Work on Updating Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimate for International Shipping Moves Forward - Maritime Executive

Posted - March 5, 2013 -  Maritime Executive

 Work to update the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions estimate for international shipping moved forward during an Expert Workshop at IMO Headquarters last week, (26 February to 1 March 2013), attended by more than one hundred participants from IMO Member Governments and Observer Organizations. A final study is expected to be delivered in 2014.

The Workshop followed the endorsement, in principle, by IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), at its sixty-fourth session in October 2012 of the outline for an update of the GHG emissions estimate.

The current (Second) IMO GHG Study 2009 had estimated that international shipping emitted 870 million tonnes, or about 2.7% of the global man-made emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) in 2007. Exhaust gases are the primary source of GHG emissions from ships, with CO2 the most important GHG, both in terms of quantity and of global warming potential.

As the current estimate contained in the Second IMO GHG Study 2009 does not take account of the economic downturn experienced globally since 2008, an updated GHG emissions estimate should provide MEPC with reliable and up-to-date information to base its decisions on when considering further possible measures to address GHG emissions from international shipping.  An updated emissions estimate would also provide a baseline to enable the impact to be assessed of technical and operational energy efficiency measures for international shipping that entered into force on 1 January 2013 (read article on the amendments here).

The workshop, comprised of experts with demonstrable expertise and experience in the field of estimating fuel consumption and GHG emissions for the international maritime sector, considered the scope of the Update Study, methodology and assumptions to be used in the update. The Expert Workshop agreed that the primary focus of the Update Study should be to update the CO2 emission estimates for international shipping. It recommended that the MEPC agree Terms of Reference for the update including the methodology, so that work could begin in 2013, with a view to the final report of the Update Study being submitted to the 66th session of the MEPC, to be held in 2014.

Noting that there have been improvements in both the availability and quality of data since the Second IMO GHG Study was published in 2009, the Expert Workshop recommended that the same approaches, both top-down (based on fuel sales data) and bottom-up (based on ship activity data), should be used in the Update Study to estimate GHG emissions for international shipping.

It recommended that should there be adequate resources then the same substances as those estimated by the Second IMO GHG Study 2009 should also be estimated. In addition to CO2, a global estimate of emissions of other GHGs and relevant substances emitted from ships, engaged in international transport could include: methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), subject to data availability.  Other relevant substances that may contribute to climate change include: nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter (PM) and sulphur oxides (SOx).

A summary of the deliberations of the Expert Workshop will be provided as a report to MEPC 65, meeting in May this year.

Source: http://www.imo.org

Post to be found at:
http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/Work-on-Updating-Greenhouse-Gas-Emissions-Estimate-for-International-Shipping-Moves-Forward/

Global warming to open 'crazy' shipping routes across Arctic - © 2013 NBCNews.com Science on NBCNews.com

Posted - March 5, 2013 -  By John Roach, Contributing Writer, NBC News - Science on NBCNews.com

By the middle of this century, thanks to climate change, anyone with a light icebreaker can spend their Septembers going anywhere they want in the Arctic Ocean, including straight over the North Pole, according to a new study.
Ordinary vessels, which account for more than 99 percent of shipping traffic, could easily navigate the Northern Sea Route along the Russian coastline and, in some years, even find a route through the fabled Northwest Passage.
"That’s kind of crazy and, frankly, a little bit worrisome," Laurence C. Smith, a geographer and sea ice expert at the University of California, Los Angeles, told NBC News. "It is not like these will be open blue seas and safe or open year round."

Nevertheless, the temptation is likely to prove irresistible to some shipping companies and adventurous tourists, which opens up new concerns about search and rescue infrastructure, the environmental impact from increased shipping traffic and the potential for oil spills, among other issues.
Smith and graduate student Scott Stephenson used the output of climate models to chart the fastest, most efficient, and realistic routes through the Arctic for different classes of ships that will become possible as more sea ice disappears each summer.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

The fastest navigation routes for ships seeking to cross the Arctic Ocean by mid-century include the Northwest Passage (on the left) and over the North Pole (center), in addition to the Northern Sea Route (on the right).

