To fulfill the requirements of both international conventions and our
national Law No. 5312 Concerning the Principles of Emergency Response and
Compensation for Damages for Pollution of the Marine Environment by Oil and
Other Harmful Substances, Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure has
completed the "Establishment of Emergency Response Centers and Detection
of the Current Situation in Our Seas Project." The project aims to be
prepared for pollution of the marine environment and establish emergency
response stations coordinated from a central location, covering all our
country's coasts for a robust response against the pollution.
Accordingly, in Tekirdağ, located in the northwest of the Sea of Marmara,
one of the riskiest regions in Türkiye in terms of ship traffic, the Directorate
of National Maritime Safety (UDEB) has been established as Europe's largest
Emergency Response Center. UDEB will operate as a decision support system of
the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, executing all tasks related to
maritime safety including personnel, equipment, hardware, software, and all
necessary infrastructure facilities.
The most important part of the project, UDEB, will serve as the brain
and coordination center for our country's intervention against pollution. With
the stations to be established on our coasts connected to this center, our seas
will be protected at the highest level. UDEB is designed to be an international
training and R&D center, beyond its effective intervention system for
marine accidents. At the center, various activities are planned, such as
providing training, conducting exercises, testing and certifying equipment and
materials used in intervention, pollution modeling, and sample analyses related
to marine pollution.
The construction of UDEB in Tekirdağ has been completed in 2019.
National and international level trainings have started to be given at the
center. With the establishment of stations connected to this center, our
national system of intervention against marine pollution has been implemented.
UDEB Maritime Simulator Center has been planned in 2020, contracted out
in April 2021, and the project has been completed and its provisional
acceptance has been made as of December 2021. The center, consisting of
integrated simulators including Bridge Simulator, VTS Simulator, Tugboat
Simulator, and Pollution and Emergency Response Simulator, is the only
simulator center in our country that has these features and can conduct virtual
environment exercises.
Various trainings are planned to be given at our Maritime Simulator Center,
including advanced training in the maritime field, Pilot Captain trainings,
training for Ship Captains and Officers, Tugboat Captains Training, VTS
Operator / Chief Operator Training, Sea Pollution Intervention Training, and
Search and Rescue Training.