Improving Air Quality by Reducing Emissions

Biodiesel for Boaters

Today's Air Quality

Cruise ships plug in

Reducing truck emissions

Puget Sound Maritime Air Forum

The Port of Seattle's air quality program is part of an aggressive and systematic effort to make our seaport, airport and transportation infrastructure as efficient as possible and to increase the use of alternatives fuels, both by the Port as well as by our business partners and tenants.

Maritime Air Quality - The Challenges

Diesel engines, like many other mobile (for example, ships and trains), stationary (for example, refineries and manufacturing facilities), and area (for example, wood smoke) sources, are significant generators of criteria pollutants and toxic emissions. Excessive exposure to these pollutants can contribute to increased rates of lung cancer, chronic respiratory disease, impaired lung development in children, cardiovascular disease, and other health effects. The Port of Seattle is committed to proactively working with regulatory agencies and others to achieve early emissions reductions from maritime-related operations to protect public health and the environment.

The Programs to Meet These Challenges

The Port's commitment to meeting and overcoming these challenges is spelled out in both its actions and a resolution adopted by the Port Commission.

Our Commitment

Port Commission Adopted Resolution Expressing Commitment to Maritime Air Quality. Adopted in 2005, Resolution No. 3534 (14 KB PDF) sets a policy goal for the Port to apply its best efforts to work with the broad maritime industry and regulatory community to help ensure that the Puget Sound region continues to meet local, state, and federal ambient air quality standards.
Most recently the Commission directed staff to take action on six specific steps to enhance environmental programs at the Seaport

Our Actions

Taking the Lead at the Puget Sound Maritime Air Forum

This organization, led by the Port of Seattle, is a voluntary partnership of public and private organizations working together to reduce emissions from maritime activities in the Puget Sound Region. Members include other ports, key agencies and private businesses.

Forum members have taken a key first step toward reducing air emissions – preparing an air emissions inventory. The Puget Sound Maritime Air Emissions Inventory, released April 10, 2007, collected baseline information on a number of air pollutants and their sources within the greater Puget Sound area and in the waters north to the border with Canada. It focused primarily on diesel-powered maritime sources, such as ships, cargo-handling equipment, locomotives and trucks. Read the Overview here.

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Busy Cruise Terminals Bring Economic Benefits and Environmental Concerns to Seattle's Shores

The Port of Seattle has dual responsibilities at cruise terminals – to continue to support the booming cruise business that fosters real economic vitality in our region and at the same time protect a Northwest treasure – the waters of the Puget Sound. The Port has implemented ground-breaking programs focused on reducing emissions from docked cruise ships.

Seattle is one of only two ports in the United States to make shore power available to cruise ships (and the only North American Port where two ships can simultaneously plug into the electrical grid).
The seven other cruise ships that call at the Port have agreed to use lower sulfur fuel while docked.
Testing seawater scrubbers to remove pollutants from cruise ship diesel emissions begins this spring. Holland America will test the technology on the 1500-passenger ms Zaandam to determine its effectiveness in removing pollutants. Results, to be announced in 2008, will determine if this technology can be rolled out to new vessels, as well as retrofitted to existing ships. (The study is made possible with the assistance of a $300,000 grant from the U.S. EPA/West Coast Diesel Collaborative, a $100,000 contribution from the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency and $50,000 from the Port of Seattle.)
Want to know more? Click here.

The Port's Container Cranes

Converted every cargo crane from diesel to electricity
Installed larger cranes to handle cargo more efficiently, reducing the time ships spend at dock

The Trucks that Carry the Cargo – Minimizing Idling Time, Reducing Congestion and Shortened Trips

Implemented computer tracking systems at cargo terminals to quickly locate containers and thus cut wait times and reduce idling
Alerted truck drivers to draw bridge opening times so they can plan routes accordingly and avoid long waits and unnecessary idling
Partner in regional anti-idling effort
Built overpasses and improved intersections for better traffic flow and reduced congestion
Provided on-dock rail to eliminate truck trips

Diesel Emission Reduction Program

The goal of this multi-faceted program is to improve air quality by voluntarily reducing exhaust emissions from diesel fueled equipment used by the Port and its tenants.

The Port's Seaport Division now uses ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel with a 99% biodiesel blend (B99) in all diesel maintenance equipment. The Port has a grant from the Washington Department of Ecology to install diesel
Retrofitting cargo handling equipment. Thanks to a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, all eligible equipment at our cargo terminals has been retrofitted with 169 diesel oxidation catalysts (DOC). The terminals have also voluntarily switching to using ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel and biodiesel blends.
Container vessel owners are transitioning to larger, more efficient vessel with lower-emission engines. These higher capacity vessels help reduce the needed number of trips in addition to cutting emissions.
Replaced diesel power units with on-dock electrical plug-ins for 600 refrigerated containers.

Shilshole's Recreational Boaters Have Access to Biodiesel

A B20 blend (20% biodiesel, 80% diesel) is available at the fuel dock of Shilshole Bay Marina. In 2005 (before the ongoing major reconstruction project began that has frequently shut down fuel dock service), more than 7300 gallons of B20 were sold to marina users.

APL Vessels Switch to Low-Sulfur Fuel

In March 2007, APL, a global container-shipping company with operations at Terminal 5, took a major step toward reducing emissions of toxic diesel particles while its ships are in port. APL is voluntarily converting its vessels to a cleaner-burning, low-sulfur fuel to run its auxiliary engines, which power ships at shore. The conversion is expected to reduce diesel particulate matter emissions from dockside ships by as much as 75%. Read more.

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