As of 1 January 2011, the ports of Amsterdam, Moerdijk, Dordrecht and Rotterdam will reward clean ocean-going vessels with discounts on their port dues. This involves vessels which score well on the Environmental Ship Index (ESI). Not all organisations fully support the new initiative. The Dutch North Sea Foundation, for example, thinks ESI is not ambitious enough.
The ESI is a new international standard for ships’ emissions into the atmosphere. Ships which perform better than the legal norm will be rewarded by the four Dutch ports. The ESI certificate will be awarded by the World Port Climate Initiative, at the request of the ship, from 1 January 2011 onwards (https://www.environmentalshipindex.org[environmentalshipindex.org]).
Encouraging Sustainable Behaviour
The ESI was designed by the ports of Le Havre, Bremen, Hamburg, Antwerp, Amsterdam and Rotterdam. The index shows the environmental performance of ships in terms of the emission of air pollutants (NOx and SOx) and CO2. Ports and other nautical service providers throughout the world can use the index to reward ships and, in this way, encourage sustainable behaviour in the shipping industry. The ports of Amsterdam, Moerdijk, Dordrecht and Rotterdam will be the first to start using the ESI to reward clean ocean-going vessels. In the meantime, Antwerp, Hamburg and Bremen have also announced their intention to use the ESI.
World Port Climate Initiative
World Port Climate Initiative is a collective of 55 prominent ports which work actively to reduce air pollution, and the emission of CO2 in particular. It does this under the auspices of the International Association of Ports and Harbors, which represents the interests of seaports internationally.
‘ESI Lacks Ambition’
Although the North Sea Foundation likes the initiative, it feels the measures do not go far enough. The ESI focuses solely on air polution and not on polution of the sea. “Though it is good to see market parties such as ports working towards cleaner shipping, ESI does not reach its goal as an environmental index as it is only an air emission index. At the same time, better indexes have already been developed,” says Merijn Hougee of the North Sea Foundation.
CSI
As an example, the foundation mentions the Swedish Clean Shipping Index (CSI), which helps cargo owners to choose for a more sustainable transporter. 24 large Swedish cargo owners, such as H&M, Ericsson and Volvo Logistics, already use CSI. This index focusses on all kinds of emissions, such as CO2, NOx, SOx and water pollution through wastem chemicals in antifouling, lubricants, coolants and cleaning products. This makes CSI more ambitious. In addition, the index is supported by cargo owners, shipping companies and environmental organisations.
