Emissions – Officer of the Watch

Arctic Environmental Report on Shipping Exploitation

October 5, 2012 by Officer of the Watch 1 Comment

Last week Transport & Environment NGO released a report highlighting environmental threats from increased shipping activities in the Arctic. As the decline of Arctic sea-ice continues, the prospect of an ice-free Arctic ocean in the near future draws closer. Arctic melting is seen by industry and some governments as an opportunity to develop human and exploitative activities in the region (oil and gas production, mining, shipping, tourism). But while Arctic melting is surely an effect of climate change, it is imperative that it does not become another cause of climate change. This vicious circle threating the Arctic and the global ecosystems needs to be broken.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: arctic, Emissions, environmental, Marine Environment, SECA, Transport & Environment

MHI Air Lubrication System Installed on Ferry

October 4, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has installed its innovative “Mitsubishi Air Lubrication System” (MALS) for the first time on a ferry and confirmed over 5% improvement in fuel consumption.

ECA in Hong Kong Could Reduce Excess Deaths by 91%

October 3, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

Civic Exchange, Hong Kong-based non-profit public policy think tank, has recently launched a new report entitled ”A Price Worth Paying: The Case for Controlling Marine Emissions in the Pearl River Delta”. The report focuses on regulating toxic exhaust emissions from ocean-going vessels (OGVs) which are the most significant contributors of marine emissions in the area according to the report.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: air emissions, air pollution, ECA, Emissions, Hong Kong, Pearl River Delta, PRD, Safety & Quality, SECA

EU Announces Measures to Monitor GHG

October 1, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

The European Commission has announced today that it will propose, in early 2013, measures to monitor, verify and report on Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions from shipping. This measure will apply to all ships calling at EU ports and could also be the basis for a global approach towards cleaner shipping. However, green groups are disappointed because emissions monitoring doesn’t address the main issue at stake: reducing GHG emissions from ships.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: Emissions, European Commission, GHG, greenhouse gas, Safety & Quality

Maritime Industry Should Be 95% de-carbonised by 2050

September 28, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

Prominent environmental campaigner Jonathon Porritt, from the Sustainable Shipping initiative, told last week’s International Chamber of Shipping conference that the various targets for CO2 reduction that shipping was currently struggling towards would eventually prove “irrelevant”. He said that the industry would have to be 95% de-carbonised by 2050 as part of global efforts to prevent global warming reaching dangerous levels.

EU and IMO on Maritime Emissions

September 23, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

EU and IMO differences for maritime emissions came to surface on a relevant conference hosted by the European Policy Centre and supported by the Mission of Norway to the European Union. Definite rules on emissions regulations might have not been discussed in depth, but what has been clearly understood from the different opinions that have been expressed is that EU and IMO are not in convergence regarding ship emissions although they both aim at the same target, that is to reduce emissions produced by the maritime industry.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: EEDI, EEOI, Emissions, EU, European Policy Centre, I MO, Safety & Quality, SEEMP, shipping emissions

Fuel Cell Technology onboard OSV

September 5, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

With rising fuel prices and impending environmental regulations, the pressure is on for more efficient and environmentally friendly ships. DNV in the joint industry project, FellowSHIP, developed a 330 kW fuel cell which was successfully installed, and demonstrated in smooth operation for more than 7000 hours on board the offshore supply vessel Viking Lady.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: DNV, Emissions, energy efficiency, FellowSHIP, fuel cell, fuel cell technology, OSV, Technical, Viking Lady

Alaska Sues U.S. Agencies in an Attempt to Block ECA Regulations

July 17, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

It appears that one does not simply enforces ECA regulations in Alaska and walks away with it. Last Friday Alaska sued the Obama administration aiming to block EPA in extending the North American Emissions Control Area to Alaska. According to the submitted law suit as of 1st August 2012 vessels operating within 200 miles of the Southeast and Southcentral Alaska coastlines will be required to use fuel with a sulfur content that does not exceed 1,000 parts per million.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: Alaska, ECA, Emissions, EPA, lawsuit, MARPOL Annex VI, plaintiff, Safety & Quality, sulphur content

Canada’s Interim Measures for Vessel Air Emissions

July 15, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

The NA-ECA enters into force on August 1, 2012, and would set a 1% limit on the sulphur content of marine fuel, followed by a 0.1% limit in 2015. The proposed Regulations would also implement a regime to control air emissions from Canadian vessels in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence waters.

Due to significant additional discussions required with the domestic marine industry, the marine air emissions regulatory package will be delayed by a few months and will not come into effect on August 1, 2012, to implement the NA-ECA and standards for Canadian vessels operating in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence waters.

Air-lubrication System Reduces CO2 Emissions by 6%

July 12, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

Nippon Yusen Kaisha and two NYK Group companies, the Monohakobi Technology Institute (MTI) and NYK-Hinode Line Ltd., have completed two years of experiments on the air-lubrication systems installed on two of the group’s module carriers, Yamato and Yamatai, and resultantly confirmed an average 6 percent reduction in CO2 emissions during actual sea passage.