Co2 measurement

There is widespread agreement on the need to measure CO2 but less agreement on how to do it.

 

The desire to 'tick every box' from an operational, engineering and scientific point of view has to be set against the wider objective of needing to start now to make a reduction in emissions. We advocate a policy of 'start now and get sophisticated later.'  We simply do not have time to wait until we have solved every minor detail. Yet anyone observing the discussions at IMO, Copenhagen and elsewhere would imagine we have plenty of time. We simply cannot waste another ten years. Environmental change is already happening and the one thing we know for sure is that you cannot negotiate with nature for more time.

 

Most focus is currently on indexing the CO2 footprint of ships; effectively a labeling system. But measuring the problem does not of itself reduce it. So we need to identify and reward those who have not just been lucky enough to purchase  more modern and fuel efficient ships but all those owners of older ships who have taken actions to reduce their fuel and emissions.

 

When a ship is handed over from the shipyard it has a fuel consumption figure in the same way that cars have a fuel consumption figure. This could be a simple baseline. One that is already available for every ship.

 

Unbelievable though it may appear for an industry that claims so much technology in its operation, the measuring of bunker fuels when taken onboard is often a very crude system that is far from precise and often a matter of a negotiated agreement. Can you imagine filling up at a petrol station and not trusting the fuel pump gauge?

 

A simple flow meter each side of the engine would identify exactly how much fuel was used by each ship on each voyage. It could be sealed and made tamper proof. It could be linked to a printed to record fuel data that can be issued to port authorities. It could even be linked to a mobile phone and transmit the data back to the ship owner/operator whenever there's a signal. Contrary to what many in the industry suggest. . .it's not difficult and certainly not expensive.