Hydro 2003

Although not fitting into the traditional biennial series of well-known HYDRO Conferences and Exhibitions, the year 2003 will nevertheless see a 'Hydro 2003' Hydrographic Conference and Exhibition. This time it is the New Zealand region of the Australasian Hydrographic Society which will organise the event in Christchurch, New Zealand from 24th Ð 26th November 2003, the fourth in the series of Australasian Hydro Symposia. Does the ‘down under’ region deserve more attention from the International Hydrographic Community?

The Chairman of the organising committee of Hydro 2003, Maurice Perwick, agreed to be interviewed by Hydro international and provide more information on the hydrographic scene in Australasia.

Can you give our readers a brief description of how you became involved in hydrography in general and your present function in particular?

I am a Director of Eliot Sinclair & Partners Ltd, a Consulting Engineering and Surveying Company which in 1987 tendered for providing hydrographic services to the local Port of Lyttelton. To this end, we contracted Datacom Software Research Ltd to write a navigation and logging program utilising a Geodimeter 440 and Navitronic Echo Sounder. This software evolved to become Trimble's 'HYDROpro'.
We have used Trimble RTK Positioning since 1994 and Odom Echo Sounders and Heave Compensation for Port and Coastal surveys.
Our work often involves the use of jet-boats for profiling and cross-section work in our Hydro-electric Generation projects for Siltation Monitoring and Hydraulic Flow Analysis.
The last five months have seen
me regularly monitoring dredging progress in our local South Island Ports of Lyttelton and Nelson and, more recently, the new Faua Basin in Tonga in the Pacific.

What are the major hydrographic activities in your region, both in the private and public sector? Are there any substantial hydrographic projects expected in the near future?

The major hydrographic activities in the NZ region are predominantly government funded surveys for nautical charting and have for the past three years been focused on the main shipping lanes around the NZ coast, using multibeam. Government work has also been undertaken using MBES and LIDAR in poorly surveyed coastal areas, including off-lying Sub-Antarctic islands. In 2001, a successful hydrographic MBES survey was conducted in the Ross Sea in poorly charted areas increasingly frequented by tourist vessels, and plans are underway to resume this survey early next year.

Is Hydro 2003 meant to be a regional conference or are you aiming at international participation? Why have you chosen the theme: 'Surveying the extremes'?

This symposium is one of a series in the Australasian area and is part of an INTERNATIONAL SERIES of HYDRO XXXX conferences periodically held in the South East Asian region to allow greater participation for those in that region. The New Zealand Branch of the Australasian Hydrographic Society Inc is host to the event.
The theme 'Surveying Extremes' is meant to emphasis among other things:

• The broad area we work in, stretching from the Equator to the Antarctic and nearly half of the Southern Oceans of the World
  
• The diverse nature of equipment used is also to be incorporated in the theme, from lead-line sounding to multibeam; airborne laser, tide from GPS and determination of our continental shelf as defined by the 200 mile economic zone
  
• The sheer diversity of surveying projects in the southern half of the World
  

One can observe a decrease in participation, both in conferences and exhibitions. Do you feel this to be a consequence of economic constraints, SARS, etc. or are there too many such events held throughout the world? What do you expect for Hydro 2003?

The Australasian Society has approximately 184 members, including 44 from New Zealand. Membership has been steadily growing in recent years. This may have come about through the AHS and the Institution of Surveying Australia Inc. (ISA) providing a professional qualification through a system of accreditation.
The number of Conferences in Hydrography and allied topics and services around Asia (our nearest neighbours) has seen too many choices available, much to the detriment of all.
New Zealand and Australia are SARS-free and are in a state of economic growth, so development, especially in a region so dominated by the sea, should be seen to be an attractive option and the places attractive to visit and perhaps do business.

Please give some information about the number of exhibitors expected. And is the emphasis on local companies and organisations or on those from overseas?

