Blocked borders, fuel pumps running out of gasoline, supermarkets that don't get fresh produce supply ... these are just a few of the consequences of a strike by Spanish and French truckers against high diesel prices. The strike is taking place this week. Currently, diesel prices are around €1.30/liter in Spain and €1.45 in France (that translates to $7.71 U.S. and $8.62 a gallon, respectively. You can see energy prices for all EU country members here). Those prices might be high compared to other countries, but that's not all that's not all the drivers are mad about: diesel prices have jumped up 40 percent in less than a year.

Major cities in Spain such as Valencia, Madrid or Barcelona suffered traffic jams because of demonstrations where trucks were driven at low speeds, making getting around difficult for other vehicles (the picture above shows one of Barcelona's main entry, the C-58 highway). The two main borders between Spain and France, La Jonquera and Irun, were also blocked and demonstrators prevented any truck from crossing. In response, the Spanish government offered an agreement to the Freight Unions. It includes a flexible fare system where transport could reflect fuel prices directly, as well as other measures like subventions for early retirement.


[Source: El País]

Let me tell you the story of the Victoria, a barge that produces 80 percent less NOx, 99 percent less SOx and 98 percent less particulates than standard barges on its travels. Oh, and the CO₂ production levels are also about 5 to 15 percent less.

How did the Victoria manage to accomplish this? First of all because she's using regular diesel instead of ship fuel. Regular diesel in Europe is low in sulfur as well as less polluting and more efficient. The Victoria also got a set of filters and a catalytic converter which had a relatively modest cost of 200,000 EUR. This makes the technology feasible and realistic for current barges and makes inland navigation really competitive against road freight in terms of environmental protection.

The Victoria was designed under the Creating Project, which is supported by BP and the European Union. The barge has been tested at work in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, to carry ship lubricants around.

[Source: El Pais]

Road freight transport contributes significantly to pollution levels and there have been a slew of initiatives to reduce this environmental impact recently. Freight transport also impacts roads. If you happen to live near a port, like me, you know what I mean.

So these days, the city of Valencia, Spain is holding a Green Logistics congress for freight operators from more than 22 European countries and companies such as Nike, Ford, Procter & Gamble, DHL, Vossloh, Siemens, Volvo, SBB cargo and Evergreen. Saving fuel is not only good for the environment, but also for the companies' bottom lines. The EU and local Spanish authorities are sponsoring the event.

What are the key factors they are studying? On tap are the creation of "green corridors" or special dedicated paths for freight, logistical innovations (such as improved software for delivery planning), and something called "intermodality" (combining large-scale railway freight with smaller more efficient trucks for local delivery). The congress will also study energy efficiency measures as well as the impact of using renewable energies like biofuels. Their target: fewer CO₂ emissions by 2030.

[Source: Europa Press via Econoticias]

Port representatives from around the U.S. are currently attending the third Faster Freight - Cleaner Air (FFCA) conference which examines technologies and processes designed to reduce the environmental impact of all sectors of the goods movement industry (rail, trucking, marine, off-road equipment and air freight). Last November the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach adopted the "San Pedro Bay Ports Clean Air Action Plan" which has inspired many other ports worldwide to undertake similar activities in a bid to reduce their environmental impact. The pollution levels created by the goods movement industry are of particular concern and have come under increased scrutiny over the last few years.

The San Pedro Bay Ports Clean Air Action Plan is a comprehensive blueprint to reduce the health risks associated with air pollution from port-related ships, trucks, trains, terminal equipment and harbor craft. Key elements of the hundreds of millions of dollars plan are to cut particulate matter (PM) pollution by more than 50 percent within five years, reduce NOx emissions by more than 45 percent and reduce sulphur oxides (SOx) emissions as well. Within five years, "dirty" diesel trucks will be banned from the San Pedro Bay cargo terminals where only new "clean" diesel trucks and retrofitted vehicles will be allowed to operate. Another initiative is to equip all major container cargo and cruise ship terminals at the ports with shore-side electricity which will allow vessels at berth to shut down their diesel-powered auxiliary engines.

A highlight of the FFCA conference is a panel discussion covering green leases - leases which implement low-emission and environmentally-friendly processes and technologies into port operations. Among the speakers to attend are the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Stephen Johnson and U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Mary Peters. The EPA is a sponsor of the event.

Analysis: If you think an old diesel truck is an air polluter, imagine what the same vintage diesel technology on a container carrier is doing! It's great to see this kind of proactive approach being taken by the goods movement industry. I'd like to see similar plans to reduce PM, NOx and SOx across every port - all totaled it would really add up.

Related:

• 1,000 tonnes (1.3 million liters) of heavy fuel oil on burning ship near the South Pole
• Heard of regenerative braking? How about regenerative sailing?
• Truckers see the SmartWay to ship freight, are rewarded by the EPA

[Source: Faster Freight - Cleaner Air 2007 press release]

Railway operator BNSF Railway Co. is considering building a new railway hub at the Southern California Logistics Airport, which is projected to remove hundreds of trucks off the road thanks to rail's massive freight capabilities. The rail hub would process approximately 50,000 freights cars in the first year. Whether air quality will increase or not in the High Desert with the opening though has turned out to be a topic of hot debate.

Trains and heavy trucks both run on diesel, and a single locomotive can pull the load of about 280 trucks with about 30 times the emissions of one truck. But increased vehicle congestion at railroad crossings and the fact that trains usually spend a lot of time idling could turn out to reduce the possible air pollution benefits of increased use of rail freight. No doubt both trucks and trains will be needed in greater numbers with the goods movement industry expecting to triple the amount of cargo coming into California ports by 2025.

Any use of newer, cleaner technologies in locomotives such as electric, natural gas and hybrid diesel is likely to take a long time to become integrated into rolling stock across the U.S. with only about one new locomotive being built a week.

Analysis: BNSF has 6,300 locomotives. If they were to replace one locomotive per week with a new, cleaner model using say diesel-electric hybrid technology coupled with particulate filters and the like, it would take BNSF 121 years to completely retire their current locomotives. This is a problem.

Related:

• Union Pacific searching for cleaner locomotive breath
• Rail streetcars making a comeback in the US?

[Source: Victoriaville Daily Press]