decisions? Where is the <a href="http://www.profinfo.pl/img/401/pdf40162523_3.pdf">evidence</a> that imprisonment of key managers will act as a deterrent?</p>
<p>Be that as it may, there is no doubt that many if not all of the families of the 32 victims of Schettino’s stupidity will get some satisfaction from the knowledge that he will now spend a considerable period of time behind bars.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/37512/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rick Sarre does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Late last week, an Italian court sentenced the captain of the Costa Concordia cruise liner, Francesco Schettino, to 16 years’ jail after finding him guilty of multiple charges of manslaughter. On January…Rick Sarre, Professor in Law, University of South AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/269102014-06-10T20:28:33Z2014-06-10T20:28:33ZAnother Titanic change is needed to save more lives at sea<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/49975/original/csc4jx8c-1401691489.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The last lifeboat successfully launched from the RMS Titanic.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://research.archives.gov/description/278338">National Archives</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>How has our approach to saving lives at sea changed since the tragedy of the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/uk/the-titanic">RMS Titanic</a> in which <a href="http://www.lr.org/en/_images/12-8363_18-titanic.pdf">1,523 of the 2,228 people</a> she was carrying died a century ago? </p>
<p>Surprisingly, not much.</p>
<p>Only this April the South Korean ferry Sewol capsized <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/south-korea-ferry-disaster-civilian-divers-scouring-the-sewol-wreckage-are-being-paid-by-the-body-presidential-office-suggests-9435932.html">claiming 288 lives</a> so far, many high school students.</p>
<p>Inadequate provision of lifeboats was a key factor in the Titanic disaster in 1912, leading directly to significant changes in the requirements for passenger ships.</p>
<p>Fast forward to 2014 and lifeboats remain central to safety at sea. Yet, it was reported that <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-27120853">only two lifeboats</a> were launched before the Sewol capsized and sank. How could this be the case?</p>
<h2>Here we go again</h2>
<p>The fate of the Sewol has unfortunate yet strong echoes of earlier maritime casualties, from the demise of the Titanic through to the grounding of the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/costa-concordia">Costa Concordia</a> in January 2012.</p>
<p>It seems the fundamental approach to saving lives at sea has changed little. A key element remains that all efforts should be made to keep a stricken ship afloat, and keep passengers and crew aboard such that the ship in effect acts as its <a href="http://www.imo.org/MediaCentre/HotTopics/passengership/Pages/default.aspx">own lifeboat</a>.</p>
<p>While efforts to prevent ships from sinking are not to be derided, if nothing else the Titanic experience illustrates the fact that no ship is unsinkable.</p>
<h2>Call that ship a lifeboat?</h2>
<p>The trouble with the “ship as its own lifeboat” approach is that this attitude tends to lead the crew to order passengers to stay on board and to delay the order to abandon ship until too late. Here the role of the Master, especially in a crisis, is crucial as evacuation can only proceed on his or her order.</p>
<p>The problem here is that once a ship heels significantly from the vertical then launching lifeboats, traditionally accomplished via lines suspended from davits or crane-like lowering devices, becomes extremely hazardous, if not impossible. This was the case for both the Sewol and Costa Concordia.</p>
<p>The only reason no more than 32 lives were lost in the Costa Concordia accident was down to luck – the vessel was grounded which prevented it from fully capsizing, unlike the Sewol ferry.</p>
<h2>More eggs in one basket</h2>
<p>Traditional approaches to safety of life at sea are likely to face increasingly scrutiny as the trend continues to build ever-bigger cruise liners which resemble nothing less than floating cities.</p>
<p>At the time of writing the largest such vessel is the 360m-long <a href="http://www.royalcaribbean.com.au/findacruise/ships/class/ship/home.do?dest=&shipClassCode=OA&shipCode=AL&br=R">MS Allure of the Seas</a>. It’s roughly the size of four Titanics rolled into one ship and capable of accommodating approximately 6,300 passengers and a crew of almost 2,400 – that’s almost 9,000 people in total.</p>
<p>The cruise industry is also increasingly venturing into relatively uncharted waters with the growth of adventure cruising, notably in polar waters. These waters can be extremely hazardous to navigate because of the presence of ice.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/49978/original/kss92zpk-1401694736.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Passenger cruise ships increasingly exploring remote regions such as the Antarctic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/mschutt/2246084832">Flickr/Matt S</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many of these passengers are also towards the senior end of the age spectrum. The Australian cruise industry association’s <a href="http://www.cruising.org.au/downloads/CLIA-Statistics-Report-AU-2012.pdf">latest figures</a> show more than half (53%) of Australian cruise passengers are over 50 years of age, almost a third (31%) aged 61 and over, and one in eight (12%) is over 70.</p>
