Among the many things we, who live on these islands take for granted, beyond the natural beauty and the joy of community is the daily back and forth of the Maine State ferries. We get on; we ride for an hour or so; we get off. We run our errands, board again, ride for an hour in the other direction, get off and go home. But there's more going on than meets the eye.

For some time now, the safety and well-being of passengers and crew has been a real concern for the professionals who are in charge of those vessels, and for at least some of the seamen and women who handle the loading of vehicles and oversee activities on deck. I heard those worries raised again and again at a meeting at the Island Institute about a year ago, a meeting called to discuss these and other issues related to safety and ferry operations in general. I've continued to hear them since. Two issues impact these concerns directly.

The first is compensation. An able-bodied seaman, the individual responsible for loading vehicles, directing passengers, and for responding capably and professionally in the event of an emergency at sea, is paid $18.67 an hour, nearly at the bottom of the range of pay offered folks in similar positions elsewhere in the country whether in the private or public sector.

The Maine State Ferry Service requires 22 able-bodied seamen. Until very recently it had 21. The vacant position has now been filled but had been vacant for nearly a year for want of interest among the many who are qualified. The result is that the service often finds itself scrounging around temp agencies for folks to round out a full crew, which they must have before getting underway. Temporary workers must carry the requisite qualifications, but are often not familiar with the particulars of a given vessel nor are they required to be, which brings me to the second issue, that of safety.

Although employees, particularly the captains who are charged with overall responsibility for the performance of the vessel and the safety of the passengers, have suggested the creation of a safety management team or retention of an independent and qualified marine safety consultant and although the National Transportation Safety Board has suggested essentially the same thing, neither recommendation has been followed.

As a result, captains are sometimes hesitant about setting sail because they have no assurance that the entire crew consists of folks who are going to respond flawlessly and instinctively to an emergency at sea. Rather, they are often expected to set sail with someone on deck with whom they've never worked, someone who has never worked on that particular ferry and who is not familiar with its safety related components and equipment, someone, in other words, in whom the master of the vessel has no confidence.

That leaves the captain in a delicate position. Charged with clear responsibility for the safety of the ferry and its passengers, he has an obligation not to leave port if he is less than confident about the assembled crew. On the other hand, one can easily imagine a captain who makes such a decision being viewed as simply troublesome, by the Department of Transportation administration and by the public who are waiting to make the crossing — until an at-sea emergency arises.

Ironically, such an emergency arose just a few weeks ago and a successful rescue of two Matinicus fishermen off of Monroe Island was accomplished. It involved two seamen, at least one of whom had been working the ferry for years and in whom the captain had complete confidence. Even then, there were things that might have gone more smoothly.

Morale among the sea-going employees of the Maine State Ferry Service is low. That in itself is a concern and may be the topic of another column. Meanwhile, it seems prudent to acknowledge the concerns of those of our sea-going employees, particularly the masters of these vessels, the ones who have firsthand knowledge of conditions and who bear the greatest responsibility.

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