CONCEPT OF AN INTEGRATED ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR THE PORT OF MAP TA PHUT, THAILAND

摘要

Many of the management tasks critical for the successful design, construction and operation of a commercial port are today undertaken using computer technology. Activities as diverse as computer-aided vessel navigation and tracking systems, on-line monitoring of bulk material transfers and the design of marine structures using numerical models, are becoming increasingly computerised. The advantages which well designed applications of such techniques afford the user are the efficient use of potentially expensive, and inevitably finite, resources. When applied intelligently, computer systems can add value at all stages in the port development process. This application for computer technology has changed the traditional view such that "The role of mathematical models in engineering design is no longer that of simply automating techniques which were previously carried out manually. Throughout industry, models are now becoming accepted as one of the main decision support systems for managers" (Thompson, 1993). This paper examines the potential for an Integrated Environmental Management Support System (IEMSS) at the port of Map Ta Phut in Thailand. Such a system would provide a useful vehicle for the management of some key environmental issues in the development and operation of a major port. These include the collation and archiving of data, collected at considerable expense and often under-utilised, scenario testing which is invaluable in ensuring a robust design; and then guidance in the management of port operations and in particular the preparation and implementation of emergency plans for environmental incidents. Following a consideration of the fundamental characteristics of the components of such an idealised system, the paper describes how the initial components of an IEMSS have been constructed with a view to further development in the future.%Cet article analyse le potentiel d'un Système Intégré d'Aide à la Gestion de l'Environnement SIAGE (IEMSS) pour le Port de Map Ta Phut en Thaïlande. Ce type de système serait un instrument utile de gestion des principaux aspects environnementaux intervenant dans le dimensionnement et l'exploitation de grands ports. Ce système permettrait de collationner et d'archiver des données recueillies à grand prix, mais souvent sous-utilisées, en vue de tester différentes possibilités, procédure souvent indispensable pour aboutir à un dimensionnement solide. Il permet également d'orienter la gestion des opérations portuaires, plus particulièrement la préparation et la mise en oeuvre de plans d'urgence en cas d'incidents écologiques. Après un exposé des caractéristiques de base des composantes d'un système idéalisé de ce type, l'article décrit l'élaboration des premières composantes d'un SIAGE en prévision d'extensions futures.