BBC News, Malcolm Brabant, Stockholm, 11 May 2013
 |
| The Viking Grace is the first in a series of new green passenger ferries |
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The Finnish
flag is fiercely clacking at the stern as the Viking Grace carves through
spring ice, past scores of small islands on the route between Stockholm in
Sweden and Turku in Finland.
A maritime
revolution is taking place in this narrow waterway and its archipelago of
hundreds of small islands. The Viking Grace, a brand new cruise ferry, is
fuelled entirely by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and is the first of a new generation
of green passenger ships.
"It's
very important for us at Viking Lines to be a pioneer and save our
environment," says Captain Magnus Thornroos on the ship's wide bridge.
Down in the
bowels of the ship, the engines are running on 100% gas, although they are
capable of using old-fashioned diesel as a back-up propellant if necessary.
"LNG
is the cleanest of the fossil fuels we have on Earth," says First Engineer
Victor Gingsjoe.
"Compared
to running on diesel oils, the particle matter that we release into the
atmosphere is virtually nothing. The sulphur oxide emissions are practically
nothing. And also we can reduce the CO2 [carbon dioxide] by up to 30%."
Dirty sea
.png) |
| The Bergensfjord will also be fuelled by LNG |
"We
know that LNG can significantly reduce harmful substances," she says.
"However, if LNG escapes the engines without being burned, it will
contribute significantly to global warming as well."
Viking
Lines say its ship is fitted with the latest technology for monitoring the
ship's systems.
By using
LNG, the vessel is complying with new emission controls that come into effect
in the Baltic Sea in 2015. Similar rules will begin simultaneously in the North
Sea and along the east and west coasts of North America.
It is hoped
the changes will make a significant difference to the ecology of the Baltic
Sea, which is heavily polluted, in part from Russian ships coming from the
east.
The bottom
of the sea is said to be dying and the reason it is so dirty is that it is
almost entirely enclosed by land and does not have a flow of fresh water to
flush out the grime.
On deck, it
is easy to see how still are the waters of the Baltic. As far as the eye can
see in the Swedish part of the archipelago, the sea is covered in ice.
'Huge cost'
The
project's supporters say the new regulations will not just benefit nature, but
also public health.
"In
Europe, we know that about 50,000 premature deaths are caused from air
pollution from shipping," says Dr Presse-Kristensen.
"And
the cost to society is about 55bn euros [£45bn; $72bn] every year, so it's a
huge cost."
Inside the
Viking Grace, a Bruce Springsteen video is entertaining passengers in the music
bar.
On deck it
is cold, and taking the air is Mohammed Hassan, from London.
"I
have a carbon footprint," he says. "And I think it's being reduced
because technically it's being driven by gas and it's very environmentally
friendly as well. So I would say it's fantastic. I am being responsible by
using less carbon."
Two new
ferries, the Stavangerfjord and the Bergensfjord, both entirely powered by
liquid gas, are currently being completed at Rissa, Norway, and they are due to
start sailing between Denmark and Norway this summer for Fjord Line.
As is often
the case when it comes to green technology, the Nordic countries are showing
the way.
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