New shipping routes through the Arctic can shave weeks off voyages between Europe and Asia and are often discussed as an upside to global warming. Most of the attention has focused on the Northern Sea Route, which is controlled by the Russians and requires expensive sea escorts to use.
The new findings, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, indicate shipping companies willing to invest in light icebreaker technology, known as Polar Class 6 vessels, can avoid those fees by going over the North Pole or through the Northwest Passage.
Regular ships, too, will be able to navigate at least some of these routes unescorted. And, "it doesn’t matter whether we get serious about curbing the growth of greenhouse gas emissions or not," Smith said. "Either way, the result is the same. The ice will thin sufficiently."
But just because the routes are opening up, doesn’t necessarily mean shipping companies will race to take advantage, according to Lawson Brigham, a professor of geography and Arctic policy at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.
He said the most likely users of the expanded shipping access are bulk cargo carriers hauling commodities such as oil and gas and hard minerals including nickel and zinc — the type of ships already plying the Russian coastline.
"It is the connection of natural resources to global markets that today and in the future is driving (Arctic) marine traffic," Brigham, who chaired the Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment for the Arctic Council, told NBC News.
Container ships of the sort that haul flat-screen TVs, iPhones, and IKEA furniture from factories in China to the U.S. and Europe are less likely to ply the new routes given the vagaries of ice and weather, which can wreak havoc on travel times for ships that must meet tight delivery schedules.
"It is possible" container ships would take the Northern Sea Route, Brigham said, "but the economics haven’t been worked out yet."
In addition to the economics of shipping, there are a host of development and political considerations the opening of these routes bring to the fore, according to Smith.
To start, there’s little infrastructure in place for search and rescue in the Arctic. Then there’re issues about whether the Northwest Passage is an international strait, as the U.S. maintains, or falls under Canada’s sovereignty as an internal domestic waterway.
"At the moment, the U.S. and Canada have a tacit agree-to-disagree policy on this because it doesn’t matter," Smith said. "But it could. The study suggests this needs to be resolved."

What’s more, the U.S. has yet to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a treaty that establishes international laws to govern the maritime rights of countries. If signed, the U.S. could claim sovereignty over some of the newly opened shipping lanes.
As these issues are sorted out – and Brigham said this study should help apply pressure to do so – increased access to shipping will almost certainly increase natural resource extraction in the Arctic.
"Whether the open access and greater shipping is a benefit to the world is an open book," he said. "We are going to produce even more oil and gas and carry it to the world and just enhance the (greenhouse gas) emissions. But the coastal states, all of us, want to develop our oil and gas."

Post to be found at:
http://science.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/04/17182162-global-warming-to-open-crazy-shipping-routes-across-arctic?lite

A shipowners guide to complying with CO2 emissions regulations: market-based measures - Lloyd's List

Posted - March 3, 2013 - Lloyd's List

Mandatory and potentially mandatory CO2 reduction rules
The international Maritime Organization has developed two mandatory regulations aimed at helping reduce the CO2 emissions from individual vessels. These are the energy efficiency design index and the ship energy efficiency management plan.
It is still working on a third, a so called market based measure, which will apply across the global fleet.
The two agreed CO2 regulations are the first such rules for any industry and together they form the International Energy Efficiency Certificate, with vessels built or ordered before January 1, 2013 only required to have the SEEMP.

Market-based measures
This is a can of worms. A market based measure effectively means using a system to penalise the worst CO2 emitters, and possibly rewarding those that perform well.
The IMO is in the throes of discussing options for a MBM at that can be applied to shipping. There are a number of options it is whittling down, but basically they fall into three categories.
There is the idea of an emission trading scheme (The European Union’s on-going scheme is one example), there is the option of establishing a levy on all bunker fuels and using this to create a fund that helps in CO2 mitigation.
Then there is the option of using an efficiency index to establish a vessel’s performance and penalise it if it is a poor performer. All have their supported and al have their critics, but while the global debate on how society as a whole is stuck at the UNFCCC, development at the IMO on shipping’s solution will likely remain slow.
One recent development is the European Union’s decision to talk a little more constructively with the IMO rather than pushing ahead with assessing it sown regional solution for shipping.
This has led to a decision to assess the global CO2 emissions form shipping, an uncontroversial exercise that could at least help in the discussion over how much shipping should be expected to contribute to a global solution – if one is ever found.

Post to be found at:
http://www.lloydslist.com/ll/incoming/article416945.ece

Two from Motorship

The Motorship

Dual-fuel marine two-strokes attract first orders

First, the US shipping company TOTE signed a contract with its ... is said to be the most fuel-efficient, low-emission method available on the market.

http://www.motorship.com/news101/engines-and-propulsion/dual-fuel-marine-two-strokes-attract-first-orders

The Motorship

LNG fuelled engines may be the future, but what about today?

In response to rising industry demand for more sustainable shipping, ... a number of options for curbing emissions which may either take the form of a ...

http://www.motorship.com/news101/engines-and-propulsion/lng-fuelled-engines-may-be-the-future,-but-what-about-today

International Maritime Organization Studies Ways to Further Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions - Supply Chain Brain

Posted - -By: Maritime Executive - March 01, 2013 - Supply Chain Brain

International experts are meeting at IMO Headquarters this week, in the form of an Expert Workshop, to begin work on updating the inventory of greenhouse gases (GHG) from international shipping, with a view to providing reliable and up-to-date information on which IMO, through its Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), might base its work on further measures to reduce GHG.

