The missing piece, the Port Authority and city claimed, was discounted electricity from Con Edison, because the standard rate for the juice is too high to justify turning off the diesel engines in favor of plugging in.
But the state Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities, nixed the so-called “shore power” idea on jurisdictional grounds in April, telling the Port Authority and the city to negotiate instead with the New York Power Authority, the port agency’s main supplier of electricity.
If I read the article correctly, there is still hope. It's a matter of working with the Power Authority to make this happen. It looks like the City and Port Authority were barking up the wrong tree - but this isn't over yet. Reducing the emissions from these ships should be a top priority.
1 comment:
Great you're talking about this issue, Gary, and thanks for your excellent blog.
You're right - there is hope for the implementation of "cold ironing" for the Cruise Ships.
However, no-one seems to want to talk about the container ships that belch out equally noxious substances - there is no plan to instigate cold ironing for them.
Rather, the Container Terminal is expanding its operations and nothing has been said about these important pollution mitigating practices.
Most egregiously, the City and the Port Authority see no reason, legal or moral, to assess the environmental impact this expansion will have on our neighborhoods.
That's what my most recent post on "A View From the Hook" was about. And I'm right with you - "Reducing the emissions from these ships" - both cruise and container - "should be a top priority".
Post a Comment