Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2024

The maritime shipping fleet accounts for over 3% of global CO2 emissions – as much as the entire country of Germany. Adapting to new economic and environmental realities, maritime shipping is now seeking more efficiency and is turning to new technologies like electrification and to old-now-new technologies like sail. This presentation will review economics, environmental issues, and international policies such as recent UN maritime standards for carbon reduction. Innovations will be highlighted including: wind assisted (sail) propulsion on major shipping vessels, “well to wake” zero-emissions maritime fuels, port systems for onshore power supply (OPS), and ferry electrification Norway, the UK, and soon in Washington state.