Fairway is a part of a water body (bay, harbor, river) containing the navigable channel (also known as a ship channel), a route suitable for ships of the larger size [1] (with draft closer to the draft limit).
The underwater cross-section of a ship in the channel is limited by the fairway depth and width (bridges may create restrictions for the height above the waterline). Fairway depth is a distance between the seabed/riverbed and the water surface. The fairway depth of a river varies with the season, so some standardized depth value is used, usually the one corresponding to the low navigable water level (LNWL) defined as the water level that the river stays above during almost the entire navigation season: statistically, the level shall stay below the LNWL for 20 ice-free days per year, corresponding to 5-6% of the ice-free period on European rivers. [2] The fairway width is defined as a width of the cross-section of the river that corresponds to the fairway depth, [3] the fairway height under the bridges is usually specified with respect to the highest navigable water level (HNWL). [4]
The term "fairway" usually means all the navigable waters between the fairway buoys (that indicate the ends of the channel), even the routes only accessible to the lighter-draft vessels. [1] Some authors restrict the definition to the linear approach part of a marine waterway, the approach channel leading into a port. [5]
Legal definitions of the navigable channel differ depending on the context. In many cases any part of water body that can be navigated is considered to be navigable waters, although in the US (per Title 33 of the United States Code) the term applies to the waters over which the US Congress has jurisdiction to regulate the commerce, [6] individual states apply similar criteria. [7] The courts, however, use an expanded definition and include into the scope of Title 33, for example, waters "frequented by small, pleasure-fishing crafts". [8]
The center of the navigable channel lies on the thalweg, so in the international river law in case of disputed borders the border is assumed to follow the thalweg, as doing otherwise would deny the navigation rights to one side. [9]
Many major European rivers (e.g., Rhine, Danube, Moselle, Meuse, and Sava) have long-established systems for waterway management. [10] Some countries, primarily in Scandinavia, charge the ships fairway dues, fees intended to support maintenance of the fairways (e. g., dredging). [11] The following table contains the parameters of some of the European waterways. [12]
River basin | Authority | Depth | Width | Height | Days of availability |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Danube | Danube Commission | 2.50 m (draft) | 50–180 m | 6.40-10.00 m | 343 |
Moselle | Moselle Commission | 1.90-3.00 m (fairway depth) | 40m | 6.00 m | 365 |
Rhine | Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine | 1.90-3.00 m (fairway depth), depending on the section | 88–150 m | 7.00-9.10m | 345 |
Sava | International Sava River Basin Commission | 2.50 m (draft), 2.80 m for Class IV sections | 55 m | 7.00 m | 343 |
Elbe | 1.5–1.6 m (navigation channel depth) for section Geesthacht, 1.9 m (navigation channel depth) for other free-flowing sections, 2.2 m (draft) for regulated section | ||||
Meuse | International Meuse Commission | 2.50 m (draft) | 5.25 m | ||
Oder | 1.80 m (navigation channel depth) for border section, 3.00 m (navigation channel depth) for Klützer Querfahrt | ||||
Scheldt | International Scheldt Commission | 2.50 m (draft) | 5.25 m |
Inland waterways in the United states are managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).[ citation needed ]
River basin | Authority | Depth | Width | Height | Length | Days of availability |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Missouri River [13] | USACE | 2.70 m | 91 m | 1181 km | 245 |
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A buoy is a floating device that can have many purposes. It can be anchored (stationary) or allowed to drift with ocean currents.
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A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary between maritime shipping routes and waterways used by inland water craft. Maritime shipping routes cross oceans and seas, and some lakes, where navigability is assumed, and no engineering is required, except to provide the draft for deep-sea shipping to approach seaports (channels), or to provide a short cut across an isthmus; this is the function of ship canals. Dredged channels in the sea are not usually described as waterways. There is an exception to this initial distinction, essentially for legal purposes, see under international waters.
A ship canal is a canal especially intended to accommodate ships used on the oceans, seas, or lakes to which it is connected.
The Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) is the portion of the Intracoastal Waterway located along the Gulf Coast of the United States. It is a navigable inland waterway running approximately 1,300 mi (2,100 km) from Saint Marks, Florida, to Brownsville, Texas.
Piloting or pilotage is the process of navigating on water or in the air using fixed points of reference on the sea or on land, usually with reference to a nautical chart or aeronautical chart to obtain a fix of the position of the vessel or aircraft with respect to a desired course or location. Horizontal fixes of position from known reference points may be obtained by sight or by radar. Vertical position may be obtained by depth sounder to determine depth of the water body below a vessel or by altimeter to determine an aircraft's altitude, from which its distance above the ground can be deduced. Piloting a vessel is usually practiced close to shore or on inland waterways. Pilotage of an aircraft is practiced under visual meteorological conditions for flight.
A sea mark, also seamark and navigation mark, is a form of aid to navigation and pilotage that identifies the approximate position of a maritime channel, hazard, or administrative area to allow boats, ships, and seaplanes to navigate safely.
In geography, hydrography, and fluvial geomorphology, a thalweg or talweg is the line or curve of lowest elevation within a valley or watercourse.
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Inland navigation, inland barge transport or inland waterway transport (IWT) is a transport system allowing ships and barges to use inland waterways. These waterways have inland ports, marinas, quays, and wharfs.
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Depth sounding, often simply called sounding, is measuring the depth of a body of water. Data taken from soundings are used in bathymetry to make maps of the floor of a body of water, such as the seabed topography.
For other uses, see Bolívar (disambiguation)
The reference water levels are used on inland waterways to define a range of water levels allowing the full use of the waterway for navigation. Ship passage can be limited by the water levels that are too low, when the fairway might become too shallow for large ships, or too high, when it might become impossible for the target ships to pass under the bridges. The goal of establishing the reference water levels is to balance the safety of navigation and economic value of the waterway. Reference levels are set up based on statistics obtained from the multi-decadal observations.
Moselle Commission is an intergovernmental institution established by all three Moselle riparian states to regulate shipping on the Moselle and cooperate in the maintenance of its fairway. Commission consists of 6 members, 2 from each state.
Navigable channel means a channel marked with navigational markers including poles, piling or buoys, by the Coast Guard or the State.