EMEA News
DNV Study Sees Fixes for Nordic Ship Pollution
A study by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) on behalf of the Nordic Council of Ministers suggests that emissions rules and incentives for ship owners could help reduce pollution in Nordic waters.
DNV reports that the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, which are already designated as emission control areas (ECAs) for sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions, are expected to be designated as ECAs for nitrogen oxides (NOx) as well in the near future.
That would mean all vessels built after 2016 would have to comply with Tier III emissions requirements for NOx, representing a 74 percent reduction from Tier II levels.
"However, all vessels built before 2016 will in practice be unaffected by the ECA NOx regulations and they will represent a huge number of vessels continuing to operate the next 20–30 years," the report says.
DNV finds that Nordic nations should support the NOx ECA designation for the two seas while also taking additional action to address vessels built before 2016, particularly passenger vessels, which are responsible for about 30 percent of NOx emissions, despite being few in number.
The report suggests incentives for ship scrapping and replacement to encourage operators to remove older vessels from their fleets.
Another means of reducing some types of emissions is the adoption of liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkers, which can help vessels meet the Tier III requirements, and the report says that encouraging the construction of LNG terminals "may prove to be crucial."
LNG bunkers also "close to eliminate" particulate matter (PM) emissions, and general fuel savings measures would also drive down the level of this type of pollution, the report says.
Last week an official from Russian gas giant Gazprom predicted that the Baltic and North Seas will become a strong market for LNG bunkers, and Norway's prime minister has said the Baltic Sea is likely to lead the way in the use of LNG fuel.
