Filed under: Diesel, Etc., USA
In 2010, a team of researchers led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) mounted instruments on an aircraft and the vessel Atlantis to capture emissions from container ships off California's coast. The team found that as container ships shifted from bottom-of-the-barrel bunker fuel to low-sulfur fuels, air pollution plummeted, with some pollutants dropping by as much as 90 percent. Surprised? Neither are we.
Clean fuel regulations enforced within 24 miles of California's coast and voluntary vessel slowdowns substantially reduce air pollution caused by near-shore ships, according to NOAA. In particular, the research team discovered that emissions of health-damaging pollutants, including sulfur dioxide and particulate matter, dropped by nearly 90 percent.
While it's promising to know that emissions drop dramatically by simply switching fuel and slowing down, there's no way to enforce these guidelines when vessels hit international waters. So, even though California can limit emissions near its coast, most vessels switch bank to the dirty, dirty bunker fuel when beyond the 24-mile enforcement zone.
Continue reading NOAA finds air pollution plummets by up to 90% when ships switch to low-sulfur fuel
NOAA finds air pollution plummets by up to 90% when ships switch to low-sulfur fuel originally appeared on AutoblogGreen on Sun, 18 Sep 2011 17:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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