Best practice mooring and pontoon design (B3.3)

Task leader: Professor Tom Hardy, James Cook University.

Task associates:
Mr Andrew Costen, Environmental Protection Agency
Mr Martin Gledhill, Pacific Marine Group.

The aims of this project are to:

• Develop computer design tools to facilitate the design of mooring configurations.

• Investigate innovative mooring techniques and improvements to existing methods (eg. taut moorings).

• Optimise the balance between cost and strength of moorings for reef tourist pontoons.

• Improve and document design methods for moorings for small to medium sized craft in environmentally sensitive areas.

• Investigate innovative alternatives to moorings.

A highly successful workshop on 'Setting Appropriate Design Criteria for the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area' was organised by this project in January 2000 and was attended by representatives from industry, management agencies and marine designers and engineers. A set of design criteria has been developed in collaboration with industry, which relate to best practice in planning, design and implementation of construction of tourist pontoons. These guidelines will also be used by Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) to inform decisions on the licensing and renewal of permits for pontoons moored on the Great Barrier Reef.