Editorial

Citation

Leal Filho, W. (2007), "Editorial", Management of Environmental Quality, Vol. 18 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/meq.2007.08318faa.001

Editorial

Welcome to another issue of MEQ. In this issue readers will be able to find an interesting set of papers dealing with aspects of environmental conservation and management from different parts of the world.

In this editorial, I would like to discuss the problem of pollution from ships. Limiting air pollution from ships is a more cost-effective way of meeting air quality targets than tightening controls on land-based sources, according to study for the European commission which was recently published.

Conducted by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria, the study identifies measures that could reduce ship sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions by 80 per cent and nitrogen dioxide (NOx) emissions by nearly 90 per cent by 2020. It puts the cost of implementing these measures at €5.5 billion per year, compared with an estimated €7.1 billion annually to meet air quality targets under the EU’s thematic strategy on air pollution for land-based sources. The latter aims to cut SO2 by 82 per cent and NOx by 60 per cent by 2020.

Emission abatement options explored in the study include seawater sulphur scrubbing, lower sulphur-content fuels, the use of “humid air” engines in new ships, slide valve retrofitting in existing ship engines and selective catalytic reduction. If ship emissions are not further restricted, the study warns, the industry’s growth will negate land-based emission control efforts by 2020. Today, ships are estimated to be responsible for between 10 and 20 per cent of sulphur deposition in coastal areas; by 2020, this could be 50 per cent, the study says.

In order to address this problem, closer cooperation between shipping companies and government are needed and mechanisms should be put in place to provide incentives towards the use of cleaner fuels in sea traffic.

Enjoy your reading!

Walter Leal Filho