The Air We Breathe 3: A Pan-PRD Dialogue on Marine Emissions

In the Hong Kong-Pearl River Detla (HK-PRD) region, emissions from ships and port activity have a disproportionate effect on public health as they are highly toxic, and occur immediately adjacent to population centres, despite being a smaller proportion of regional air pollution than other sources. Addressing emissions from vessels in a coordinated way across the HK-PRD region is essential to effectively addressing this challenge. The shipping sector complies to higher standards and tighter standards elsewhere, and understands that the global trend is to clean up.

18 leading shipping lines are calling for regulation in HK-PRD through The Fair Winds Charter, a voluntary agreement to use cleaner fuel while at berth in Hong Kong. At the same time, Guangdong and Hong Kong governments have released several policy documents over the last three years indicating that reducing vessel emissions – from local craft as well as ocean-going vessels – deserves attention.

Funded by the Hong Kong SAR Government’s Environment Conservation Fund, this forum brings together scientists, government officials, business leaders and academics from around the world to discuss reducing vessel emissions in the HK-PRD region and around the world. What is the public health impact that emissions from these sources have? What’s being done in HK-PRD to address this challenge? What is international best practice? What would regulation look like across the PRD?

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