Port of Kaohsiung Implementing Practical Plan to Reduce Air Pollution and Improve Port Air Quality
The growing impact of airborne pollution from Mainland China has limited and even negated the effectiveness of air quality improvement measures implemented by Taiwan’s environmental authorities. Responding to this chronic and increasingly serious problem, the Port of Kaohsiung, TIPC has announced a comprehensive plan to effectively reduce airborne emissions. This plan, which is part of ongoing measures to effectively and sustainably improve the overall environment at the port, is tailored to the specific operations in each port area.
The Port of Kaohsiung will roll out the Practical Plan for Preventing Air Pollution at Commercial Ports between 2017 and 2019. Specific measures are outlined for effectively controlling various sources of emissions, including 1) bulk cargo handling and warehousing operations, 2) port equipment and facilities, 3) construction operations, 4) vehicles, and 5) vessels.
Measures addressing bulk cargo handling and warehousing operations will promote the installation and use of enclosed, automated cargo-handling facilities and the construction of enclosed / covered storage facilities. These will help significantly reduce the emissions associated with unprotected cargo handling and storage yard activities. At present, Port of Kaohsiung facilities include 18 cement silos, 6 grain storage warehouses, and 4 enclosed coal storage bunkers. In the future, the bulk cargo wharves at the port’s Intercontinental Container Terminal (ICT, currently under construction) will all be fitted with state-of-the-art enclosed handling facilities.
Measures addressing port equipment and facilities will actively promote the replacement of gas / oil-fueled equipment and machinery with those run on electricity or high-efficiency hybrid engines. Port of Kaohsiung-managed storage yards currently operate 6 electric rail-mounted gantry cranes, while all of the 12 gantry cranes and 30 transtainers at the 6th Container Terminal’s “KMCT Terminal of Excellence” are electric powered.
Measures addressing construction operations will, in addition to contractually obligated pollution control measures, designate all current port construction sites as active environmental quality inspection sites in order to ensure ongoing compliance with air-emissions control regulations.
Measures addressing vehicular emissions will require that all goods are covered on cargo trucks and that trucks are cleaned prior to leaving the port as well as add the EPA’s Diesel Driver Responsibility certificate as required documentation for port access authorization in order to reduce truck air emissions and idling times. Furthermore, the Port of Kaohsiung has currently installed 36 automated gates. This has streamlined vehicular access to and from the port, reducing an estimated 1,300 tons of carbon emissions annually. Also, the port has set up 4 public-use automated vehicle washing stations in Zhongdao Commercial Port Zone. This free service has raised the ratio of pre-exit truck spray-down washings to over 99%.
Measures addressing vessel emissions will require vessels to self manage their emissions and encourage operators to make the adjustments necessary to reduce emissions to a minimum. Port-owned and operated vessels will use low-sulfur fuel, reduce speed when entering and exiting the harbor, and take advantage of quayside electricity recharge stations. Port of Kaohsiung vessels are already in the process of transitioning over to low-sulfur fuels, while port entry/exit speeds for 2016 achieved a reduction of 40%. These measures have already cut greenhouse gas emissions by 39,000 tons, and nitrogen oxides by about 1,000 tons. Additionally, the Port of Kaohsiung currently operates 15 quayside low-voltage and 11 quayside high-voltage electricity recharge stations.
In addition to the above, the Port of Kaohsiung has been working aggressively to implement “ecoport” measures. Kaohsiung was the first port in the Asia Pacific Region to earn ESPO Ecoport certification (in October 2014). The port successfully recertified in October 2016. In terms of air pollution controls, the Port of Kaohsiung, in line with TIPC policy goals, will conduct a staged implementation of related activities over the coming three years (2017-2019). Furthermore, port administrators have designated 10 key air-pollution control measures targeting all major emission sources within the port in order to facilitate effective implementation, integration, and reporting.
Beyond its long-running focuses on environmental quality and on reducing the environmental impact of port operations, the Port of Kaohsiung is committed to proactively creating new and competitive green, ecological, and sustainable value, to establishing effective environmental control policies, and to upholding “ecoport” principles at the heart of port operations and planning efforts. These activities are critical to further enhancing environmental quality at the port and to continued growth and expansion as a world-class ecoport.
Contact : Port of Kaohsiung Shu-hui Tsai 07-5622506 T02063@twport.com.tw