GREG Witherall says formative experiences growing up by the sea in Canada’s Newfoundland province have shaped his values in working with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.
“I grew up in a very small fishing village in Newfoundland with a population of 125 and everything that occurred in that town occurred around the ocean,” he recalled.
“After school you played around the ocean."
Mr Witherall joined AMSA as a port marine surveyor in 2010 but was recently appointed to the key role of executive director operations.
Speaking with DCN, he noted the need for well-placed regulation and enforcement, recalling earlier in his life when overfishing forced the closure of a resource that had been the community's lifeblood.
"As a regulator, it is ‘safety first but service always’"
“I remember first-hand, in the early 1990s, they closed the fishery with a devastating impact upon my community and a number of other small communities around the east coast of Canada at that time.
“What also struck me was the fact that, every time someone went to sea and didn’t come home, the impact that would have. Not only on their immediate family but a community as well.”
His extensive maritime career also included time as a cruise ship captain.
“What I learned there was all about safety and service. As a regulator, it is ‘safety first but service always’,” he said.
“Balancing those two is always a challenge, but service from a regulatory perspective is about how the regulator delivers or implements those regulations and the effect that it has on the local community as I found out growing up with the fishery that was poorly managed to the point where it took away their livelihood and it remains closed to this day.”
Mr Witherall said seafarer welfare remained one of AMSA’s core priorities “and it will as long as I’m in this chair”. [Seafarers] are essentially the backbone of our supply chains, and they deserve safe working and living conditions.
“Through AMSA’s port state control regime and authority… we will continue to actively monitor and respond to wages and fatigue matters, and medical care.”
He sees shore leave access as crucial.
“We are really focused on ensuring that seafarers, when they are in our ports, they know their rights and have access to support,” he said.
“Welfare outcomes are not separate from good safety outcomes. A healthy, supported and well-rested seafarer is fundamental to safe operations.”
The rapid pace technological change is transforming all our lives and maritime is no different, something Greg Witherall acknowledges.
“We see advances in digital systems, vessel monitoring, data analytics, automation, even remote surveys, AI and environmental technology in reducing emissions and improving efficiencies,” he said.
“In my view, these developments create significant opportunity to enhance safety.”
A notable example is the S-100 maritime data standard used in the Torres Strait.
“AMSA has been working with our partners, and we have recently done a trial of the S100 and that certainly can lead to much safer outcomes for vessels transiting the Torres Strait and the Great Barrier Reef,” Mr Witherall said.
“In addition to that, what comes from that for regulators is better data. That data can help us identify emerging risks earlier and allow us to target our efforts more effectively.
“At the same time, every technology introduces new risks, and we are certainly aware of those.”
One of the obvious examples, as ships become more connected, is cyber security.
“As the industry becomes increasingly connected, we are going to be reliant upon these digital systems.
“Resilience becomes as important as the innovation itself,” he said.
"Data can help us identify emerging risks earlier and allow us to target our efforts more effectively"
In troubled times, whether with global pandemic or wars in the Middle East, so often it is seafarers who are first impacted.
Commercial pressures can also cause pain, AMSA temporarily banning three ships from Australian waters earlier in the year due to non-payment of wages.
Mr Witherall notes the need to “be attuned to what is happening globally” and to “adjust our inspection regime to look for some of those signs”.
Australia’s vast size (both land and sea) means extensive travel in the role is ‘a must’.
“I love to get out and meet with our stakeholders first and foremost they are the heartbeat of the maritime industry.
“First-of-all it is to listen, that is the most important thing I can do, to find out where they have their challenges and potentially consider how AMSA can assist,” Mr Witherall said.
“I do get around and every time I do get around and the time allows, I make it a special opportunity to sit down with stakeholders and that includes welfare providers in ports.”