Emission Control Area

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Emission Control Areas (ECAs) are special shipping zones that have been defined by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Special environmental guidelines on emissions and waste / service water disposal apply to these zones .

Separate restrictions apply to sulfur oxide (SO x ) and nitrogen oxide (NO x ) emissions. ECAs with sulfur limits are referred to as SECA ( Sulfur Emission Control Area ) and ECAs with nitrogen oxide limits as NECA (Nitrous Oxide Emission Control Area).

There are no IMO limit values ​​for CO and HC and therefore no ECAs either, a limit value is currently being discussed for black carbon. The reason for this is that shipping and thus soot immissions are increasing sharply, especially in the area of ​​the Arctic Ocean. The soot precipitates on the ice surfaces and turns them gray. This increases the amount of heat absorbed from the radiated solar energy, which leads to accelerated melting.

Zones

North and Baltic Sea SECA
Worldwide ECAs

The following ECAs are currently established:

  • Baltic Sea (since May 2006 for SO x ; from January 2021 for NO x )
  • North Sea , including the English Channel (since November 2007 for SO x ; from January 2021 for NO x )
  • 24 nautical miles off the California coast, offshore islands are part of the coastline (since July 2009)
  • 200 nautical miles off the North American coasts of Canada and the USA , including the Great Lakes and Hawaii (since August 2012 for SO x ; since January 2016 for NO x )
  • the coastal waters around Puerto Rico and the American Virgin Islands (the so-called US Caribbean Emission Area) (since August 2014 for SO x ; since January 2016 for NO x )

Under the MARPOL Agreement to Prevent Marine Pollution from Ships (Annex VI), almost the entire North American coast (USA and Canada including the Great Lakes ) was declared an "environmental zone at sea" from August 2012. In addition to sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions , particulate matter (PM) emissions are also limited for US ships with engines of less than category 3 (<30 l displacement per cylinder) via US EPA regulations . This means that this emission control area also differs from previous IMO-ECAs, which only stipulate stricter requirements for sulfur and nitrogen oxide emissions. Further ECAs are planned for the entire Mediterranean region and Japan . The establishment of further ECAs around Alaska , Australia , South Korea and the Black Sea is still under discussion.

Within the ECAs of the North and Baltic Seas, since July 1, 2010, the proportion of sulfur in fuel may not exceed 1.0 percent. After January 1, 2015, the sulfur content is limited to 0.1 percent. The sulfur content in the fuel produces sulfur oxides (SO x ) during combustion , which in combination with water and the ambient air ( oxygen ) result in the light sulfuric acid and thus the well-known acid rain . In addition, sulfur damages the catalytic converters , which can otherwise easily convert toxic pollutants. Furthermore, the sulfur content ensures a decrease in nitrogen oxide (NO x ) activity within the exhaust technology.

Demand for extension of the ECAs; criticism

In an environmental campaign by the organization Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU), its members are calling for the ECAs to be expanded considerably. The campaign runs under the motto: "I stink!". NABU demands that all European coastal areas, especially the Mediterranean, be included in the ECAs.

The Cleanest Ship project , which is part of the EU project CREATING (FP6) and started on November 20, 2007, has proven that the use of low-sulfur diesel fuel in accordance with DIN EN 590 (10 ppm sulfur) and corresponding exhaust gas cleaning systems can significantly reduce the Exhaust emissions is possible. Nitrogen oxides (NO x ) could be reduced by 86%, soot particles by 96% and sulfur oxides (SO x ) even by 99.5%. However, low-sulfur diesel fuel (0.1% sulfur) was significantly more expensive in 2013 at around $ 1000 / t than the currently predominantly used heavy fuel oil ($ 600 / t).

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ IMO: Sulfur oxides (SOx) - Regulation 14 ( Memento of the original dated December 23, 2014) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.imo.org
  2. ↑ IMO: Special Areas under MARPOL
  3. ↑ Overview of the IMO regulations on air pollution on seas . Dieselnet. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  4. ↑ LIST OF SPECIAL AREAS, EMISSION CONTROL AREAS AND PARTICULARLY SENSITIVE SEA AREAS. International Maritime Organization, July 18, 2018, accessed January 5, 2019 .
  5. ^ Dieselnet: Emission standards: United States: Marine Diesel Engines. Retrieved February 27, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Designation of North American Emission Control Area to Reduce Emissions from Ships , United States Environmental Protection Agency , March 2010.
  7. ↑ IMO Resolution MEPC 176 (58) on the revision of MARPOL Annex VI, entered into force on October 10, 2008 (PDF; 127 kB) Retrieved on September 19, 2013.

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