<p>The potential for large numbers of elderly survivors to a shipping casualty in Polar waters adrift in open, or even covered, boats beyond the ready reach of search and rescue services is nightmarish.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=704&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=704&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50216/original/9wyy4sjz-1401858982.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=704&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The age of passengers on Australian cruises – more than 50% over the age of 50 (2012 figures).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.cruising.org.au/downloads/CLIA-Statistics-Report-AU-2012.pdf">Cruise Lines International Association (Australasia)</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The potential for disaster has been well illustrated over the years by the <a href="http://www.cruiseshipsinking.com/">multiple accidents</a> involving cruise ships in polar waters such as the <a href="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/adventure/news/explorer-sinks-antarctica.html">M/S Explorer</a> in November 2007, which struck an iceberg, capsized and sank.</p>
<p>Happily, other vessels were nearby off Peninsula Antarctica and the 154 passengers and crew were rescued.</p>
<p>But adventure cruising inevitably tends towards remote locations and thus waters where there is often poor to non-existent search and rescue capacity.</p>
<p>The International Maritime Organisation is developing a <a href="http://www.imo.org/MediaCentre/HotTopics/polar/Pages/default.aspx">Polar Code</a> detailing safety measures for ships operating in Polar waters but this is, as yet, <a href="http://www.imo.org/MediaCentre/PressBriefings/Pages/16-msc-preview.aspx">not mandatory</a>.</p>
<p>Unfortunately there is no easy way to eliminate the most commonplace contributor to maritime accidents – human error. </p>
<h2>Time for a change in approach?</h2>
<p>That’s not to suggest that travelling by sea has not become far safer than once it was – it’s just that lifeboats remain a fundamental part of current safety regulations.</p>
<p>The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (<a href="http://www.imo.org/About/Conventions/ListOfConventions/Pages/International-Convention-for-the-Safety-of-Life-at-Sea-(SOLAS%29,-1974.aspx)">SOLAS</a> sets a minimum standard of enough lifeboats to be carried to accommodate at least 75% of those on board (37.5% on each side). Enough liferafts should be provided for the remainder. So far, so good.</p>
<p>But launching lifeboats can be a slow and cumbersome process, as well as one compromised as a result of a vessel listing.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50210/original/3vw2rkmp-1401858121.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Traditional lifeboats may be difficult to deploy in an accident.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/imo-un/7073771753/in/set-72157629443288006">Flickr/International Maritime Organisation</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>An alternative option may be to change the emphasis towards the use of a new generation of large liferafts instead of lifeboats.</p>
<p>Indeed, some modern liferafts can be deployed remarkably swiftly, in 2-3 minutes, and provide for the evacuation of more than 100 people via aviation-style evacuation slides in 15 minutes on a single raft.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/50212/original/jvzfmg3n-1401858229.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Modern liferafts may offer a quicker way to safety off a sinking ship.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/imo-un/6927691810/in/set-72157629443288006">Flickr/International Maritime Organisation</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>That said, in the event of any future accident at sea then – whether lifeboats or liferafts are in use – passengers also need to be marshalled on deck rather than being ordered below. With greater numbers of passengers involved, this is likely to be an increasingly challenging proposition.</p>
<p>In the cases of both the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p73E-bpEao4">Sewol</a> and <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-16644074">Costa Concordia</a> passengers were ordered back to their cabins – spaces that swiftly became death-traps.</p>
<p>Rescue efforts on the Sewol ferry have already claimed the lives of <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/30/south-korea-ferry-search-diver-dies">two divers</a> involved in trying to recover the bodies trapped inside.</p>
<h2>Cutting corners but at what cost?</h2>
<p>An underlying and systemic concern here is the significant and continuing pressures on the shipping industry to cut costs and therefore run the risk of compromising safety standards.</p>
<p>The potential consequences of any such corner-cutting can be disastrous. It can lead to minimal and poorly-trained and paid crews, ill-maintained ships and Masters under enormous pressure to minimise costs rather than to ensure safety. </p>
<p>Recent maritime accidents and their tragic consequences have underscored the abiding tension between technology and the frailties of human decision making. </p>
