Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - "15 of the world's biggest ships now emit as much pollution as the world's 760m cars"

Lucifer · 05-05-2009, 01:02 PM

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Originally Posted by MSD

This worries me, not simply because of the effect, but because of the lack of alternatives. Bunker fuel, for those who don't know, is what's left over when you distill out all the stuff like gas, diesel, and natural gas. It's barely liquid, and needs to be heated to get it moving through the fuel lines. While we're worrying about miles per gallon on land, these ships are getting a few hundred feet per gallon. In the short term, it seems the way to minimize health risks in the short term is to require burning of clean fuel near land.

A few hundred feet per gallon? I don't know where you get your facts, but here's something to think about:

On a single litre (about a 1/4 U.S. gallon) of fuel, one tonne of freight can travel 240 km by ship, compared with less than 100 km by train and less than 30 km by truck

Every mode of transportation carries an environmental footprint, and it’s important to note that the elimination of one maximum size Seaway vessel would require the addition of 875 truckloads on our highways, or the addition of 225 railcars to the rail system. Any addition of trucks or rail cars to our roads and railways would only serve to exacerbate current issues of congestion faced by those modes of transport and associated environmental effects.

Think about that the next time you are idling in traffic with a bunch of transport trucks on the highway.

HWYH20.COM

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What is Hwy H2O?

Hwy H2O is a 3,700-kilometer (2,400 mile) marine corridor between Canada and the United States. Comprised of the St. Lawrence River, St. Lawrence Seaway and the Great Lakes, Hwy H2O is a vital transportation artery that enables domestic and international trade and offers unique access directly into North America’s commercial, industrial and agricultural heartland.

The unfettered movement of vessels along the waterway ensures that cargo arrives reliably at its destination on time.

Hwy H2O is strategically positioned to play an important role in meeting our 21st century transportation and logistical challenges posed by changing markets, road congestion and overloaded coastal ports.
In addition to its crucial transportation function, the waterway is a popular recreational area enjoyed by millions and a natural resource that must be protected. Hwy H2O partners understand that the waterway is a shared resource that must continue to serve all of its distinct roles in perpetuity.

Hwy H2O by the numbers

* $285 billion – the value of the more than 2.3 billion tonnes of cargo carried along the St. Lawrence Seaway since its opening
* 4,363 – the number of vessel transits through the Montreal/Lake Ontario and Welland Canal section of the Seaway in 2005
* 281 days – the longest navigation season on record, set in 2004-2005
* 225,000 – the number of direct and indirect jobs related to the waterway
* 1 – the number of litres of fuel required to move one tonne of freight 240 kilometres by ship

Who is behind Hwy H2O?

Sponsors, Partners and Supporters of Hwy H2O include The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation and commercial entities such as ports and marine associated enterprises, associations and interest groups.

What are the objectives Hwy H2O?

Initiated in 2003, Hwy H2O works to identify and promote key opportunities for the marine mode to alleviate mounting pressures on our transportation system characterized by overloaded coastal ports and increasingly congested road and rail arteries.

With global trade forecasted to double or even triple within the next 20 years, the St. Lawrence Seaway offers unparalleled capacity to increase cargo volumes within its existing infrastructure. Hwy H2O is committed to raising awareness of the Seaway’s untapped potential for meeting current and future transportation challenges in an economically sound and environmentally responsible manner.

What is shortsea shipping and how does it work?

Shortsea shipping refers to the movement of cargo by water between points situated within relatively close proximity to one another. This may include domestic as well as international maritime transport along coastlines or within lakes and inland water systems.

The application of shortsea shipping along Hwy H2O is based on the reality that most ocean-going cargo and container vessels are too large to fit into the Seaway. Container vessels currently under construction are even larger yet, bringing about a future where only a limited number of coastal ports will be able to accommodate these enormous ships.

Accordingly, part of our vision of shortsea shipping along Hwy H2O sees large ocean-going container vessels docking at coastal ports (such as Halifax, Nova Scotia or Newark, NJ) where they would transfer their cargo to smaller "feeder" vessels, which would deliver the containers to a Seaway / Great Lakes port near their final destination.

