March 23, 2007 by Walter Schneider.

Press release: K-Line announces shift to Low Sulfur Fuel in the Pacific Northwest

Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (”K” Line), one of the world’s largest ocean transportation companies and an industry leader in environmental stewardship, announced that all container vessels in “K” Line’s Pacific Northwest service, calling at Tacoma, WA and Vancouver, B.C. will use low sulfur fuel in auxiliary machinery while the vessels are docked at Pacific Northwest ports. (Full Story)
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Note by folc.ca: It goes without saying that, when in motion, those ships are using highly polluting bunker fuel that contains extremely high levels (20,000 ppm and more) of sulphur. See next article for more on that. The photo (above) and the related story show that K-Lines’ boast, of being “an industry leader in environmental stewardship” is the motivating force for using lower-sulphur fuel in auxiliary engines when in or in the vicinity of ports in the Pacific Northwest, is perhaps justified only when it is being forced through legislation to become environmentally clean.

The California legislation that forces K-Lines to become “an industry leader in environmental stewardship” in the Pacific Northwest came into effect in January 2007.

Posted in Bunker Fuel, Ultra-Low-Sulphur Diesel | Print | No Comments »

March 23, 2007 by Walter Schneider.

A study finds that while land vehicles are cutting emissions, seafaring vessels are spewing sulfur oxide ‘virtually unchecked.’

By Janet Wilson, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

Ocean-going vessels produce greater quantities of sulfur oxide air pollutants than all the world’s cars, trucks and buses combined, according to a study released Thursday.

The report by the International Council on Clean Transportation calls for international regulators to move aggressively to curb emissions from “bunker fuel” used by freight vessels that contains an average 27,000 parts per million of sulfur. U.S. standards for diesel trucks and other vehicles limit sulfur fuels to just 15 parts per million to protect public health. One kind of sulfur oxide, sulfur dioxide, can quickly kill if too much is inhaled rapidly. Chronic exposure to lower levels has been linked to respiratory problems. (Full Story)
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Note by folc.ca: The article constitutes somewhat shoddy journalism. Diesel locomotives use bunker fuel, too.

Posted in Bunker Fuel, Emission Incidents & Issues, Ultra-Low-Sulphur Diesel, Sulphur-Dioxide | Print | No Comments »

March 23, 2007 by Walter Schneider.

MercuryNews.com
The Associated Press

TORRANCE, Calif.- Toxic fumes were released from an oil refinery but nobody was injured, authorities said.

Hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide were released into flares at the ExxonMobil Torrance Refinery after the plant south of Los Angeles had a problem with its sulfur recovery unit and shut down shortly after 8 a.m. Thursday, officials said.

The flare system acts as a “safety relief valve” for the refinery that combines liquid and vapors with steam and burns it off, according to information on the refinery’s Web site.

The gas level at the ground did not pose a health hazard, refinery spokeswoman Melba Duarte said.  (Full Story)

Posted in Pollution: Health Issues, Emission Incidents & Issues, Hydrogen-Sulphide, Sulphur-Dioxide | Print | No Comments »