Maritime Safety
Maritime safety includes area of safety of navigation, seafarers, oil spill response and vessel traffic system. These elements are vital to ensure the Malaysian waters and its marine environment is safe, secure and sustainable.
Aids To Navigation
Malaysia has a coastline of over 4,500 kilometers. With the increasing number of ships plying Malaysian waters, aids to navigation is vital not only for the smooth sailing of ships to their destinations but also to ensure safe passage. In this regards, Malaysia has put in place aids to navigation along the coastline which include lighthouses, beacons and also buoys. These navigational aids are maintained and managed by the Light Dues Board which is under the administration of the Marine Department Malaysia.
Lighthouse
The Malacca Lighthouse was the earliest lighthouse built in Malaysia in the mid-1800s. Currently, there are 40 lighthouses throughout Malaysia. Most of the lighthouses are equipped with radar to assist or guide ships’ position.
Beacon
Beacons are permanently built structure at determined location to mark navigational channel, rocks, shoal and etc.
Buoy
Buoys are floating devices on the water surface, bound with chains (spool) that are anchored on the seabed. Buoys marked the boundary of navigational channel, ship wrecks, marking, anchorage areas, dangerous areas and etc.
Marine Electronic Highway
The Marine Electronic Highway Demonstration Project (MEH Project) is a project funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). This project involves three countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, in collaboration with the International Maritime Organization (IMO), International Hydrographic Organizationt (IHO), International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the International Association of Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO).
The MEH project in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore has three (3) main components namely:
- Protection of the marine environment;
- Safety and security of marine traffic;
- Sustainability of funding.
Traffic Separation Scheme
The Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) is an initiative to facilitate marine traffic in the Straits of Malacca. The purpose of this system is to reduce the risk of close quarter situation between ships. Through this system, ships are separated by the navigation routes determined by the Marine Department of Malaysia.
Location of lighthouses
