Month-old cyclone still causes millionaire damages to Santa Catarina ports
Jun, 06, 2022 Posted by Gabriel MalheirosWeek 202223
The Brazilian Navy determined that ships must operate with less cargo in the ports of Itajaí and Navegantes in Santa Catarina, given the depth reduction seen in the access channel and maneuvering areas, a late result of the early May rains.
The new criteria result in a reduction of more than 500 containers per ship, which has a significant impact on the Santa Catarina foreign trade chain and a loss of millions of reais in cargo throughput.
On Friday, June 03, the Superintendence of the Port of Itajaí published the rules currently in force. The operational draft was reduced to 10.8 to 12.4 meters for vessels up to 350 meters in length, according to the document.
The authorities also altered the Under Keel Clearance (UKC) index. From 60 centimeters – the regular depth – it went up to 80. The standard dredging parameter in the access channel to the ports of Itajaí and Navegantes and the turning basin varies between 13.5 and 14 meters.
Jocelino dos Santos Sora, general director of engineering at the port authority, explained that the type of material from which the access channel is formed in the bed of the Itajaí-Açu River takes time to stabilize. As a result, the water remains murky, and the suspended debris eventually settles to the bottom, causing a progressive loss of depth – even weeks after the climactic event.
The phenomenon is expected to continue over the next few days; thus, the exact loss of depth cannot yet be calculated.
According to the engineer, the dredger that regularly maintains the channel depth is in operation; however, because the mud is fluid, the task requires water injection for subsequent sludge suction.
The contracting of another hopper-type dredger to accelerate depth gain cannot be ruled out. However, the expectation is that the navigation parameters will be normalized in the coming weeks.
Source: NSC Total
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