Climate change remains the top concern of ports surveyed by the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) for the third consecutive year, a report presented at the GreenPort Congress has shown.
The majority of ports asked were also eager to get on board with environmental strategies, the report, delivered by Anaëlle Boudry, Senior Policy Advisor with ESPO, said.
Second most important concern was energy efficiency, moving up one place since last year, with air quality now in third place.
The 9th Annual Environmental Report is part of EcoPorts, an environmental flagship initiative.
It refers to 83 ports in 21 countries of the EU and UK and specifically relates to environmental management.
Boudry said 82% of them are part of the TEN-T network, the trans-European multimodal transport infrastructure initiative by the EU.
Onshore Power Supply
Of the ports asked, 58% said they had Onshore Power Supply (OPS) on one or more berths, Boudry said, adding that under AFIR (Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulations), it must be installed for container and passenger ships by 2030. It also has to be available for inland waterway vessels.
Of the ports that had OPS, 98% said it was a fixed installation, with 17% saying they had mobile solutions – something that is increasing, with the lack of space at ports placing limits on fixed options.
“Progress is quite slow with the challenges of installing OPS,” said Boudry.
With liquefied natural gas (LNG) there was less keenness, with 48% of ports saying they had bunkering available and just 16% saying they intended to develop it.
Sixty-one per cent of ports said they offered reduced fees for ‘greener’ vessels.
Top 10 concerns
1. Climate change
2. Energy efficiency
3. Air quality
4. Noise
5. Port development (land related)
6. Ship waste
7. Garbage and port waste
8. Water quality
9. Relationship with the local community
10. Port development (water related)
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