The Second IMO GHG Study 2009 estimated that international shipping emitted 870 million tonnes, or about 2.7% of the global man-made emissions of CO2 in 2007. An updated GHG inventory is considered necessary as the current estimate contained in the Second study does not take account of the economic downturn experienced globally since 2008.  Exhaust gases are the primary source of GHG emissions from ships, with carbon dioxide the most important GHG, both in terms of quantity and of global warming potential. An updated inventory would also provide a baseline to enable the impact to be assessed of technical and operational energy efficiency measures for international shipping that entered into force on 1 January 2013.

The MEPC, at its sixty-fourth session in October 2012 endorsed, in principle, the outline for an update of the GHG emissions estimate. The Expert Workshop, meeting from 26 February to  1 March 2013, will further consider the methodology and assumptions to be used in the update. The Expert Workshop is expected to provide a summary of its deliberations as a report on its work to MEPC 65, meeting in May this year.

In addition to carbon dioxide (CO2), a global GHG inventory of emissions of GHGs and relevant substances emitted from ships, engaged in international transport could include: methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), subject to data availability.

Other relevant substances that may contribute to climate change include: nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter (PM) and sulphur oxides (SOx).

IMO has already adopted technical and operational measures to reduce emissions of GHG from international shipping. The Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) was made mandatory for new ships and the Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) for all ships, under amendments to MARPOL Annex VI adopted in 2011. These amendments entered into force on 1 January 2013. 

An article explaining the technical and operational measures already adopted can be found here.

Post can be found at: http://www.supplychainbrain.com/content/single-article-page/article/international-maritime-organization-studies-ways-to-further-reduce-greenhouse-gas-emissions/

Green end for Hoëgh Traveller - Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide

Posted - Wednesday - February 27, 201 - Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide

The pure car and truck carrier Hoëgh Traveller has today been sold to Grieg Green for environmentally friendly recycling in China.
This is the second car carrier sold by Hoëgh Autoliners to Grieg Green for recycling since the ro/ro transport specialist implemented an environmentally friendly end of life policy for its vessels in 2009. Grieg Green will act as the buyer of the vessel and resell Hoëgh Traveller to a Chinese recycling yard where it will then ensure the disposal of the ship meets certain green criteria.
"This is the 12th car carrier we have sold for green recycling and we are pleased that Grieg Green will supply services to safeguard safe and environmentally friendly recycling," says Ingar Skiaker, ceo of Höegh Autoliners. "Our concern for safety and the environment applies all the way through the vessel's life."
"Grieg Green has been set up to provide shipowners with services for planning, monitoring and reporting green recycling," says Petter Heier, ceo of Grieg Green AS. "We have successfully recycled several vessels and we are pleased that Höegh Autoliners again has entrusted us to handle this project."
Source: Seatrade-Global 

Post to be found at:
http://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/News.aspx?ElementId=6318b48b-f92b-40c3-879a-565778ae2112&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=daily

Work begins on updating inventory of GHG from international shipping - IMO

Posted - Briefing: 06, February 25, 2013 - IMO

International experts are meeting at IMO Headquarters this week, in the form of an Expert Workshop, to begin work on updating the inventory of greenhouse gases (GHG) from international shipping, with a view to providing reliable and up-to-date information on which IMO, through its Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), might base its work on further measures to reduce GHG.

 

The Second IMO GHG Study 2009 estimated that international shipping emitted 870 million tonnes, or about 2.7% of the global man-made emissions of CO2 in 2007. An updated GHG inventory is considered necessary as the current estimate contained in the Second study does not take account of the economic downturn experienced globally since 2008.  Exhaust gases are the primary source of GHG emissions from ships, with carbon dioxide the most important GHG, both in terms of quantity and of global warming potential. An updated inventory would also provide a baseline to enable the impact to be assessed of technical and operational energy efficiency measures for international shipping that entered into force on 1 January 2013.

 

The MEPC, at its sixty-fourth session in October 2012 endorsed, in principle, the outline for an update of the GHG emissions estimate. The Expert Workshop, meeting from 26 February to  1 March 2013, will further consider the methodology and assumptions to be used in the update. The Expert Workshop is expected to provide a summary of its deliberations as a report on its work to MEPC 65, meeting in May this year.

In addition to carbon dioxide (CO2), a global GHG inventory of emissions of GHGs and relevant substances emitted from ships, engaged in international transport could include: methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs) and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), subject to data availability. 

 

Other relevant substances that may contribute to climate change include: nitrogen oxides (NOx), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC), carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter (PM) and sulphur oxides (SOx).

IMO has already adopted technical and operational measures to reduce emissions of GHG from international shipping. The Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) was made mandatory for new ships and the Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) for all ships, under amendments to MARPOL Annex VI adopted in 2011. These amendments entered into force on 1 January 2013.  

An article explaining the technical and operational measures already adopted can be found here.

 
Post to be found at:
http://www.imo.org/MediaCentre/PressBriefings/Pages/06-ghg-expert-group.aspx