Economic sciences/11. Logistics

PhD student Y. Mamatok

Dalian University of Technology, China

Environmental challenges of seaports and the concept of a “Green Port”

Transport policy for the next decade will clearly be influenced by the environment and, more specifically, climate change agenda. Sustainable transport will therefore require the reduction of Green House Gas (GHG) emissions from transport. (GHG emissions can be seen as the product of three components: the amount of the activity that generates the emissions; the energy intensity of that activity; and the GHG intensity of the energy that is being used).

Evidently, transport cannot be seen in isolation from wider economic growth and developments, along with other sectors and producers of GHGs. The strong increase in global trade and the deepening integration prevented the decoupling of freight transport from GDP in the last decade. The growth of freight transport is also linked to economic practices – concentration of production in fewer sites to reap economies of scale, delocalization, just-in-time deliveries, wide-spread recycling of glass, paper, metals – that allowed reduction of costs and, possibly, of emissions in other sectors at the expense of higher emissions from transport.

The path to increased sustainable freight transport rests largely with the ability of industry to optimize its transport and logistics requirements in line with the wider supply chain needs. In doing so, legal, technical and operational barriers need to be removed and incentives for speedier development, investment and implementation of more sustainable technology and measures may sometimes be required.

Environmental challenges of seaports

The past years have seen an increasing attention on the environmental impact of port operations and development. The focus on environmental issues is especially felt at the level of vessel and cargo handling operations, industrial activities in ports, port planning and extension initiatives and hinterland accessibility. Ports need to comply with ever higher regulatory and societal requirements in the fields of environmental protection which can have an impact on the further space/room for the ports to grow, not only in terms of hectares, but also in terms of the so-called environmental space. This challenges seaports to minimize emissions of existing and future activities in the port areas and the wider logistics area. Environmental aspects also play an increasing role in attracting trading partners and potential investors. A port with a strong environmental record and a high level of community support is likely to be favored. As such, port management in light of green port development is a topical issue which deserves much research work.

Environmental impact of port operations

One of the major environmental impacts generated by ports is air pollution, particularly greenhouse gas (GHG) emission which leads to global warming since GHG traps heat. There are also health effects impacting the residents of the local community surrounding ports which include asthma, other respiratory diseases, cardiovascular disease, lung cancer and premature mortality. Ships that call at ports are a major source of air pollutants such as CO2, SO2, NOx, PM10, PM2.5, HC, CO and VOC. Land side activities, particularly cargo operations at terminals, form another source of airborne emission. Emissions of dust from bulk cargo handling, electricity consumption, and gases from cargo handling equipment and trucks adversely affect air quality.

The concept of a “Green Port”

European port authorities encourage best practice amongst its member ports and set challenging targets. The new Green Guide is part of that process. This action framework is applied to five selected environmental issues: air quality, energy conservation and climate change, noise management, waste management and water management. The Guide introduces a common framework for action under 5 Es: Exemplify Enable, Encourage, Engage and Enforce:

1. Exemplifying: Setting a good example towards the wider port community by demonstrating excellence in managing the environmental performance of their own operations, equipment and assets

2. Enabling: Providing the operational and infrastructural conditions within the port area that facilitate port users and enhance improved environmental performance within the port area

3. Encouraging: Providing incentives to port users that encourage a change of behavior and induce them to continuously improve their environmental performance

4. Engaging: with port users and/or competent authorities in sharing knowledge, means and skills towards joint projects targeting environmental improvement in the port area and the logistic chain

5. Enforcing: Making use of mechanisms that enforce good environmental practice by port users where applicable and ensuring compliance.

The following Table 1 represents of some Green Port projects in Europe.

Table 1: Examples of Green Port projects in European Union

It should be noticed that the enforcing element is seen by port authorities as a last resort instrument in line with their belief that a lot can be achieved through cooperation and common understanding in line with the principle of self-regulation.

The increasing focus on the environmental impacts of ports is not only associated with existing port, ship and hinterland transport operations. From an environmental perspective, port development and extension should ensure sustainable development. Hence, environmental sustainability of port projects has become as important as economic and financial viability. This often demands a more systematic approach in which the impacts of ports and port projects are placed within wider coastal management and environmental policies.

Literature:

1. The future of transport: from policy to practice – a shippers’ perspective. 30 Nov 2008. http://www.greenport.com/news101/community-beyond-the-gate/the-future-of-transport-from-policy-to-practice-a-shippers-perspective

2. The Importance of Green Ports and Green Logistic Chains. 08 Apr 2011. http://www.greenport.com/news101/vessel-build-and-maintenance/assessment-tools/the-importance-of-green-ports-and-green-logistic-chain

3. ESPO, June 2012. The “ESPO Green Guide; Towards excellence in port environmental management and sustainability”.

4. ESPO, June 2012. The “ESPO Green Guide; Annex 1 Good practice examples in line with the 5Es.

5. Lam, J.S.L. and Notteboom, T. (2012). “The green port toolbox: A comparison of port management tools used by leading ports in Asia and Europe”. Paper presented at International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME) conference, Taipei, Taiwan, 5-8 September 2012.