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Cleaner Technology Projects in Denmark 1996

Elucidation of the Environmental Advantages of Using Transport by Sea as Opposed to Rail or Road Transport

The purpose of this project is to explain the environmental aspects of transporting goods by sea, rail or road, and to look into which way of transporting is the most suitable one.

Calculations show that it is possible to obtain a considerable saving in energy and environmental emissions, if transports of goods are shifted from road transport to transport by rail or sea.

The preliminary work shows that the energy consumption is twice as high by using rail transport instead of transport by sea, and twice as high when using road transport instead of rail transport. This means that the energy consumption is four times higher when goods are transported by road instead of using transport by sea.

When the energy consumption is reduced, the amount of environmental emissions such as the emission of carbon dioxide (C02) is reduced too. This is also the case when it comes to emissions of other related environmental components such as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and total organic carbon.

However, on one point transport by sea is not the best environmental solution: The emission of sulphur dioxide (S02) is at a comparatively high level when transporting by coaster. This results from the use of fuel of a less quality than fuel used by trains and lorries. Coasters operating in Danish and European waters normally use gas oil with a sulphur content of 0,2 %. Fuel, gas and oil, used by rail and road transportation have a sulphur content as low as 0,05%.

In Denmark 94 % of all domestic transportation of goods is carried out by road. This means that the potential for major reductions in energy and environmental emissions is present if transport could be shifted from road and out to sea.

Other factors as traffic accidents, noise nuisances and costs to maintenance of roads and railway lines will be reduced if a larger part of the goods could be transported by sea.

It is the author’s opinion that coasters are fully capable of delivering goods "just in time" precisely as lorries.

Author/ institution

Tom Wismann, dk-TEKNIK

This report is subsidised by the National Council for Recycling and Cleaner Technology

ISSN no. 0908-9195
ISBN no. 87-7810-559-5

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