ABOUT US
History
The symposium discussed several mechanisms for reaching those goals:
- Establishing standards to improve air quality and combat global warming
- Exploring tools to assist in carbon footprinting
- Highlighting greenhouse gas reduction technologies
- Sharing lessons learned
- Cooperating regionally on policies and practices
- Promoting on-shore power supply to reduce use of ship diesel engines
- Advocating Environmental Ship Indexing (ESI), a method to describe an ocean-going vessel’s air pollutants and greenhouse gases
- Employing cargo handling equipment with smaller carbon footprints
Partnering for Cleaner Air
In August 2006, former President Clinton and the former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone announced a partnership between the Clinton Climate Initiative and the C40 Cities. This new partnership pledged to reduce carbon emissions and increase energy efficiency in large cities across the world.
During the November 2008 symposium, WPCI leadership was named. It was agreed that Dr Geraldine Knatz, Executive Director of Port of Los Angeles and Chair of IAPH’s Port Environment Committee, would chair the WPCI effort.
IAPH Managing Director Fer van de Laar was chosen as the Director of WPCI. Van de Laar will oversee overall coordination WPCI’s efforts to improve air quality and reduce global warming.
(L-R) Fer van de Laar, IAPH and WPCI, Christopher Patton, Port of Los Angeles and Dave Souten, ENVIRON.
An organizing team and port have been proposed to further each goal:
- Port of Los Angeles will be the project port for carbon-use modeling.
- Port of Gothenburg will explore on-shore power supply.
- Port Authority of New York/New Jersey will tackle cargo handling equipment.
- Port of Rotterdam will take the lead on the Environmental Shipping Index (ESI).
The effort to reach each goal will be supported and coordinated by the IAPH and the regional organizations, for example:
- European Sea Ports Organization (ESPO)
- American Association of Port Authorities (AAPH)
- Pan African Port Conference (PAPC)