Solar / Human Powered Green Boat Design

A French graphic designer named Jonathan Mahieddine has designed a boat which can be powered by solar or human power. He has taken the classic design of the paddle boat to another level by providing a sunning deck and a cockpit shaded by solar panels. While this design may not be practical for most, it would sure make for some clean green boating which would have very little impact on the environment.

Ballast-Free Cargo Ship Design

Researchers at the University of Michigan are developing a new design for cargo ships which could eliminate the need for ballast tanks. Ballast tanks are cited as environmental hazards as they often carry sealife in conjunction with water which is dumped in foreign ports. Ships take on ballast water for stability when they're not carrying cargo. They discharge ballast when they load freight, expelling tons of water and many invasive species such as the infamous zebra musscle.While Congress is considering costly legislation for tankers, the new design would eliminate the threat altogether.

The ballast-free ships have a constant flow of local seawater through a network of large pipes, called trunks, that runs from the bow to the stern, below the waterline, much like a submarine.

Not only would the newer design protect against invasive species, but researchers found it had an unexpected bonus; it requires 7.3 percent less power to propel the ship. The improvement is due mostly from water being expelled from the stern-end of the trunks into the propeller, allowing the ship to operate more efficiently.

Researchers concluded that the new design would result in a net capital-cost savings of about $540,000 per ship. Combined with the expected fuel savings, total cargo transport costs would be cut by $2.55 per metric ton.

More on Ballast-Free Cargo Ship Design

International Association of Independent Tanker Owners Recommends Cleaner Fuel Mandates

INTERTANKO, the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners, is recommending emissions cuts for tanker ships. They have proposed a recommendation to revise MARPOL standards to bring shipping industry in line with other transportation emission standards. They are recommending the global use of Marine Diesel Oil (MDO) with specifications on its formula to produce a cleaner fuel. For more on this subject you can read the report here.

Green Boating Headlines

This has been a busy week for news on boating and the environment. Here are some of the headlines that Green Boating thought you should see.

Giving Superyachts a Green Veneer Artist, sustainability campaigner and naval architect David Trubridge delivers a speech on sustainable design for super yachts at a Yacht Vision symposium in Auckland, New Zealand.

Criminal Charges Filed against Pilot of Cosco Busan in San Francisco Bridge Collision

EPA Sets New Marine Pollution Standards

San Diego Yacht Builder Knight & Carver Goes Green with Eco Solutions

EPA and New York Officials Address Environmental Standards of Ships in their Ports

EPA Targets Export of Ancient PCB-Laden Cruise Ship

Ship Graveyard Podcast hosted by Tom Pelton, environment reporter for The Baltimore Sun, about a ship graveyard in Curtis Bay and the Patapsco River in southern Baltimore.

Dutch Cargo Ship Artemis Beached in French coastal town Les Sables d’Olonne