Waterways Authority
Kystverket / Norwegian Coastal Administration
The Norwegian Coastal Administration (Kystverket) is the Norwegian national agency for coastal management, marine safety and communication. It is the responsibility of the Coastal Administration to ensure a good national preparedness against acute pollution.
The Coastal Administration is present along the whole of the Norwegian coast, and delivers a variety of services for all kinds of users of Norwegian waters.
Vision: To make our coast and waters the safest and cleanest in the world.
The Norwegian Coastline
The coastline of the Norwegian mainland is approx. 83,000 km, islands included. In addition we have the 9,000 km coast line of Svalbard. This equals more than twice the Earth’s equatorial circumference. The majority of the Norwegian population lives and works along the coast. There are approx. 400,000 leisure boats, and a large number of holiday houses and cabins along our coast.
Organisation
The Norwegian Coastal Administration is headed by a Director General, who reports directly to the Department of Fisheries and the Norwegian Minister of Fisheries. The head office of the Norwegian Coastal Administration is located in Ålesund, at the western coast of Norway. The head office receives its assignments within the area of coastal management from the Department of Fisheries and distributes these among the operative units; the coastal regions. The Norwegian Coastal Administration has divided the coast into five coastal regions with regional offices in the coastal towns
- Arendal
- Haugesund
- Ålesund
- Kabelvåg
- Honningsvåg.
These five offices have been delegated the responsibility of running daily operations within their geographical areas.
The Coastal Administration’s most important tasks are:
- Piloting services
- Vessel Traffic Services (VTS)
- Maintaining lighthouses and buoys and issue navigational warnings
- Improving coastal channels and construct and maintain fishing ports
- Taking care of the State’s preparedness against acute pollution
- Managing legislation (e.g. the Norwegian Pilotage Act, the Harbour Act and parts of the Pollution Control Act)
- Reporting and planning
NCA also take part in national planning (e.g. the maritime sections of the National Transportation Plan) and co-operate with other authorities responsible for safety, transport, and preparedness. The Coastal Administration also participates in international work.
Link: www.kystverket.no
Sist editert 12.03.09, 15:45 av moen
