Container shipping is the largest producer of emissions within the maritime shipping industry. Hence, measures have been designed and implemented to reduce ship emission levels. IMO’s MARPOL Annex VI, with its future plan of applying Tier III requirements, the Energy Efficiency Design Index for new ships, and the Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan for all ships. To assist policy formulation and follow-up, this study applies an energy consumption approach to estimate container ship emissions. The volumes of sulphur oxide (SOx), nitrous oxide (NOx), particulate matter (PM), and carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from container ships are estimated using 2018 datasets on container shipping and average vessel speed records generated via AIS. Furthermore, the estimated reductions in SOx, NOx, PM, and CO2 are mapped for 2020. The empirical analysis demonstrates that the energy consumption approach is a valuable method to estimate ongoing emission reductions on a continuous basis and to fill data gaps where needed, as the latest worldwide container shipping emissions records date back to 2015. The presented analysis supports early-stage detection of environmental impacts in container shipping and helps to determine in which areas the greatest potential for emission reductions can be found.

This article marks the first attempt on Polish and European scale to identify the relationship between urban and industrial air pollution and the health conditions of urban populations, while also estimating the financial burden of incidence rates among urban populations for diseases selected in the course of this study as having a causal relation with such incidence. This paper presents the findings of a pilot study based on general regression models, intended to explore air pollutants with a statistically relevant impact on the incidence of selected diseases within the Agglomeration of Gdańsk in the years 2010-2018. In discussing the city's industrial functions, the study takes into consideration the existence within its limits of a large port that services thousands of ships every year, contributing substantially to the volume of emissions (mainly NO x and PM) to the air. The causes considered include the impact of air pollution, seasonality, land-and sea-based emissions, as well as their mutual interactions. All of the factors and their interactions have a significant impact (p ≤ 0.05) on the incidence of selected diseases in the long term (9 years). The source data were obtained from the Polish National Health Fund (NFZ), the Agency for Regional Monitoring of Atmosphere in the Agglomeration of Gdańsk (ARMAAG), the Chief Inspectorate of Environmental Protection (GIOŚ), and the Port of Gdańsk Harbourmaster. The study used 60 variables representing the diseases, classified into 19 groups. The resulting findings were used to formulate a methodology for estimating the financial burden of the negative health effects of air pollution for the agglomeration, and will be utilized as a reference point for further research in selected regions of Poland.

For centuries Europe's transport has been a catalyst for economic development. At present, it facilitates exchange among European Union (EU) Member States and much of the rest of the world. Maritime transport forms the main axis of international exchange, carrying ∼90% of total traded tonnage. In doing so, it bears responsibility for 2.5% of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. The efforts to reduce negative environmental impact of transport activity is centered on better modal integration of the common transport system, sustainability, green technologies in the transport sector, resource efficiency, and carbon emissions reduction. The International Maritime Organization has tasked its members to achieve a 70% reduction in CO 2 emissions by 2050 or, if possible, to eliminate them altogether. From a business end, it is possible to apply a variety of technologies to ensure zero-emissions or, at the least, a dramatic reduction of emissions in the shipping sector. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the strategic approach to the decarbonization process based on EU strategic documents and low-emission and zero-emission technologies, used and developed, in maritime transport. An estimation of external costs incurred by maritime transport will allow for the assessment of benefits resulting from the application of technologies and alternative fuels proposed in the solutions. On the basis of the obtained results from the external cost valuation it will be possible to estimate the potential for decarbonization in maritime transport.

This essay considers the rural-to-urban transition and correlates it with urban energy demands. Three distinct themes are inspected and interrelated to develop awareness for an urbanizing world: internal urban design and innovation, technical transition, and geopolitical change. Data were collected on the use of energy in cities and, by extension, nation states over the last 30 years. The urban population boom continues to pressure the energy dimension with heavily weighted impacts on less developed regions. Sustainable urban energy will need to reduce resource inputs and environmental impacts and decouple economic growth from energy consumption. Fossil fuels continue to be the preferred method of energy for cities; however, an increased understanding is emerging that sustainable energy forms can be implemented as alternatives. Key to this transition will be the will to invest in renewables (i.e., solar, wind, hydro, tidal, geothermal, and biomass), efficient infrastructure, and smart eco-city designs. This essay elucidates how the technical transition of energy-friendly technologies focuses on understanding the changes in the energy mix from non-renewable to renewable. Smart electricity storage grids with artificial intelligence can operate internationally and alleviate some geopolitical barriers. Energy politics is shown to be a problematic hurdle with case research examples specific to Central and Eastern Europe. The energy re-shift stressed is a philosophical re-thinking of modern cities as well as a new approach to the human-energy relationship.

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