Marine navigation rules approved for the 37th America's Cup in Barcelona

The countdown to the 37th America's Cup to be held in Barcelona has begun. The Council of Ministers has approved, at the proposal of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, the Ministry of Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise, a Royal Decree establishing the marine and air navigation rules for the 37th America's Cup.

As published by the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, the purpose of the aforementioned RD "is to adopt various measures to meet the needs and commitments arising from the organization and holding of the 37th America's Cup in Barcelona, in the areas of marine navigation, including port traffic, air navigation, meteorology and the public radio domain".

In the field of marine navigation, the Royal Decree leaves the establishment of safety measures in the hands of the Barcelona Marine Captaincy, which depends on the Directorate General of the Merchant Navy.

For the regattas and training sessions, the Captaincy will establish a permanent exclusion zone, marked by beacons, which will be located in the coastal waters, from the north of the entrance to the northern mouth of the Port of Barcelona to the mouth of the Besós river and some four miles out to sea.  Vessels of 500 GT (gross registered tonnage or ship size) or more may not sail in this zone, except for vessels expressly authorized by the Marine Captaincy.

Anchoring areas may be established in the permanent exclusion zone, including the installation of dead weights for the conservation of marine life, in order to avoid the influence of anchors on the bottom and to prevent damage to cabling and other installations. In addition, temporary daily exclusion zones shall be established around the permanent exclusion zone for spectators.

Likewise, the Captaincy will have to approve the competition's maritime operations manual and the marine rescue and emergency manual to ensure safety operations and speed and effectiveness in the event of an emergency. Both manuals, together with the boat registration procedures, will be published on the America's Cup website designed for these events.

Finally, the Barcelona Marine Captaincy will be responsible for coordinating the public administrations with competence in matters of maritime navigation and port traffic.