Nautical and Coastal team an international crew
The arrival of Deputy Harbourmaster James Oliver means a full crew is now on watch for Council’s Nautical and Coastal team.
With team members from Britain, Germany and New Zealand on staff already, James’ arrival adds Australia to the list of countries represented and marks the filling of the final position for the Picton-based team.
James’ nautical career began at the Australian Maritime College before joining P&O Maritime Services as a deck cadet in 2005. A stint with Teekay Australia followed; he then joined Mermand Marine Australia on an offshore supply vessel between Darwin and Singapore and later Australian Offshore Solutions, doing seismic assessment work. James obtained his Masters Unlimited licence in 2015.
From there it was off to the UK, the beginning of an eight year ‘visit’ spent working for Carnival UK who manage P&O and Cunard cruise ships and then BMT, a global marine consultancy as a marine surveyor. Finally, James worked as a loss prevention officer at West P&I, a leading insurance provider to the global maritime industry.
As Deputy Harbourmaster, James supports Harbourmaster Jake Oliver (no relation) with a particular emphasis on recreational boating. He is keen to focus on education in the sector saying that “nine times out of 10 this is the key” rather than infringements. James joins the following crew members:
Jake Oliver – Harbourmaster - Jake’s role is focussed on navigation safety as well as the implementation of the Port and Harbour Marine Safety Code and he is regional on-scene commander for marine oil spills and coastal pollution incidents.
Janina Duessler - Nautical and Coastal Team Co-ordinator – Janina oversees day-to-day operations and is also a Senior Oil Spill Responder.
Jason Moore – Harbour Protection Officer – Jason trains new skippers, investigates and reports on incidents to ensure compliance with the Maritime Transport Act and local bylaws, promotes safe use of the Sounds and is a skipper/responder for the National Marine Pollution Response Service (MPRS).
Oli Wade & Katie Littlewood - Principal Coastal Scientists - Oli has worked on marine projects across four continents including for Council for the past four years and alongside Katie, they focus on managing and reporting on the state of Marlborough’s marine environment and providing technical advice for resource consents, compliance and policy and promoting collaboration with iwi, community and industry.
Jorgia McMillan – Coastal Scientist – Jorgia works on Council’s State of Environment monitoring programmes such as seabed habitat mapping, ship-wake monitoring, coastal water quality and significant marine habitats.
Brittany Hamilton & Hamish Baxter-Broad – Maritime Officers – Brittany and Hamish support the Harbourmaster on navigational safety. They are responsible for maintaining the navigation light network, navigational aids and support navigational safety.