ALCOAST 256/20 - JUN 2020 2020 WORLD MARINE AIDS TO NAVIGATION DAY

united states coast guard

R 291118 JUN 20
FM COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC//CG-5PW//
TO ALCOAST
UNCLAS //N06010//
ALCOAST 256/20
COMDTNOTE 6010
SUBJ:  2020 WORLD MARINE AIDS TO NAVIGATION DAY
1. The International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse
Authorities (IALA) is celebrating the second annual World Marine Aids to
Navigation Day on July 1, 2020. This day was created to promote greater
awareness to mariners and the public of the vital role of Marine Aids
to Navigation in ensuring the safety and efficiency of navigation.
2. The United States is a maritime nation blessed with natural navigable
waterways, deepwater ports, protected harbors, and access to the world's
two largest oceans. Men and women of the Coast Guard continue to ensure the
Nation’s vibrant economy through their efforts in establishing and
maintaining ATON in the U.S. Marine Transportation System (MTS).
This dedication provides a gateway for economic growth, increases the
capacity of the MTS, facilitates lawful trade, mitigates risk to critical
infrastructure, and ensures the safety and resiliency of the system. More
than 90% of U.S. imports and exports move by ship past 95,000 miles of
shoreline, through 25,000 miles of navigable rivers and coastal waterways,
and into 361 commercial ports. Today's MTS supports $5.4 trillion in
economic activity annually, and more than 23 million jobs.
3. Each year the 76 cutters and 64 ATON Teams that make up the Coast Guard’s
Black Hull fleet maintain more than 48,000 buoys, beacons, and electronic
aids that mark the waterways of the MTS. From eATON in Samoa, to the “CR”
buoy marking the infamous Columbia River Bar, to the candy-cane striped
White Shoal Lightin Lake Michigan, to the hundreds of “sticks” in the
Gulf of Mexico, to our treasured Boston Light, our Black Hull fleet and
sailors keep the MTS “winking ‘n blinking” no matter the weather or time of day.
Most remarkably, this fleet has persevered through the current global pandemic,
facilitating the safety of marine traffic supplying the groceries, medical
supplies and cleaning and sanitation supplies necessary for our Nation to
recover and heal while the demand for these products nearly outpaced the
supply chain.
4. We continue and value our partnership with IALA to ensure we, as America’s
premier multi-mission maritime service, maintain our storied legacy of light
by working with our international partners to make waterways safer, more
efficient, and more resilient.
5. I encourage all ATON professionals, and Black Hull sailors past and present,
to celebrate this milestone day and recognize your roles in safeguarding the
U.S. Marine Transportation System.
6. Mr. Michael D. Emerson, Director of Marine Transportation System Management, sends.
7. Internet release is authorized.