The relevance of the panama canal in the recreational navigation business by

The calm always comes after the storm and, in our case, after a period of economic circumstances which were unfavorable for us, the sharp improvement in the nautical sports sector has resulted in the need for new berths, whether it be through expansions or new locations. The latter, given the degree of occupancy on the coast as well as the correct environmental protection measures to be applied, are very complicated to place. As a result, innovation, environment, development, land-use and sustainability must join forces in order to find products and solutions with a similar effect on society, significantly decreasing the environmental impact created, working with natural processes to protect, restore or even improve the environment. 1. GLOBAL DESCRIPTION OF THE WORLDWIDE NAUTICAL OFFER The recreational nautical industry is an economic activity that has historically been closely linked to both tourism and infrastructure as well as the real-estate sector. If we take a look at worldwide macro values, according to data from the National Marine Manufacturers Association (hereafter NMMA), we can highlight:  There are more than 25 million recreational watercraft registered and in service around the world.  This impacts the service industry by favoring the creation and existence of more than 100,000 small and medium enterprises.  More than 25,000 marinas of different types and sizes are registered around the world, directly creating one million jobs. For this reason, the sector must be taken care of given its important impact. However, at the same time, we need to monitor and condition its continuity and growth while fully respecting the basic environmental principals, assuring the future sustainability of the environments in which both marinas and economically associated businesses are found. Today, a true Ecosystem (a name also used by the NMMA) has been created around the maritime sector which encompasses numerous sectors and activities. This ecosystem is a true economic force creating value that cannot be jeopardized and must be strengthened by the sensible use of natural resources both during design and when developing facilities. This important ecosystem is made up of retail stores, restoration, marina infrastructure, vessels, sailors, accessory factories and distribution, sailing schools, distributors, service providers, brokers and many more. As far as we understand, recreational nautical infrastructure has often been linked to a “payback” resulting from real-estate investment, forgetting that, in this sector, a significant number of activities intertwine which, in addition to adding considerable value, help repay the investment necessary to create the infrastructure itself. Additionally, outsiders (as well as some insiders) associate the nautical industry with giant yachts, luxury cars and products which are completely inaccessible to the middle class, which should be the real target population. 1 MSc. Civil Engineer, CEO, UG21 Consultores de Ingeniería S.L., mgonzalez@ug21.com 2 MSc. Civil Engineer, President, UG21 Consultores de Ingeniería S.L., ozgurunay@ug21.com 3 MSc. Civil Engineer, PMP, Project Engineer, UG21 Consultores de Ingeniería S.L., vjimenez@ug21.com PIANC-World Congress Panama City, Panama 2018 Page 2 All data points to recreational boaters being members of the middle class, with moderate income, who see this pastime as one more target within today’s day-to-day value scale. According to data from the NMMA, 95% of watercraft registered in the United States measure 8 meters (24 feet) or less in length. We must also add that only 1% of boats registered exceed 12 meters (37 feet). This figure is also reflected in other countries such as:  France: 91% of boats measure 8 meters or less in length.  Queensland and New South Wales: 94% of boats measure 8 meters or less in length. Economic models also reflect these figures. At a recent meeting of the International Council of Marine Industry Associations (ICOMIA) in Amsterdam, Adjiedj Bakas also pointed out that the recreational boating industry was on the path to a collaborative economy which presumes a boom and revolution we must be ready for. Bakas stated: ...“the middle class will have less money but more time thanks to robotization. In the Boating and Marina market trends, people will look for affordable boats with low maintenance costs, often sharing them through collaborative economy. Marinas will go from being parking lots for boats to places where people share a community lifestyle”. ..." We have to change the garage into a leisure destination”... However, we cannot forget about the mega yacht market which, in spite of the economic crisis we’ve seen, has not stopped growing. According to Gregorio Méndez de la Muela at the V Foro Náutico de Colombia, held in Santa Marta, “In spite of the economic uncertainty after the 2007 economic crisis, the mega yacht market continues to grow annually. In recent years, shipyards