Proposal of Restrictions on the Departure of Korea Small Fishing Vessel according to Wave Height

Abstract

The Korean government imposes departure restrictions on fishing vessels of a gross tonnage of less than 15 tons under adverse weather conditions when significant wave heights exceed 3 m. However, an analysis of small fishing vessels indicates that frequent capsizing accidents occur even under the current departure restrictions of permission when significant wave heights are below 3 m. In this study, we propose new guidelines for regulating the departure of Korean small fishing vessels based on adverse weather conditions. To achieve this, we compare departure restrictions under weather deterioration for small fishing vessels in different countries worldwide with those in Korea. Additionally, by incorporating experimental research conducted in the United Kingdom on the capsizing of fishing vessels, we present a new departure restriction equation considering the ship characteristics (a narrow beam-to-length ratio) of Korean fishing vessels measuring 24 m or less. Through this analysis, we provide detailed guidelines for departure restrictions on Korean small fishing boats based on their length and wave height. To validate the proposed guidelines, we analyze fishing vessel capsizing accidents that occurred near the Korean coast over the past 23 years and demonstrate the utility of the new guidelines by applying them to past capsizing incidents.