The Antwerp port community has launched its third Sustainability Report. The report is unique of its kind, as it covers the sustainable enterprise initiatives taken by the many companies in the port.
In the third Sustainability Report, sustainability is measured on the basis of no fewer than 80 indicators, ranging from laws and regulations to quality of the environment, water consumption and emissions. In addition the privacy of customers and the safety of the more than 60,000 port employees are examined, among many other things. For example, when it comes to safety the report notes a downward trend in the number of industrial accidents, but sadly we are still confronted with fatal accidents. In order to reduce harmful emissions it is very important to introduce cleaner means of transport. Truck transport is now significantly cleaner, as 70% of trucks used in the port area have Euro V or Euro VI engines. As for hinterland freight carriage, rail transport is an important point for attention: here, both the volume and the proportion of goods covered by rail are declining. Initiatives such as the Liefkenshoek rail link and Railport should help to reverse this trend. Finally the report shows that many companies are investing in research and innovation in order for them to operate as sustainably as possible. Some examples:
- ADPO (Antwerp Distribution and Product Operations) is a logistics company that focuses on storage of specialty chemicals. In 2014 it set up the first LNG filling station in Belgium where trucks can fill up both with LNG (liquefied natural gas) and with CNG (compressed natural gas). LNG is cleaner than diesel and about one quarter cheaper. ADPO has also purchased 12 trucks powered by LNG and in the longer term it aims to replace all 40 of its trucks. According to a study by the Flemish Institute for Technological Research, LNG is 90% less harmful to the environment than diesel, as it produces lower emissions of particulates, CO2 and nitrogen oxides. The trucks are also less noisy.
- Gyproc Belgium produces plasterboard and plaster systems for the construction industry. In order to control run-off from its site the company has built a “wadi,” i.e. a wide ditch where rainwater collects and is able to percolate slowly into the ground water. This “left-over green area” has now been given a higher ecological value by reprofiling of the land and an appropriate programme of mowing.
The full Sustainability Report can be viewed online. At present it is available only in Dutch; the English version will follow shortly at www.sustainableportofantwerp.com.
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