Editorial: Maritime Green Is Becoming A Favored Color

Increasingly, since environmental laws were introduced in the dawn of the 1970s, the color of the forests has become favored in the maritime world, and the use of the buzzwords “going green” has become more prevalent. If that conclusion requires confirmation, one needs only to look to increased federal and private spending.

The 2010 Inland Waterways Navigation Conference held in St. Louis last week had as its theme: “Sustainability and River Transportation.” Turning to Webster and “sustainable,” we conclude that if river transportation is to be sustainable, it must be “characterized by a practice that sustains a given condition, as economic growth or a human population, without destroying or depleting natural resources, polluting the environment, etc.”

In retrospect, we know that “going green” has been part of maritime-industry agendas worldwide for a long time. Efforts to avoid the destruction or depletion of natural resources and avoid the pollution of the environment are the focus of more than 170,000 Internet entries.

We can recall that early environmental issues were introduced to river transportation field in a sometimes combative manner. Long before the Exxon Valdez spill occurred and the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 was enacted, detractors hammered the towing industry, some hoping to end water transportation on the inland waterways. That approach turned off a lot of people, many of whom were conservationists at heart.

In the meantime, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers busily adopted methods designed to improve the environment. Environmental considerations were major factors in water-project planning and development. The marine industry worldwide was buying into the idea of environmental protection long before “going green” became buzzwords. Then too, Coast Guard regulations, reflecting the intent of environmental law, steered the maritime industry in the direction it needed to take. After virtually four decades, there are signs everywhere that the movement is healthy and growing. The effort extends to landside support activities—all phases of the transportation mechanism.

Foss Maritime, which describes itself as an “innovator in environmental maritime vehicle design and operation,” states, “The maritime industry is one of the last industries to feel intense environmental regulatory scrutiny.” Foss expects the regulatory environment to grow increasingly more challenging. Today, for some, “going green” is at the heart of their companies’ battle cry. Industry leaders are not unaware that good environmental practices improve the bottom line. Foss points out that gaining community good will is among the values to be experienced.

That attitude is clear in the case of AEP River Operations, which has worked for several years with the American Land Conservancy, whose mission is to conserve landscapes for the benefit of people and wildlife (See WJ March 1). In August 2009 the WJ reported that AEP was honored for its strong support of ALC’s river program. Ingram Barge Company has been involved with The Nature Conservancy. Such participation is growing. One report indicated, “All sectors of the transportation industry are taking note of the seriousness of their impact on the environment and (are) taking action now.”

A discussion of “going green” would be incomplete without mention of possibly one of the most sought-after environmental awards in the marine industry—the RADM William M. Benkert Award, created by the Coast Guard some 14 years ago to “recognize outstanding achievements that extend far beyond mere compliance with industrial and regulatory standards.” The Coast Guard publication Proceedings, Winter 2008-2009, says Adm. Benkert is considered to be the “father of the U.S. Coast Guard’s marine safety program.” After working on improved fire safety standards in the 1960s, he began work with the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, later working with the 1974 Safety of Life at Sea convention. In an earlier issue of Proceedings an author wrote, “His ideals foreshadowed the environmental protection philosophy embodied in OPA 90.”

The movement is alive and well in the towing industry, and while sometimes not publicized in a grandiose manner, it has been going on for a long time and is expanding.

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