A
coast guard or
coastguard is a national organization responsible for various services at sea. However the term implies widely different responsibilities in different countries.
Role
Among the responsibilities that may be entrusted to a coast guard service are:
During wartime, some coast guard organisations might have responsibilities in harbour defence, port security, naval counter- intelligence and coastal patrols.
The coast guard may, varying by jurisdiction, be part of the country's
military, a law enforcement agency, or a search and rescue body. For example, the
U.S. Coast Guard is a military branch with a law enforcement capacity, whereas the
United Kingdom's
Her Majesty's Coastguard is a civilian organisation whose only role is search and rescue.
In some countries, the coast guard is part of the
military (such as the US), in others it is a civilian, law enforcement, or even
private sector organisation. Most coast guards operate
ships and
aircraft including
helicopters and
seaplanes that are either owned or leased by the agency in order to fulfil their respective roles.
Some coastguards, such as the
Irish Coast Guard have only a very limited law enforcement role, usually in enforcing maritime safety law, such as by inspecting ships docked in their jurisdiction.
In cases where the coast guard is primarily concerned with
coordinating rather than executing rescue operations,
lifeboats are often provided by civilian voluntary organisations, such as the
Royal National Lifeboat Institution in the
United Kingdom, whilst aircraft may be provided by the countries'
armed forces, such as
Sea Kings operated by the
RAF and
Royal Navy in addition to any of the coast guard's own assets.
Types and roles
The following lists a select number of coast guards around the world, illustrating the varied roles they play in the respective countries they operate in:
Bangladesh
The
Bangladesh Coast Guard's officers are transferred from the
Bangladesh Navy. While under the remit of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the coast guard is part of the country's military.
Canada
In
Canada, the
Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) is a civilian service under the
Department of Fisheries and Oceans responsible for patrolling the world's longest coastline of 243,042 km (~151,000 mi).
The CCG holds responsibility for all marine search and rescue in Canada. The CCG coordinates search and rescue operations with the
Canadian Forces,
Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and other organizations. The CCG maintains and operates seamarks, coastal light stations, vessel traffic services, marine pollution response services, marine communications systems and provides icebreaking services. CCG also operates all federal scientific research and hydrographic survey vessels. To accomplish these tasks, CCG has a sizeable fleet of vessels and aircraft, all serviced from various bases and smaller stations located on three coasts (
Atlantic,
Arctic,
Pacific) and the
Great Lakes and
St. Lawrence River.
The
Canadian Coast Guard College is located near
Sydney, Nova Scotia.
France
In
France, there are no Coast Guards, per se. But, in each region, a Naval Admiral, called Préfet Maritime, is in charge of coordination of all state services for action at sea (
Navy,
gendarmerie,
customs, fishery survey ...). The charity,
Société Nationale de Sauvetage en Mer, provides most life saving duties.
Germany
The
German Federal Coast Guard, known as the
Küstenwache, is both a civilian service and a law enforcement organisation, staffed with both police officers and certain civilians from the various German federal agencies associated with maritime administration with responsibility for the coordination of all law enforcement activities within its jurisdiction.
Haiti
The
Haitian Coast Guard is an operational unit of the
Haitian National Police. It is one of the few law enforcement organisations in the world to combine water policing and coast guard duties while remaining as a policing unit. It operates primarily as a law enforcement agency, with secondary responsibilities in search and rescue.
Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, law enforcement duties are carried out by the
Marine Police and the
Customs and Excise Department. The
Hong Kong Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (HKMRCC) co-ordinates search and rescue vessels, aircraft and other resources of the
Fire Services Department,
Government Flying Service,
Marine Department and the Marine Police.
Iceland
The
Icelandic Coast Guard is primarily a
law enforcement organisation and is subordinate to the
Ministry of Justice. It is, however, commonly involved in
military operations and exercises, such as
Enduring Freedom and
Northern Challenge.
