In our paper The Risk Homeostasis Theory 1 , it was accepted that the behaviour of people involved in the operation of cargo carrying ships is conditioned to maximize the economic benefits of the amount of risk assumed in the transport. As a follow-up to that paper, the objective of this one is to investigate the relationship between the level of compliance of the cargo carrying vessels with international standards and the degree of severity of the incidents they are involved in. For this purpose, we analyse the same sample of 2,584 cargo carrying ships involved in incidents during 2005 and 2006 used in that investigation. The variables of the Paris MoU to identify substandard ships are used again to measure the standard level of ships and the degree of seriousness of incidents is determined by the number of days ships are under repair.2. Safety standards. 3. Shipping casualties. I N T R O D U C T I O N.The globalization of the shipping industry makes it difficult to establish safety incentive programmes which would lead to the reduction of the frequency of shipping accidents 2 . Strict inspections, detentions in port, bans and prohibitions to operate, etc. are common attempts, mainly adopted in the USA, Paris and Tokyo MoU regions, to promote the operation of safer ships 3 . As a result, the number of substandard vessels operating in those regions has decreased during the last two decades. Nevertheless, since these policies do not effectively reward ships or shipping companies with a lower ratio of accidents but simply encourage them to comply with international standards, the rate of maritime mishaps goes beyond control. As can be observed in Figure 1, the total number of shipping casualties varies, keeping pace with the global trade and the freight markets 4 . The accident rate per cargo carrying ship-year is thought to be a consequence of a homeostatic control process in which the degree of caution of those engaged in maritime transport determines the rate of accidents, and, as a consequence, this resulting rate determines the level of caution in the shipping operators' behaviour 5 . In this closed-loop process all types of accidents, near accidents and marine incidents contribute to alter the perception of risk which those involved in maritime transport

Statistics and information from the maritime industry show that the continuous advances in the safety of navigation do not reduce the occurrence of shipping casualties. This controversial fact leads the authors to analyse the applicability of the risk homeostasis theory to maritime transportation. With the aim of investigating this matter 2,584 ship incidents, which took place during the years 2005 and 2006, have been recorded and examined. The same variables which the Paris MOU usually employs to identify substandard ships (flag, classification society, age, type and size) have been used in this research to establish their level of safety in an effort to determine the relationship between that level and the occurrence of maritime incidents in the world cargo carrying fleet with appropriate statistical methods.

Evidence for the existence of risk compensation behaviour in the operation of vessels is shown in the paper The Risk Homeostasis Theory (Baniela and Ríos, 2010). In that analysis, it is concluded that the people engaged in the commercial affairs of ships tend to exchange the level of safety standard of vessels for a more profitable and riskier activity, which makes the rate of shipping accidents fluctuate within certain limits. Since the different levels of power and motivation of those involved in the risk-taking process were not considered in that research, it is the aim of this paper to analyse, on the one hand, how the pressure of the shipping market influences the risk behaviour of shipping business decision-makers and to show, on the other hand, how this influence makes them alter their target level of risk and introduce risks related to low operating cost strategies on vessels. This behavioural adaptation to the shipping market demand has led the human element to be regarded as a factor of risk in the activity of commercial vessels. In this context, the increasing incidence of human errors has arisen as a consequence of practices and manning policies established by the managers of shipping companies. K E Y

In the paper Piracy at Sea: Somalia an Area of Great Concern (Baniela, 2010), a general up-to-date vision of piracy at sea in Somalia was analysed. As piracy at sea has political, socio-economic, security and humanitarian dimensions, the international community requires a thorough approach that embraces a comprehensive and multi-faceted response of effective counter-measures, both onshore and offshore. So as a follow-up to that paper, the objective of this one is to analyse the impact of the current strategy in the struggle against piracy in Somalia carried out by the international community focused solely at sea and to examine the proposals to find a solution to the problem on land. K E Y WO R D S1. Piracy at sea in Somalia.2. Strategies against piracy. 3. Shipping security.

It is a well-known fact that the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster caused the escort towing of laden tankers in many coastal areas of the world to become compulsory. In order to implement a new type of escort towing, specially designed to be employed in very adverse weather conditions, considerable changes in the hull form of escort tugs had to be made to improve their stability and performance. Since traditional winch and ropes technologies were only effective in calm waters, tugs had to be fitted with new devices. These improvements allowed the remodeled tugs to counterbalance the strong forces generated by the maneuvers in open waters. The aim of this paper is to perform a comprehensive literature review of the new high-performance automatic dynamic winches. Furthermore, a thorough analysis of the best available technologies regarding towline, essential to properly exploit the new winches, will be carried out. Through this review, the way in which the escort towing industry has faced this technological challenge is shown.