Sustainable Transport and the Environment Guide - Unite the Union

oil contains high concentrations of toxic fuel compounds banned from use in most
other industrial and consumer applications.
The pollutants emitted from burning this dirty fuel leads to acid rain, global climate
changes, particularly over oceans, and damaging health effects for communities living
near major port areas.
Analysis by Carnegie Mellon and Duke Universities suggests that smokestack
emissions 52 from ships may account for half the sulphur found over the world's
oceans, and 60 percent of the airborne sulphur in the North Pacific and North Atlantic.
Worldwide, ship sulphur emissions rival the sulphur emissions of the world's largest
economies, resulting in staggering proportions when compared to sulphur generated
on land. Total worldwide ship sulphur emissions equals 43 percent of the sulphur
produced by the US and 53 percent of that produced by OECD Europe. Researchers
conclude that ship emissions are a critical and overlooked element in the global
climate change debate and in emissions modelling.
Adding to these concerns, to the results from the Indian Ocean Experiment in 1998-
1999 suggest that aerosol emissions from ships, power plants and industrial sources
may be trapping solar heat by "burning away" clouds through emissions of sulphates,
nitrates, soot and ash. Such an effect would increase global warming through loss of
heat-reflecting cloud cover."
Research published in 2007 claimed 60,000 people died each year as the result of
ships' high levels of sulphate emissions.
Information put out by the service, whose centrepiece is the website 53 , stresses the
benefits brought by container shipping, particularly the sharp reduction in global
transport costs achieved by the industry.
The service marks an unusual foray into the public arena by a group of senior
executives at the world's 24 largest container carriers. Many of its members,
particularly the many family controlled lines, are normally publicity-shy.
The shipping lines reject criticism of their environmental record, saying large, modern
container ships create far fewer emissions moving a tonne of cargo for a given
distance than any other means of transport. Most lines have also reduced the speed of
their ships in recent months, they point out. The move, intended to lower consumption
of expensive fuel, has reduced carbon emissions.
Emissions from some shipping lines ships were down 35 per cent following a
reduction in their average speed from 24 to 20 knots, even after taking into account
the emissions produced by the extra ship needed to maintain weekly services with the
slower speeds.
However, like other debates about the impact of transport on the environment there
are different claims. Some claim container shipping is the most environmentally
52 http://www.earthscape.org/p1/bwn01/
53 www.shipsandboxes.com
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