India
In
India, the
Indian Coast Guard is a military unit and, in contrast with some coast guard units, resembles a naval coastal defence force. It has responsibility for search and rescue, enforcement of maritime law- smuggling, immigration and shipping regulations- and protecting the country's maritime and offshore resources
Italy
In
Italy, the
Guardia Costiera is part of the Italian Navy under the
Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport. They have responsibility for enforcement of shipping and maritime safety regulations, as well as performing search and rescue duties
Malaysia
In
Malaysia, the
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) or Malaysian Coast Guard is part of the Malaysian Civil Service and is under the
Prime Minister's Department.
The Agency is headed by a
Director General who is appointed by the
Yang Di Pertuan Agong (King) on the advice of the
Prime Minister while other personnel are appointed by the
Public Service Commission.
In times of
war, crisis or emergency, the Agency may be placed under the command of the Malaysian Armed Forces. It was formed to combat the rise of piracy in the Malaccan and Moluccan straits, especially after frequent attacks from the
Orang laut pirate during the 1900s. Personnel often work very closely with the
Royal Malaysian Navy and
Royal Malaysian Air Force. The Coast Guard operates a Special Forces Commando or STAR (Special Weapons and Tactics) unit, which was absorbed from the Navy's
PASKAL and Air Force's
PASKAU.
The agency utilises its resources in a maritime law enforcement and search and rescue capacity
New Zealand
The
Royal New Zealand Coastguard is a civilian volunteer charitable organisation, providing search and rescue services to coastal waterways and some lakes in
New Zealand. Smaller incidents are coordinated by the
New Zealand Police, who may call on the services and resources of the coastguard. Larger incidents are managed by the Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ), with support from the
New Zealand Defence Force.
Pakistan
In
Pakistan, the
Pakistani Coast Guard is the youngest of the nation's armed forces. It is a military force in its right, as opposed to being part of the
Pakistan Navy. The coast guard has responsibilities for protecting and the country's coastlines in terms of strategic security, as well as law enforcement within the country's
Exclusive economic zone.
Philippines
In the
Philippines, the
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) is a maritime law enforcement agency operating under the
Department of Transportation and Communications of the Philippine government. It is tasked with the broader enforcement of maritime laws, especially against
smuggling,
illegal fishing,
drug trafficking and
piracy. It patrols the country's 36,289-kilometer coastline, and is also involved in maritime
search and rescue (SAR) missions, as well as the protection of the marine environment.
Singapore
A third generation Patrol Craft of the
Police Coast Guard conducting a sea-rescue demonstration off the southeastern coast of
Singapore.
In
Singapore, the
Police Coast Guard (PCG) is an operational department of the
Singapore Police Force. Functions of the coast guard were transferred from the
Republic of Singapore Navy to what was then the
Marine Police in February 1993 . The Marine Police was thus restructured and renamed as the Police Coast Guard, one of the few
law enforcement organisations in the world to combine water policing and coast guard duties while remaining as a policing unit. It operates primarily as a law enforcement agency, with secondary responsibilities in search and rescue.
Sri Lanka
In
Sri Lanka, until 2009 a Coast Guard Unit existed under the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, responsible for fishy and natural resource protection coastal areas. A new
Department of Coast Guard was created under the
Department of Coast Guard Bill presented to parliament in 2009. The department would be under the purview of the
Ministry of Defence and be staffed by civilian personal. The department's responsibilities include
search and rescue,
law enforcement within the country's
Exclusive economic zone, conducting anti-smuggling and anti-immigration operations, suppression of terrorist activities in territorial waters of Sri Lanka.
Republic of China (Taiwan)
In
Taiwan, the
Coast Guard Administration (ROCCGA) is both a
military and a
law enforcement organization. The ROCCGA is considered a civilian law enforcement agency under the administration of the
Executive Yuan, though during wartime it may be incorporated as part of the
military. Its primary roles are in ensuring the safety and security of the country's waters and coordinating search and rescue efforts.
ROCCGA is instituted Maritime Patrol Directorate General and Coast Patrol Directorate General. Officers of Maritime Patrol Directorate General are law executors, but officers of Coast Patrol Directorate General are soldiers who have partial law-enforcement power.
