Marine Log - November 2007 - (Page 66) BY BLAINE E. COLLINS* Time for a global environmental strategy bout 12 years ago, I met a banker at a cocktail party in New York. I told him that I was in the shipping business. “UPS?” he asked. “No,” I said, “the real shipping business—ships—that move about 90% of the world’s trade.” He said, “Oh, yes, my bank knows about shipping, but we don’t follow it too closely because the good times never last long enough to service the debt or build up working capital and the downturns are very long and extremely painful.” Fifteen years ago, our industry was struggling with the implementation of port state regimes, OPA ‘90 requirements and the mandatory date for compliance with ISM code, Phase I ships was set. Seafaring and shoreside jobs were few and scarce. Safety and quality were appearing on the radar, but owners were challenged just to achieve compliance. A common question was, “Who will pay me for safety or quality?” Today, of course, it is clearly understood that safety and quality are just the A entry ticket and a fundamental process. Now, we are enjoying great times, but we still have challenges. We have an immediate need for good people and a near immediate need to address environmental concerns in a more holistic fashion. Marine pollution, particularly from oil, has decreased substantially, but global warming and climate change is a very real threat. Shipping is the most environmentally friendly form of transportation for raw materials, natural resources and products. So, we have, in effect, adopted the attitude that pollution from ships is a relatively small percentage of the total air emissions. It’s true that air emissions from a single ship are small, but so are the emissions from a single car. Is there anyone who would accept an automobile manufacturer only addressing the emissions from a single car rather than the totality of all car emissions? In the next 15 years, if the maritime industry does nothing to address air emissions, CO2 emissions from all ships will increase at least 40% based on current fleet growth with existing pollution control schemes. During that same time, all Western land-based industries have plans to reduce CO2 emissions by 30%. It is time for the maritime industry to implement a holistic and integrated environmental strategy to include all environmental concerns—solid waste, oil pollution, ballast water and, most importantly, air emissions. All traditional stakeholders should be involved, such as owners, yards, equipment manufacturers, flag states, port states, classification societies, charterers, insurance and financial interests, training institutions, etc. Then, we should add a few: refineries and fuel suppliers, ports and terminals. Our environmental strategy should be built on policies and actions based upon rational economics. Individual, local voluntary action is not sufficient. We really need global solutions. Energy conservation and efficient use of energy should be the cornerstone of this strategy. Further, we should anticipate new technologies. 66 MARINE LOG NOVEMBER 2007 www.marinelog.com http://www.barco.com http://www.barco.com http://www.marinelog.com
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