On the occasion of the first day of Green Great Britain Week, clean shipping experts met on 15 October, to plot the route to zero emissions for the UK maritime sector. The Clean Maritime Council is expected to devise a strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the sector to improve air quality on and around our waterways, ports and shipping lanes.
The clean maritime plan will be published next year containing policies to tackle emissions from shipping, while ensuring the UK can reap the economic benefits of the global transition to zero emission shipping.
Air pollution is the fourth greatest threat to public health after cancer, heart disease and obesity. In 2016, domestic shipping accounted for 11% of the country’s nitrogen oxide emissions.
In view of these, the Council has brought together experts from across the maritime sector – from industry leaders developing greener vessels, to academics studying the economics of emission reduction.
The UK maritime industry has a vital role in improving air quality on and around water, and council members will be looking at innovative and practical ways to reduce emissions from the sector. The Clean Maritime Plan will bring new opportunities for Britain’s businesses to design, develop and sell green solutions to this global challenge,
…said Maritime Minister Nusrat Ghani, who opened the Council.
This comes in addition to several current plans underway in UK to tackle shipping emissions:
- hybrid ferries using battery power alongside traditional engines are being used between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight and in Scotland
- shore-side electricity is already in place at Portsmouth (MOD), Fraserburgh and Brodick to reduce engines running at ports
- Innovate UK is funding a project in Orkney to directly inject hydrogen into the fuel supply of a ferry
The environment is also one of the main strands of the government’s Maritime 2050 strategy, a long term look at the opportunities for the sector for the next 30 years.
