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The environmental issue: hot topic or here to stay?
01 May 2007
It used to be that we were inundated with newsworthy reports on security issues and the various programmes and schemes with interesting acronyms such as TWIC and CTPAT. The lesson there was that they all have a cost associated with them. Today, the port industry is embroiled in environmental issues, not so much pollution of the sea but emissions in the air. The worry is over sulphur particles emitted by ships in port as well as on the high seas. Air quality hit the headlines with Marpol 73/78 Annexe VI in 2005 and has become a major topic of debate and legislation since then. The state of California recently passed legislation that pushed its environmental standards into international waters (24 miles).
With the US Congress passing an implementation bill, which will likely be followed up by the Senate to enable Annexe VI, California comes into conflict with Federal law. Interesting. In the meantime, Japan's K-Line has announced that its ships will switch to low sulphur distillate fuel for all ships calling at the US Pacific North West ports.
The whole issue remains controversial.The US Council on Clean Transportation accuses shipping of being worse polluters than cars, trucks and railroads combined. Fighting words indeed.
The European Shipowners Association counters with “we are not heavy polluters” and the International Chamber of Shipping questions the single solution approach of sulphur versus CO2.
What is all the fuss about besides the environment? Cost, of course. The switch from heavy bunkers to low sulphur distillates is not necessarily the cheapest way to cap carbon emissions nor to operate ships, and the impact on CO2 emissions is unclear.
What the industry now faces is the potential for penalties from Port State Control and the implementation costs. Who pays the piper? Ultimately the consumer, but the air will be cleared.
BEN HACKETT
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