The ports of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Moerdijk and Dordrecht have announced that, from 1 January 2011 onwards, they are to reward clean ocean-going vessels with discounts on their port duties.
Discounts will be awarded to ships that score highly on the Environmental Ship Index (ESI), a new international standard for ships' emissions into the atmosphere.
ESI certificates will be awarded by the World Port Climate Initiative, at the request of the ship, from next year, after being put together by the ports of Le Havre, Bremen, Hamburg, Antwerp, Amsterdam and Rotterdam.
The index shows the environmental performance of ships in terms of the emission of air pollutants and CO2, with the aim of encouraging sustainable behaviour.
'It is very important that seaports develop in a sustainable way,' said Hans Smits, CEO of the Port of Rotterdam Authority and Dertje Meijer, director of the Port of Amsterdam, in a joint statement. 'Making port tariffs greener and rewarding clean vessels is in keeping with this.
'The more ports and ships that use the ESI, the more this will start to influence behaviour in the shipping industry,' they added.
The ports of Antwerp, Hamburg and Bremen have also announced their intention to bring in the ESI.
