I eagerly looked forward to reading this book, but found it to be not so much about the functioning of a supertanker (VLCC or ULCC) but about the environmental impact of oil in the oceans. Don't misunderstand me, I am all in favor of strict safety and anti-pollution measures, which are generally better today than when this book was written thirty years ago; I just was expecting that this book would discuss technical matters and life onboard to a greater extent than it did, and be more balanced in its appraisal of the shipping industry.
The book is shrill and alarmist. It dwells on the negative impact of oil in the ocean, decries the evils of Japan, Western Europe, and especially the United States, and their appetite for oil, and notes anecdotal information like that Africa and Asia use less oil per capita than the industrialized west. Of course what he never mentions is that those same Western societies at the time of publication produced an overwhelming majority of the world's goods. This is a book that wants to be "Silent Spring", while trying to appeal to those with a technical interest in shipping.
I am interested in literature on the environmental impact of tankers, and particularly recommend "Black Tide" about the 'Torrey Canyon' as an excellent example of tanker related, balanced environmental reporting. What I don't like is a book that is ostensibly fair and balanced trying to sell me a shrill alarmist position that is anything other than balanced. In the book, for instance, Mostert goes on at length about studies that show that the oceans will be completely lifeless due to oil pollution in 25-30 years. That time has now past, and where marine species have decreased, the cause has overwhelmingly been over-fishing, not oil, with exceptions around refineries and spill areas. My point here isn't that oil is good for the oceans, but that his personal disdain for supertankers won't decrease the need for them: the solutions are in the disciplines of systems safety and crew training, with legislative assistance from governments and insurers, not in ridding the world of the tankers. Long term, of course, alternatives to oil will be found that will relegate these ships to the scrapper's torch, which is the good news; on that I am sure that Mostert would agree with me. I am for increased regulation and monitoring of tankers and agree totally with Mostert that the bulk of the problem is with ships flying flags of convenience (especially Liberia.) There is no question that these mammoth ships are capable of untold destruction, and for that reason I believe that the oil companies and the insurers (especially Lloyd's) need to carefully monitor not only the ships themselves, but the adequacy and training of the crews and the regulations and enforcement actions of the flags they sail under. If insurers make it less economically viable to use flags of convenience due to higher accident rates, safety can only then be improved.
There is good information in this book, particularly details of tanker losses and casualties, and also in the history of tankers and oil importation/exportation, but there is a grim hysteria about the horrible fate supertankers hold for the world, virtually none of which has actually come to pass.
I would very much like a new and revised edition to examine the current situation today, and to accurately summarize the strengths and fallacies of the original. If you are looking for a book on the functioning of tankers, look elsewhere. If you want a balanced book on the environmental impact of tankers, try "Black Tide". If you want a look at modern (cargo) shipping as it exists today, try "Colombo Bay." If you want a shrill, alarmist tome that accepts sources uncritically that further its cause, but is quick to dismiss evidence contrary to the opinion of the author, this is your book.
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