Seas at Risk and T&E exhort the IMO to take in consideration the reduction of the speed of the ships in order to diminish their emissions



In order to remarkablly reduce the polluting emissions of the ships it is necessary to reduce their speed of navigation, deceleration that would have also the effect to diminish the risk of collisions between the ships and the whales and to attenuate the underwater acoustic pollution. They support Seas at Risk and Transport & Environment (T&E) on the base of the results of a study that the two organizations have commissioned to the society of advising GL Reynolds specialized in the field of the environmental sustainability in sight of the round of encounters of this week of the intersessionale working group on the reduction of the gas emissions to greenhouse effect of the ships of Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Seas at Risk and T&E, to which they join numerous not-governmental associations that take care of the impact on the atmosphere of the transport activities, have emphasized that "the remarkable positive effect is very famous that the reduction of the speed could have on the gas emissions to greenhouse effect of the ships". Between the analyses on the relationship between the speed of the ship and the level of these emissions cited from the study are those realized of Jasper Faber of the advising society EC Delft and from other investigators second which, for example, the produced emissions of co2 from a portacontainer would come down of 13% graces to a reduction of 10% of the navigation speed, they would drop of 23% with a decrease of 20% of the speed and a cut of 32% of the emissions of co2 with a reduction of 30% of the navigation speed would be had. With analogous reductions of the speed the carbon dioxide emissions of rinfusiere would come down of 15%, 28% and 38% and those of the tankers of 10%, 18% and 24%.

But second the two organizations the positive effect would not be only this: "this that has received less attention - has specified Seas at Risk and T&E - it is the positive effect that such variation of the speeds could have on the nature and the human health. The relationship - they have evidenced the two organizations - illustrates as a modest reduction of 20% of the speed of the ship would reduce of 66% the underwater acoustic pollution and of important a 78% the possibility of a fatal collision between a ship and a whale. It is the noises that the collisions with the whales are having a serious impact on state of health of the marine atmosphere".

Seas at Risk and T&E have observed moreover that "the decrease of the speed of the ship involves a reduction of the fuel burnup, with consequent reduction of the gas emissions to greenhouse effect but also conspicuous reductions of carbonic particulate matter, sulfur and oxides of nitrogen, all important atmospheric pollutions. The emissions of SOx and NOx - they have explained the two organizations - have serious implications for the human health, while the black carbon represents a source of worry for the Arctic where he is responsible for the acceleration of global warming".

John Maggs, senior policy advisor of Seas at Risk and president of the Clean Shipping Coalition (CSC), therefore has exhorted the delegates who this week will participate to the negotiations on the climate near the IMO to estimate with attention the proposal to reduce the speed of the ships that - it has restated - would not only make a big difference relatively to the impact of the shipping on the climate, but would remarkablly reduce also the atmospheric pollution, the underwater acoustic pollution and the fatal collision number between whales and ships, all issues that also the IMO must face".