<p>Ultimately, there is no substitute for proper training and regular drills as well as safety regulations that are aligned to today’s shipping and passenger needs and that are then observed and enforced.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This article was co-authored with Dr John Mansell, Principal Maritime Advisor to Maritime New Zealand, and draws on his address on the occasion of the centenary of the loss of the Titanic, delivered April 2012 at the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security (ANCORS), University of Wollongong.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/26910/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Clive Schofield receives funding from the Australian Research Council as an ARC Future Fellow (FT100100990). </span></em></p>How has our approach to saving lives at sea changed since the tragedy of the RMS Titanic in which 1,523 of the 2,228 people she was carrying died a century ago? Surprisingly, not much. Only this April…Clive Schofield, Professor and Challenge Lead, Sustaining Coastal and Marine Zones, University of WollongongLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/182142013-09-16T05:37:35Z2013-09-16T05:37:35ZRighting the Costa Concordia: how to flip a half-sunk ship<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/31330/original/br2gmv42-1379090402.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">'You take the front, I'll take the back.'</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Massimo Percossi</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The huge Costa Concordia cruiseship is due <a href="http://www.theparbucklingproject.com/">to be righted</a> in preparation for finally being towed away from the Italian island of Giglio. But why has lifting and removing the wreck taken so long, given that the accident occurred back <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/9014706/Six-dead-and-thousands-evacuated-as-cruise-ship-runs-aground-off-coast-of-Italy.html">in January 2012</a>?</p>
<p>The first thing to remember is that structurally intact floating ships are designed to move with relative ease. But they are very heavy and large. Concordia is nearly 300m long and weighs in at over 114,000 tonnes - and that’s without taking into account the fact she’s full of sea water. To put it into perspective, the ship is as long as the Eiffel Tower is high, but more than ten times heavier.</p>
<p>Working with such a massive structure as this on flat, stable ground would be difficult. On an uneven seabed in 20m of water with waves and currents it becomes almost unachievable. Adding to the complications is the huge gash on one side of the vessel, making it impossible to float Concordia again on its own, but also weakening the whole structure.</p>
<p>Consider the reasons behind the major operations that have taken place around this vessel for nearly two years. The initial priority was to save lives. The next was to protect the environment - booms were deployed around the ship to prevent oil escaping, and the fuel on board was pumped out in the first few weeks.</p>
<p>Then there is the issue of gathering evidence for legal proceedings, though in this case recovering the ship is unlikely to reveal any new evidence of any use now that <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-23388680">five crew have been convicted</a> (though the captain has yet to come to trial). For a ship with light damage the final priority is to recover and repair the asset, and the sooner this is done the less expensive the repair. But Concordia is beyond repair, both physically and emotionally - few would want to sail on a cruise liner rebuilt marked by such tragic circumstances.</p>
<p>The focus now is to remove what is an eyesore and environmental threat for the <a href="http://www.giglioinfo.com/">island of Giglio</a> as well as a constant reminder for those who lost loved ones in this disaster. It is important but only if it can be done safely. A rushed attempt to recover the vessel is at best likely to break up the ship, making the final recovery process slower and more dangerous. At worst it could lead to further loss of life; imagine ten Eiffel Towers crashing down around you.</p>
<p>The first priority has been to stabilise the ship and support it so that it doesn’t slide into deeper water. Water depth has a major impact on the engineering around the ship, and even an additional 10m could have made the current plans unfeasible.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.smit.com/">salvage team</a> has had to weld huge steel sponsons - like supersized inflatable swimming armbands - onto the ship’s hull to add buoyancy. The sponsons on the raised side of the ship will first be flooded with seawater to help drag the ship from the angle at which it is lying back onto its keel, using gravity to help a system of cables pull the Concordia upright. Where the bow has been weakened by the hole in the hull, bracing has been added to prevent it shearing off - like a neck brace on a patient. Lastly, as pulling the ship upright to rest on rocky and sloping seabed would be very unstable, a level “mattress” of concrete and steel has been built underneath to provide a level surface on to which to roll the ship.</p>
