MOL Receives Two Port Environmental Awards
At the Green Flag Award ceremony. From left to right: MOBUSA Vice President Nobuo Tsuboi, MOBUSA Assistant General Manager Seiji Kawada, MOLAM District Sales Manager Tim Ashley
At the Vessel Speed Reduction Award ceremony. From left to right: Mitsui O.S.K. BULK SHIPPING (U.S.A.) INC. (MOBUSA) Assistant General Manager Seiji Kawada, LA Harbor commissioners Vice President Mr. David Arian MOBUSA Vice President Nobuo Tsuboi
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) announced that the company has earned recognition from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, for its efforts to ensure compliance with standards that call for vessels to slow down within 40 nautical miles (nm) of the shore.
The Port of Los Angeles introduced the Vessel Speed Reduction Program and Port of Long Beach the Green Flag Program. The programs urge vessel operators to slow down to 12 knots or less within a certain range of the ports to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen oxide (NOx), and sulfur oxide (SOx) in coastal areas to conserve coastal environment, and offer annual rewards to vessel operators that achieve extraordinary compliance percentages.
Every year, a total of 250 MOL Group-operated vessels including containerships calling at MOL’s TRAPAC container terminal, as well as car carriers, tankers, and bulkers, navigate through the area covered by the speed standards. The ports have clearly appreciated the company’s efforts to comply with the program and contribute to a cleaner coastal environment.
