Environment: New York/New Jersey
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New York/New Jersey Port Authority Board Funds Clean Vessel Incentive Program
The board of directors of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey on November 19 approved a three-year extension to an incentive program for ocean vessels that call the Port of New York and New Jersey.
The board approved an additional $3.12 million for the Ocean-Going Vessel Clean Vessel Incentive Program to allow it to continue through the end of 2018. The program, launched in January 2013, encourages ship operators to improve engines, use cleaner fuels and upgrade technology to reduce emissions from ocean-going vessels, which are the largest source of air pollutants at port facilities.
The program provides financial incentives to ships achieving a score of 20 points or higher based on the World Port Climate Initiative's Environmental Ship Index (ESI). The ESI is a worldwide mechanism that awards points to vessels that exceed the environmental standards set by the International Maritime Organization. Additional points are allocated to vessels that participate in the Vessel Speed Reduction program, which encourages ships to travel at slower speeds to reduce fuel burned, which in turn lowers pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.
Based on scoring, the incentives range between $1,000 and $2,500 per vessel call on the port. To encourage vessel operators to send their cleanest ships to the port, an additional incentive is provided for ships equipped with newer engines of $1,000 to $2,000 per vessel call depending on the type of engine.
Based on a forecasted participation rate of more than 2,600 total vessel calls, the port authority expects the program’s extension to result in emission reductions of 21,000 tons of carbon dioxide, 210 tons of nitrogen oxides, 10 tons of particulate matter and 3 tons of sulfur oxides – the equivalent, the port authority says, of removing 23,000 cars from the road.
The program will build on all of the port's environmental strategies, which have resulted in a reduction in port related air emissions by an average of 33 percent across all pollutants between 2006 and 2013, despite a 7 percent increase in cargo volumes during the same period.
"This program continues our efforts to balance the need to maintain the port's competitive position with our environmental responsibilities to the communities that surround it," said Port Authority Chairman John Degnan. "The results to date are clear evidence that our investments in environmental programs like this one are clearly making a difference in people's lives."
The board of directors of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey on November 19 approved a three-year extension to an incentive program for ocean vessels that call the Port of New York and New Jersey.
The board approved an additional $3.12 million for the Ocean-Going Vessel Clean Vessel Incentive Program to allow it to continue through the end of 2018. The program, launched in January 2013, encourages ship operators to improve engines, use cleaner fuels and upgrade technology to reduce emissions from ocean-going vessels, which are the largest source of air pollutants at port facilities.
The program provides financial incentives to ships achieving a score of 20 points or higher based on the World Port Climate Initiative's Environmental Ship Index (ESI). The ESI is a worldwide mechanism that awards points to vessels that exceed the environmental standards set by the International Maritime Organization. Additional points are allocated to vessels that participate in the Vessel Speed Reduction program, which encourages ships to travel at slower speeds to reduce fuel burned, which in turn lowers pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.
Based on scoring, the incentives range between $1,000 and $2,500 per vessel call on the port. To encourage vessel operators to send their cleanest ships to the port, an additional incentive is provided for ships equipped with newer engines of $1,000 to $2,000 per vessel call depending on the type of engine.
Based on a forecasted participation rate of more than 2,600 total vessel calls, the port authority expects the program’s extension to result in emission reductions of 21,000 tons of carbon dioxide, 210 tons of nitrogen oxides, 10 tons of particulate matter and 3 tons of sulfur oxides – the equivalent, the port authority says, of removing 23,000 cars from the road.
The program will build on all of the port's environmental strategies, which have resulted in a reduction in port related air emissions by an average of 33 percent across all pollutants between 2006 and 2013, despite a 7 percent increase in cargo volumes during the same period.
"This program continues our efforts to balance the need to maintain the port's competitive position with our environmental responsibilities to the communities that surround it," said Port Authority Chairman John Degnan. "The results to date are clear evidence that our investments in environmental programs like this one are clearly making a difference in people's lives."
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