ABL introduces emission tracking software for ports and harbours

International energy and marine consultancy AqualisBraemar LOC (ABL) has developed a digital solution that allows the seaport industry to easily track their emission profiles, calculate the cost of their carbon footprint, and to identify a roadmap ahead for sustainable development.

The solution – called emiTr – based on the “Port Emissions Toolkit”, has been designed in collaboration with Shoreham Port – a UK Trust Port, to enable ports to understand the complex nature of their emissions’ profile, so they can take decisive action in line with national and international reduction targets.

Paul Martin, ABL Maritime Director, said:

“The first step to cutting emissions is understanding them – what they are and where they come from. emiTr provides a digital inventory of the complex web of a port’s emissions, mapping out both direct and indirect sources, as well as identifying the profile of individual emitters. Once a baseline of data is established, visual representations can assist to identify high emitters and inform CAPEX expenditure accordingly.”

Data is uploaded into emiTr, where the amount of pollutants and greenhouse gases emitted through the port’s operations are calculated. The system also retrieves the live market price of carbon determined by UK and EU Emissions Trading Schemes and uses it to assign a monetary value to the CO2e emissions.

The portal identifies and calculates three different scopes of emitters:

• Scope 1 – direct emissions under the port’s control such as port owned vessels, vehicles, and heating infrastructure
• Scope 2 – indirect emissions such as electricity purchased for use within the port boundary
• Scope 3 – indirect emissions, which are not under the direct control of the port, such as tenants’ cargo handling equipment and ships

Paul Martin, ABL Maritime Director, said:

“Although currently there is no legislation that specifically requires ports to reduce their emissions, in anticipation and as part of national plans, ports must start now to understand their profile. emiTr will help ports and other maritime facilities such as shipyards, offshore wind sites, and even the oil and gas industry, to get ahead of the curve and identify their carbon footprint, so they can take informed action.”

Samantha Woolven, Interim People, Communications & Sustainability Director, Shoreham Port, said:

“At Shoreham, the sustainability question is ingrained in everything that we do. We take our role as a trusted custodian of our Port, our community, and our environment seriously. We are delighted to be working with the team at ABL who are helping us make the identification and tracking of our emissions simple and straightforward to do. This is important data for us to understand the impact we make, and we will use this data to inform decisions in the future as we aim to improve our energy efficiency and reduce pollution across the Port’s footprint. We are committed to being part of the change that ensures we as a Port are here in a healthy, inclusive, and sustainable way for years to come.”