<p>More than 30,000 tonnes of material (a quarter of the ship’s weight) has been used in the salvage operation, and the cost so far has been £500 million - more than Concordia cost to build. An operation of this scale takes significant time and we might equally comment on how it has been managed so quickly and efficiently, rather than how long it has taken. In the next few days, at the first sign of good weather and calm seas, the operation to right Costa will begin and take about 12 hours. Once it starts to roll a point of no return comes and the engineers will have to rely on the accuracy of their calculations.</p>
<p>As the vessel begins to right herself, material from inside the ship will spill into the sea and localised debris and pollution is likely. This will be minimised by floating booms around the vessel, but some environmental impact is inevitable. Less, of course, than leaving Concordia where she is. The first task once the vessel is upright and safely secured will be to try to locate the last two missing bodies from the wreck. This will be followed by several months of shoring up and making safe over the winter.</p>
<p>If all goes well Concordia will be towed away with the aid of the now air-filled sponsons in Spring 2014 as the weather improves. Her final fate - far less glamorous than the cruise packages she once offered - is to be broken up for scrap.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/18214/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon Boxall does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The huge Costa Concordia cruiseship is due to be righted in preparation for finally being towed away from the Italian island of Giglio. But why has lifting and removing the wreck taken so long, given that…Simon Boxall, Lecturer in Ocean and Earth Science, University of SouthamptonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/49632012-01-19T00:39:04Z2012-01-19T00:39:04ZDespite the Costa Concordia disaster, mass tourism is safer than you think<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/7018/original/b9r99r8j-1326931648.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The stricken cruise ship Costa Concordia lies off the Italian coast.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Vigili Del Fuego</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>During the decade since the 9/11 attacks and the ensuing “war on terror”, cruise ship, resort and theme park tourist bubbles have been remarkably terror-free. </p>
<p>The tourist-only environments on cruise ships, in tropical resorts and in theme parks are a tempting target for those who most want to create panic, fear and insecurity among relaxation seekers. </p>
<p>The atmosphere conjured up in these settings is stress-free, removed from everyday worries. If a panic-inducing incident were to occur it would be a potential media photographer’s dream. </p>
<p>The photogeneity of the <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16606405">stricken Costa Concordia</a> – which crashed on rocks last Friday off the Tuscan coast with 23 people still missing and 11 confirmed dead – is a reminder. </p>
<p>But despite the genuine prospects of misfortune, cruise ships have been remarkably terror-free. There have certainly been alarming pirate-related incidents off the Horn of Africa. </p>
<p>In beach settings, the Bali bombings and the Indian Ocean tsunami were notable misfortunes. But to date the tourism industry has been remarkably successful at maintaining peace and tranquility in its bubbles. Of course resort security has been beefed up markedly since 9/11. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=746&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=746&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=746&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=937&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=937&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/7017/original/wszx8tjx-1326931627.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=937&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The arrest of a Hezbollah suspect in Thailand accused of planning attacks on areas popular with foreigners demonstrates that risks remain to mass tourism.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Narong Sangarak</span></span>
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</figure>
<p>But tourism bubbles have managed to stay largely “under the radar” and the security presence has been discrete with minimal disruption to the ethos of “fun in the pool”. Contrast this with the airline industry, where the emphasis around security initiatives such as on-board air marshals, airport security machines and even plastic knives has been a regular reminder of the security-related fears of flying and the associated inconveniences.</p>
<p>The Costa Concordia sinking has involved a regrettable loss of life and grieving families and is a blow to the image of cruising generally and for Carnival in particular; it’s also a reminder that tourist bubbles have remained exactly that for most of the past decade. </p>
<p>Hopefully this will remain the case and the security industry will never need to take over our cruiseships, resorts and theme parks in the way that has occurred so obviously on our airlines and in our airports. </p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/4963/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brian King does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>During the decade since the 9/11 attacks and the ensuing “war on terror”, cruise ship, resort and theme park tourist bubbles have been remarkably terror-free. The tourist-only environments on cruise ships…Brian King, Professor of Tourism, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.