Greening Africa’s ports

 Recognising the dangers caused by pollution in their facilities, African ports have decided to establish an initiative that will consolidate greening initiatives in the continent. The initiative has received the blessing of major maritime institutions like the Pan-African Ports Association of Ports Cooperation (PAPC) to ensure that the benchmarks set are easily accessible to all players . The Executive Secretary of PAPC Mr. Jerome Ntibarekerwa (who is also the Secretary General of the Port Management Association of Eastern and Southern Africa – PMAESA) has launched a diplomatic offensive to bring most of the continents players together to partner with international actors who are already entrenched in the practice. PMAESA which will hold its annual conference between 7th and 10th December this year in Durban, South Africa will focus on port environment and will form the launch pad of the African Green Ports Initiative mooted earlier in the year . “ We are asking executives and technical experts in the continental maritime bodies to come to the Durban conference to brainstorm with their peers to set up the benchmarks for the industry in this crucial sector ,” said Mr. Ntibarekerwa recently while he was attending the 26th IAPH Conference in Genoa For starters , Mr. Ntibarekerwa is lobbying continental ports to start building inventories of all forms of pollution and support the adjusting or amendment of existing legal frameworks on the way to developing an integrated coastal area management plan. They should also take into recognition all human and natural resources available within the region while ensuring that unsustainable fisheries practices which harms the ecological balance are ceased or controlled. While some countries have already established port reception facilities for the collection of harmful ballast water and other chemical pollutants, there is also a need according to him to upgrade them to international standards. “At the same time, the setting up of contingency response programmes for accidental marine pollution and other emergencies cannot be over emphasized,” Mr. Ntibarekerwa added. These efforts have seen PMAESA especially join hands with the EcoPorts Foundation of Europe who recently sponsored the GreenPort 2009 Conference in Naples, Italy, in February this year. Greening of ports is a new and popular benchmark in determining the modernisation of world ports and Africa’s venturing into the concepts is though belated considered a necessity. A champion of greening of the African ports initiative Dr. Harry Barnes-Daban of the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority has held meetings with the PMAESA Secretariat to discuss ways of implementing the African Agenda. “We are requesting our African ports to sign in for this unprecedented opportunity during which we can also be able to set the agenda for our own ports through the proposed GreenPort Africa Initiative,” Mr. Ntibarekerwa noted. The scale of the problems affecting the marine and coastal environment has altered in recent times, but their nature has remained constant. Perceptions of the main threats and corresponding solutions have become more refined as knowledge has increased. The current major environment problems of the oceans and coastal areas include widespread degradation of coastal zones, including physical damage to ecosystems from human activities and pollution of coastal waters and semi enclosed seas by wastes from land. Others include widespread depletion of living resources through commercial over-exploitation and damaging fishing practices as well as increased demographic shifts to coastal areas increasing pressure on existing resources. Major accidents occurring inland could also lead to significant environmental damages in coastal and marine areas. Solutions to the problem lie in the resolution of conflicting interests for space and resources within a framework of environmentally sound economic development. Currently, ocean dumping of waste and discharge of pollutants from ships seems to be under adequate control (Annex 3) Compliance varies from country to country, but is considered to be relatively good. Overall, the threat to open oceans from extensive pollution is today considered by some experts, to be less acute than was presumed two decades ago. Although progress is being achieved in reducing pollutants to the marine environment, more work is required. The release of wastes from land-based sources into coastal water is an attractive disposal option due to its simplicity and low costs (often in the short term only). Longer-term costs from rehabilitation and loss of living resources may, infact, be extremely alarming.