Twenty exhibitors have accepted our invitation to attend and sponsor our symposium: Land Information New Zealand (L.I.N.Z.) (support sponsor), HAS (principal sponsor, platinum), Trimble (gold),Thales-Geosolutions, TENIX, NIWA, and Fugro (all silver), Atlas Hydrographic (bronze).
A full list of exhibitors is as follows:
Thales Geosolutions, Trimble, Hydro International, Seismic Asia Pacific, GeoAcoustics, TENIX, Australian Hydrographic Service, RAN RNZN, NIWA, HSA Systems, Interactive Visualization Systems, ODOM Hydrographic Systems, Atlas Hydrographic, New Zealand Ocean Technology Ltd, Fugro, Reson, University of Otago.
The 'Shallow Water Conference' in Sydney, Australia held during the preceding week, i.e. back-to-back, will attract and make the trip worthwhile for overseas exhibitors to attend both.
Exhibitors have been offered the opportunity to make presentations at the conference along with other presenters, all based on merit and relevance to the theme.

What sort of professionals and how many do you expect to attend the event?

The venue caters for approximately two hundred registrants, so the emphasis is on renewing friendships and making new acquaintances on a one-to-one basis. Registrations to date indicate that our expectation of approximately 120 Full Registrants will be met with ease. Typically, the registrant will be a professional member practising hydrography or a senior member of the Society, or engaged in allied marine activities. We have some overseas and local students from hydrographic education facilities attending at a special rate.

Is the Australasian region dependant upon the USA/Canada and/or Europe for Research and Development or does the volume of
hydrographic activity create sufficient local/regional R&D? Please give some information on hydrography-related manufacturers in Australasia.

The dominance of the northern hemisphere in swathe, inertial and GPS applications is to be expected, but Australia and New Zealand provide R&D facilities by way of Trimble in Christchurch, Thales and HSA in Sydney, and Nautronics in Perth.
The Australian Department of Defense has also assisted in the development of 'LADS' and forward-looking sonar, to name a few now available commercially.
The research projects carried out at the regional Universities and offshoot entities of those institutions mean that R&D and its applications are alive and well and thriving in the region.

Is this symposium sponsored by companies and/or organisations? And, if so, what is their interest in hydrography?

Exhibitors have been generous in taking up our sponsorship options and some have been able to have private suites to carry out their business within the exhibitor's area. The Royal Australian Navy and the New Zealand Navy are very likely to support the conference with vessels appropriate to hydrography. The University of Otago offers a Category A Hydrographic syllabus. More information with regard to sponsors is given in my answer on exhibitors.

Why was Christchurch selected as the city for the conference? Was it easy travelling, good hotels or any other advantages and/or attractions?

Christchurch is New Zealand's 'Garden City' and will be a delightful host for those attending 'Hydro 2003'.
Another reason is the growth in the New Zealand branch of the Society and the availability of direct flights from the major cities of Australia. There is a good range of exhibition facilities and outside attractions, including the TransAlpine Express, thermal pools, glaciers and maybe even spring snow skiing, make Christchurch a suitable location and venue for this conference.

Are any special meetings running parallel with, or organised during, Hydro 2003?

The Australasian Hydrographic Society & New Zealand branch will host their AGMs along with the LINZ HUG 'Hydrographic Users Group'.
The Marine Engineers Group Council is meeting in Christchurch and are invited to our Awards Dinner, where we will recognise our peers and pioneers.

New Zealand (Nieuw Zeeland) was named by Abel Tasman after Zeeland, a province in The Netherlands which consists of many islands in the Rhine-Scheldt estuary. To protect these islands against storm surges and a sea-level rise, enormous and costly measures have been taken including storm surge barriers and the heightening and rebuilding of dikes. Are there any similar situations in your region? And, if so, do they result in specific hydrographic R&D and activities?

Australia and New Zealand live at the mercy of two very large oceans and weather systems from the Antarctic and Equatorial zones.
Tsunami monitoring of the ocean currents across the Pacific Ocean and the vulnerability of our low-level coastlines is a major component in our country's research.
Sea level rise and the diversion /extreme weather systems that occur create extreme sea and weather conditions. These affect maritime and land-based activities in the region.

Do you have suggestion(s) for attendees with regard to travelling and extension of their trip to New Zealand?

International visitors coming to New Zealand in our spring and early summer will enjoy the changing of the seasons in an island nation.
Great touring opportunities abound, from Queenstown in the south to the tropical climes of the Bay of Islands north of Auckland (previously the home of the America's Cup).
Travellers can easily extend their sojourn here by an extra two weeks and have a great time.