Report Documents Air Pollution Burden of Big Ships on Houston

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: ElenaCraft, 512.691.3452, ecraft@edf.org or Janea Scott, 917.674.0513, jscott@edf.org; Media Contact: Chris Smith, 512.691.3451, csmith@edf.org
 
(Houston – October 3, 2008) A new report released today shows that large ocean-going ships – such as cruise ships and container ships – in Houston and other U.S. ports, are big pollution emitters. These large ships release dangerous diesel pollution that is a public health threat to millions living and working in the Houston/Galveston region and other U.S. coastal communities, are a major source of urban smog pollution, and are one of the world’s largest emitters of global warming gases.
 
The report, “Floating Smokestacks: A Call for Action to Clean Up Marine Shipping Pollution,” by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), recommends protective policy action at next week’s pivotal meeting of the International Maritime Organization. This international body will decide on standards that could significantly reduce pollution from these large ocean-going ships by requiring cleaner engines, pollution control technologies and cleaner fuel.
 
Ocean-going ships are powered by large high-emitting diesel engines that run on an extremely dirty grade of fuel, called bunker fuel or residual fuel. It contains approximately 1,800 times the sulfur content of the U.S. diesel fuel standards for other major diesel engines.
 
The report found that ocean-going ships in the Houston/Galveston area annually emit about 5,600 tons of smog-forming nitrogen oxide (NOx) and 590 tons of harmful particulate matter pollution (PM 2.5); the NOx emissions are comparable to the pollution from more than 6 million new cars. On Wednesday, federal regulators reclassified Houston’s smog problem as “severe,” a designation held by only one other city in the nation: Los Angeles.
 
“Unfortunately, Houston is hard hit by some of the most unhealthy smog levels in the nation,” said Elena Craft, an air quality specialist in EDF’s Houston office. “Strong international action can have significant local clean air benefits. Cleaning up pollution from these ‘floating smokestacks,’ in addition to the Port of Houston implementing a comprehensive clean air plan, is an important step toward restoring healthy air in our community.”
 
“Large ocean-going ships are vital for international commerce, but the pollution from these ships is harmful to human health,” said Janea Scott, an EDF senior attorney. “Next week’s international meeting is critical in putting in place a clean air blueprint for these big ships that will mean healthier air for our coastal communities.”
 
The new report analyzed the latest available data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2001) and found that large ocean-going ships in the United States emitted:
·          Approximately 54,000 tons of particulate matter (PM 2.5), equivalent to the emissions from about 117 coal-fired power plants; PM 2.5 is a deadly form of air pollution associated with lung disease and other respiratory diseases.
·         Approximately 745,000 tons of smog-forming nitrogen oxides, equivalent to the NOx emissions from 94 coal-fired power plants;
·        Nearly 40% of all sulfur dioxide emitted by the transportation sector; sulfur dioxide can transform into harmful fine particles and can also fall back to the earth as acid rain.
·        Ocean-going ships are responsible for about 3% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that cause climate change.
 
Currently, ocean-going vessels are subject only to weak international emissions standards. The clean air standards that apply to these high-polluting engines have lagged behind other major source categories in the transportation sector. Without strong regulations, pollution from these high-emitting engines will increase.
 
EDF’s new report also examines pollution in the ports of the Lower Mississippi, Seattle/Tacoma, Los Angeles/Long Beach, New York/New Jersey, and the Great Lakes. In addition, the report recommends: establishing protective limits on pollution around America’s coasts through cleaner fuel standards, addressing global warming pollution from ships, and taking actions to reduce or eliminate emissions from ships that are near or in ports by cutting idling emissions when these big ships are at dock. 


 

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