LIME: Cleaner Ferries, Ahoy!
by Lime Planet, New York, New York on 02. 9.06
It’s not like they’re getting hybrid engines or anything, but New York’s Staten Island Ferries are going greener: One by one, the boats are being retrofitted to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter from diesel fuel. According to the EPA, one boat has already been updated, resulting in a reduction of 16.5 tons of NOx per year and a 25% decrease in particulate matter.
NOx and particulates both cause asthma, and NOx also contributes to global warming. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the New York City Department of Transportation joined forces with the EPA to green the ferries’ ports. As part of the program, three more ferries will be retrofitted over the next year, and tug boats will be updated as well.
The Port Authority has also set up a Green Port program to look into other environmental initiatives.
[by Hillary Rosner , Syndicated from the Planet section of LIME ]
About damn time. What they *really* need to do is clean up the NY Waterway ferries.
I loved being on the water at the start and end of my day when I worked downtown, but I've walked through enough black clouds of particulate diesel death to last a lifetime.
a ...ferry good! /rimshot
It can also be noted that a recent study calculated that the diesel emissions from American boats and trains accounts for 4,400 deaths annauly.
Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11162416/from/RSS/
I used to be the engineer officer for a ship whose main engines produced ZERO emissions. It was only when we used our much less powerful diesel auxiliary that we had problems with uniforms that smelled because of greasy smoke particles.
Of course, that ship was a nuclear powered submarine built using 1950s era technology. Perhaps one day the New York Ferries could apply similar technology.
BTW - before anyone dismisses this idea out of hand, I did have the opportunity to operate that ship in a couple of downtown areas, including Charleston SC and Fort Lauderdale, FL. My colleagues have done the same in ports all over the world.
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