Seaport operation activities, container shipping, and logistics
From our computers to our bicycles and clothes, over 80% of goods traded internationally are transported by sea – the ocean is our global mega-highway. Products are packed into standardized containers that fit together like LEGO blocks, with some ships carrying over 20,000 at a time. And though shipping is the most cost- and emissions-efficient transportation mode, it operates on fossil fuels. In 2023, the shipping industry transported 12,292 million tons of goods, or about 1.5 tons of cargo per person for every person on the planet. As a result, shipping accounts for 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and that is just the tip of the iceberg.
Paul Blomerus, Executive Director at Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping (Clear Seas), notes that only a few years ago, "the concept that shipping could have a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions impact – people didn't think that was possible. Let alone achieving zero impact on the environment, including from an underwater noise perspective, from an air pollution perspective, and from a discharge perspective."
Navigating the challenges of zero-impact shipping
At the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), supported by its Ocean Program, researchers are working with partners at Clear Seas and the University of British Columbia to assess the potential of technologies to reduce shipping's environmental footprint.
A key challenge is the complex interactions between green initiatives – one solution can unintentionally worsen another issue. For instance, regulations that restrict ship emissions near local communities to protect local air quality may lead to longer, less direct routes, increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, cleaning a ship's hull reduces drag and fuel consumption but may also increase the spread of invasive species by dislodging marine life, a process known as biofouling.
"As we tackle climate change, but also these more complicated problems, the need to be able to understand the interaction between all these different technologies that are trying all to do good becomes more and more acute," says Blomerus.
Environmental impacts of shipping
- Air pollution
- Greenhouse gas emissions
- Ship strikes to marine animals
- Spills and accidents
- Carriers of invasive species
- Discharges and waste in ocean
- Underwater noise pollution
Technology solutions to the impacts of shipping
- Automation
- Alternative fuels
- New propulsion systems
- Advanced materials
- Hull coatings
- Hull-form optimization
- Ballast water treatment systems
Technology developers, ship designers and owners face a multitude of technological options with little guidance on how to prioritize them. To address this gap, the research team is developing a decision-support tool to help evaluate solutions and their potential trade-offs. In particular, the NRC and its priority work under the Ocean Program to advance low- to no-carbon shipping, is being used as a case study.
Early outcomes include raising awareness of interactions between green technologies as well as clarifying the purpose of each initiative, enabling researchers and designers to anticipate potential conflicts or synergies.
"The willingness of industry, ship designers and owners to invest in technologies that go way over and above what's required by regulations I think gives people hope that a zero-impact ship is something that is possible." concludes Blomerus.