United Kingdom
thumb|200px|The HM Coastguard station at Girvan Scotland.In the
United Kingdom,
Her Majesty's Coastguard is purely concerned with
search and rescue.
It has no role in the maintenance of
seamarks which is instead the responsibility of
Trinity House, the
Northern Lighthouse Board (in Scotland) and the
Commissioners of Irish Lights (in Northern Ireland), nor has it any concern with customs enforcement, which is the responsibility of
Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.
HM Coastguard does not possess its own lifeboats, instead calling on those of the volunteer
Royal National Lifeboat Institution and other independent Lifeboats, although it often
wet leases commercial helicopters — mainly
Sikorsky S-92s and
AgustaWestland AW139s— and tugs to provide search and rescue cover in certain areas. It does, however, maintain a number of search, cliff and mud rescue teams as well as some inshore rescue boats and is a coordinating body and public face for the maritime search and rescue services. It is part of the
Maritime and Coastguard Agency, which in itself is an
executive agency of the
department for transport.
HMCG faced criticism and an unsuccessful
negligence case (
Oll v Secretary of State for Transport)
United States of America
Racing StripeIn the
United States, the
U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is both a
military and a
law enforcement organization. It is one of the seven components of the
Uniformed services of the United States and one of the five elements of the
United States Armed Forces. Its role comprises enforcement of US law, coastal defense and search and rescue.
During
peacetime the USCG falls under the administration of the
United States Department of Homeland Security. During
wartime, the USCG may, at the direction of the
President, report to the
Secretary of the Navy; its resources, however, are integrated into U.S. military operations (see ).
The
U.S. Coast Guard Academy and Officer Candidate School are located in
New London, Connecticut. The Coast Guard's
Training Center Petaluma located in
Petaluma, California provides assignment training (also known as "A-schools") as well as its Chief Petty Officers Academy. The
United States Coast Guard Training Center Cape May in
Cape May, New Jersey is the Coast Guard's only Recruit Training Center. Many other countries' entire naval forces are comparable in size and/or strength to the USCG. The USCG enables the
US Navy to concentrate on its main mission of power projection — while the USCG manages
maritime security,
port security, and
coastal patrols.
The
Posse Comitatus Act prohibits the other branches of United States armed services from directly enforcing
U.S. laws, with the exception of the USCG. Thus, the USCG provides
Law Enforcement Detachments (LEDETs) to US Navy ships and the members of the LEDETs do the actual
boarding, interdiction and arrests with the assistance of US Navy personnel.
In 1917, Congress passed and President
Woodrow Wilson signed into law the
Espionage Act, authorizing the Treasury Secretary to assume control of U.S. ports, control ship movements, establish anchorages and supervise the loading and storage of explosive cargoes. The authority was immediately delegated to the Coast Guard and formed the basis for the formation of the Coast Guard's
Captain of the Ports and the
Port Security Program. This established the basis for the current involvement in Homeland Security.
The USCG maintains an extensive fleet of coastal and ocean-going patrol ships, called
cutters by tradition, and small craft, as well as an extensive aviation division consisting of
HH-65 Dolphin and
HH-60 Jayhawk helicopters and fixed wing aircraft such as the
C-130 Hercules and the
HU-25 Guardian. USCG helicopters are equipped with hoists to rescue survivors and also play a major role in law enforcement. The helicopters are able to land and take off from USCG cutters, making them an indispensable tool in fighting illegal drug traffic and the influx of illegal migrants. The fixed wing aircraft are used for long range search and rescue and law enforcement patrols.
Racing Stripe
The
Racing Stripe was designed in 1964 by the industrial design office of
Raymond Loewy Associates to give the United States Coast Guard (USCG) a distinctive, modern image.
Uruguay
In Uruguay, the Coast Guard (Prefectura Nacional Naval-PRENA) is a part of the Navy.
It is tasked with the broader enforcement of maritime laws, especially against smuggling, illegal fishing, drug trafficking and piracy. It patrols the country's coastline, and is also involved in maritime search and rescue (SAR) missions, as well as the protection of the marine environment.
See also
