South African Navy Wins Hydrography Award: Why It Matters Special

A hydrographer from the South African Navy, Captain Abri Kampfer, has won the Alexander Dalrymple Award for hydrography. The award was instituted by the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office in recognition of outstanding work in the field.

The U.K. National Hydrographer, Rear Admiral Ian Moncrieff, in announcing the award, said:

Despite difficulties in retaining a small qualified staff of just 24 people, the South African (Hydrographic) Office is a mature centre of expertise in the region.

The award was first given in 2006 with the proclamation of World Hydrographic Day.The first two recipients were Britain’s Rear Admiral Steve Ritchie in 2006 and Captain Mike Barritt in 2007. The third was Horst Hecht of Germany. The S.A. Navy described Kampfer’s work and achievements in the field:

Captain Kampfer was appointed as the South African Navy Hydrographer in 2003 and shortly afterwards as the chair of the South African and Islands Hydrographic Commission. He has also worked tirelessly to promote hydrography in Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya, Namibia and Uganda. Captain Kampfer chaired the major International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) task group relating to the Worldwide Electronic Navigational Database that is central to the delivery of Electronic Navigational Charts. Under his guidance South Africa has also become a leader on the production of electronic navigational charts of their area of responsibility.

Lieutenant Commander Greyling Van Den Berg of the S.A. Navy’s Public Relations Department, speaking in a telephone interview with Digital Journal from Cape Town, described the importance of hydrography:

I don’t want to over-emphasize its importance. The percentage of imports and exports of most countries, and especially for the South African economy, depends greatly on the sea. For South Africa, we have basically an island economy, the vast majority of our trade happens through our harbours. The vast majority of oil is transported on the oceans.

Asked to describe the importance of hydrographer to modern mariners, Van Den Berg said:

The impact of hydrography is simple. If you do not know where it is safe to sail your ship, then insurance costs will increase tremendously. You must know that it is safe to sail you ship in certain area.

Van Den Berg explained that a sea chart was different from a land map:

A chart is a legal document. Say it certifies a depth of 20 metres and your vessel has a draught of 50 metres, and the vessel runs aground. Then the hydgrographer will have to explain that in a court of law.

Van Den Berg further explained how the Navy’s hydrography section worked. In a statement, he wrote: The SA Navy’s hydrographic vessel, SAS Potea, is responsible to collect the raw data, which is then sent to the Hydrographic Office in Silvermine. At this office the data is verified in a very exhaustive progress to ensure that it is accurate. The charts are then produced and made available to all mariners across the world. The SA Hydrography office has produced and maintains more than 100 local charts, more than 30 international charts and nine publications.

SA Navy

The SA Navy's Hydrographic Vessel SAS Protea

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SAS Protea uses specialised equipment to chart the coastline from the high-water mark up to a depth of 6000 metres. Without a professional and credible hydrographic service, the insurance costs for maritime trade will rise dramatically because ships will not know where to sail safely. Van Den Berg added that these charts had to be updated continuously, noting that the South African Navy had encountered powerful eddies and underwater currents off the East African coast, but that: “In South Africa we don’t have many migrating seabeds.” The South African Navy is responsible for a disproportionately large area of the southern Ocean, which also includes providing charts. Van Den Berg added that South Africa also provides charts for Namibia, a country with a notorious coastline, giving rise to names like the Skeleton Coast.