Oil spill: Japan must wean ships off fossil fuels
Port Louis, Aug. 26: Japan’s Wakashio oil spill in Mauritius was an entirely avoidable tragedy.
On July 25, the bulk carrier vessel, owned by Nagashiki Shipping and chartered by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, grounded off the coast of the small island nation of Mauritius. Fuel oil from the ship started to leak on August 6 and is now destroying one of the most beautiful places on Earth, along with the livelihoods of the people who live there. The spill has put the biodiversity within Mauritius lagoons at risk, including the mangrove forests, coral reefs and many unique and endangered species.
Kiyoaki Nagashiki, CEO of Nagashiki Shipping and Junichiro Ikeda, CEO of Mitsui O.S.K. Lines have publicly apologised for the environmental disaster. But apologies will not take back the damage done to the people and ecosystems of Mauritius. As long as ships are powered by oil, there will be spills.
To make right on this tragedy, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should accelerate the drive to get all Japanese owned ships off fossil fuels entirely and lead the international community in shipping’s clean energy transition.
Impossible? Not at all. Most of Japan’s largest shipping lines are already members of the Getting to Zero coalition, a global alliance of 110 maritime companies working to get zero-emission, non-fossil fuel, cargo ships into commercial operation by 2030. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines is one of them.
Under the leadership of Kazuyoshi Akaba, Japan’s Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism is aiming to launch a zero-emission ship even earlier, by 2028. The Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, or MLIT, is exploring several viable clean energy options, including “green” hydrogen produced with renewable energy — hydrogen produced from fossil fuels has no benefit for the climate.
Last month, Japan’s container shipping line Nippon Yusen, also known as NYK Line, joined the Hydrogen Council a global CEO-led coalition. In February, Japanese automaker Toyota Motor delivered a fuel cell system to the Energy Observer — the first boat to sail around the world using hydrogen generated on board from solar and wind power. The University of Tokyo is leading a project on automated wind-assisted propulsion on cargo ships. And other Japan-based maritime companies are developing solar and wind propulsion, and hydrogen on cargo ships. What’s holding back all this private sector innovation from widespread commercialisation is the lack of an ambitious, clear, comprehensive zeroemission shipping regulatory framework from the Japanese government.