in Italy, France and the United Kingdom have built nearly 500 yachts.” Figure 1: Evolution of the Mega Yacht fleet since 1995. (V Foro Náutico Colombia, 2017) In summary, the recreational nautical industry is booming and all signs point to significant future growth which we must be prepared for in order to create new infrastructure able to meet the growing demand while having as small an impact as possible. Our contribution to this prestigious conference will discuss this: the possibility of balancing highly environmentally sensitive areas with the construction of low-impact marina facilities, controlled investment and highly beneficial effects for the local economy. We will mention three practical cases, some already in place, which show major investment is not necessary and that the return on these facilities is guaranteed without the need for large real-estate promotion or land creation that is incompatible with coastal sustainability. PIANC-World Congress Panama City, Panama 2018 Page 3 2. NEW FACILITIES: ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS AND RISKS There is a mature market in developing countries, where the majority of concessions are advanced. The mooring offer adapted to demand until 2007, but since then there has been practically no evolution. Figure 2: Evolution of marinas (left) and moorings (right) in Spain. (FEAPDT, 2016) The number of vessels has continued to grow while the number of berths available has not, thus resulting in today’s saturation. This shows the difficulties arising from expanding or creating new marina infrastructure. A marina is not simply a place to tie up boats. Marinas are facilities designed by specialized engineers to be able to resist extreme wave heights, currents and winds, along with actions caused by boats and humans. This entails significant design of protection structures if the waters are not protected naturally. At the same time, the impact on the local hydrodynamics, coastline dynamics and marine environment must be taken into account. Furthermore, economic, market and environmental issues must be integrated and we must calculate whether investment will be worthwhile, what the current and future nautical trends are and if the market will be sustained in the long term. The high depreciation costs for protective structures are not compatible with concession periods (a maximum of 30 years in Spain), meaning the payback on investment is not guaranteed. This issue is magnified by the correct and necessary environmental restrictions of the Ley de Suelo (Land Law), which prohibits real-estate development being associated with the marina, as was done in the past. Puerto Sotogrande, Puerto Banús, Marina del Este, etc. are worth mentioning as large investments that, without taking real-estate development into account, would have been practically impossible to have been repaid. Figure 3: Marinas Sotogrande, Banús y Marina del Este As a result, building new facilities in developed countries is a very complex task. In Andalusia, for example, where its coastline is its greatest strength, not one marina has been built in unprotected water in the past 20 years. Another alternative is to expand existing ports, which, in any case, also has major obstacles to success. The previously mentioned concession periods limit the large investment necessary for expansion in the case of unprotected waters. This is the case of the Puerto Deportivo in Benalmádena and Puerto José Banús as well as the recently failed concession of the Marina la Bajadilla. PIANC-World Congress Panama City, Panama 2018 Page 4 Figure 4: Marina la Bajadilla present and future. (Berenguer Ingenieros, 2012) Yet another alternative or solution is to analyze the coastline in order to determine those zones which have their own natural protective condition, making it unnecessary to build rigid protective constructions that can adversely affect the costal dynamic, thus making them opportune areas to place new maritime facilities. Working with, not against, natural processes can lead to less costly and more sustainable solutions. If opportune measures are taken, these areas, initially dismissed for their high environmental sensitivity, could harbor a marina with absolutely no environmental effects. Such sensitive areas require measures which allow us to reduce the effect on marine ecosystems. Biotic, abiotic and socioeconomic environmental components must be taken into account when evaluating the environmental impact of each stage in marina design and construction. Measures must be arranged to control solid, liquid and gas emissions that may alter surroundings. In general terms, control measures that must be taken include: Air Quality: Occasional irrigation, using tarps on trucks, using vehicles with emission control systems, restricting working hours to avoid disruption during rest periods, etc. Soil Quality: Heavy equipment or areas with impervious containment, promoting suitable classification and disposal of waste or solid urban waste, etc. Protection