It is important to note, ‘feedering’ would present the added environmental benefit of further mitigating the risk of introducing exotic or invasive species to the St. Lawrence Seaway / Great Lakes system that may be carried in ocean-going ships’ ballast water. Since feeder vessels would only transit routes within the waters of our own continental boundaries, they will not be carrying ballast water from overseas destinations. This approach would mitigate the potential introduction of aquatic invasive species to the Great Lakes / Seaway system via ballast water.

Other important benefits associated with shortsea shipping along Hwy H2O include the alleviation of congested road and rail arteries and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

What are the benefits of moving cargo by the marine mode along the Seaway?

Hwy H2O allows cargo to bypass border bottlenecks and congested railways and roads. The waterway’s available capacity and unrestricted movement of cargo in combination with the marine mode’s unmatched safety and fuel efficiency make moving cargo along Hwy H2O attractive to shippers, their customers and the businesses and communities who depend on the reliable delivery of their cargo.

What is being done to ensure that the issue of aquatic invasive species does not escalate?

Hwy H2O partners are committed to ensuring the waterway is maintained and developed in a manner that is environmentally and ecologically responsible.

Since ballast water carried by ocean-going vessels is one vector for the introduction of aquatic invasive species, requirements regarding ballast water management in the Great Lakes / Seaway System are among the most stringent in the world. Activities to address the introduction of new invasive species are occurring on international, national and state levels and the Great Lakes / St. Lawrence Seaway System has been on the forefront of this issue for many years.

Pending the development of treatment technologies, exchanging any freshwater ballast for saltwater is recognized as the most effective method to deal with any organisms that may be present. Ballast with a salinity (salt content) of 30 ppt (parts per thousand) or more is considered evidence that the tanks have been adequately exchanged and provide a suitably harsh environment for any remaining organisms. As part of the Enhanced Seaway Inspection (ESI) program for foreign flagged vessels, each and every vessel’s successful ballast water exchange is verified, including measuring the salinity of on-board ballast.

The Seaway Corporations have required vessels transiting the Seaway to also comply with two other standards of ballast water management that go beyond the requirements of the U.S. Coast Guard and Transport Canada. The Seaway regulations state that every vessel entering the Seaway after operating beyond the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) must agree to comply with the “Code of Best Practices for Ballast Water Management” of the Shipping Federation of Canada dated September 28, 2000, while operating anywhere within the Great Lakes and the Seaway.

In addition, vessels that do not operate beyond the EEZ but do operate within the Great Lakes and Seaway (“lakers”) must agree to comply with the “Voluntary Management Practices to Reduce the Transfer of Aquatic Nuisance Species within the Great Lakes by U.S. and Canadian Domestic Shipping” of the Lake Carriers Association and Canadian Shipowners Association dated January 26, 2001.

These management practices expand upon the U.S. Coast Guard and Transport Canada regulations by requiring vessels to agree to regular inspections of ballast tanks and regular removal of sediment. Ocean vessels entering the Seaway must also agree to minimize ballasting operations under specified conditions.

Are there environmental benefits associated with utilizing marine transport?

Transporting goods by water delivers substantial environmental benefits, including:

* Energy efficiency – On a single litre (about a 1/4 U.S. gallon) of fuel, one tonne of freight can travel 240 km by ship, compared with less than 100 km by train and less than 30 km by truck

* Reduced ‘global warming’ emissions – Ships only emit one tenth the greenhouse gas emissions that trucks produce and half that of trains

* Increased safety – The marine mode is the safest mode of domestic and international freight transportation, thus reducing the likelihood of environmental harm caused by accidents and spills.

* Minimal noise – Marine transportation generates very little noise, when compared to other forms of transport

* Mitigated need for future highway and rail line infrastructure investment – Utilizing Hwy H2O decreases the need for new roadways and rail lines, the creation of which negatively impact quality of life, communities and the ecosystem

Every mode of transportation carries an environmental footprint, and it’s important to note that the elimination of one maximum size Seaway vessel would require the addition of 875 truckloads on our highways, or the addition of 225 railcars to the rail system. Any addition of trucks or rail cars to our roads and railways would only serve to exacerbate current issues of congestion faced by those modes of transport and associated environmental effects.