Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways unveils green port guidelines for sustainable development
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways recently launched the “Harit Sagar” Green Port Guidelines to achieve the larger goal of zero carbon emission. The guidelines were unveiled by Union Minister for Ports, Shipping & Waterways and AYUSH, Sarbananda Sonowal, along with Union Minister of State for Ports, Shipping & Waterways and Tourism, Shripad Y. Naik, and other officials in New Delhi.
The Guidelines -2023 are about the ecosystem dynamics in port development to minimize the impact on the ecosystem of the harbours. Using the clean and green energy in port operations and promoting the development of capabilities for storage are among the points emphasized by the guidelines. These guidelines are also about bunkering of Greener Fuels like Green Amonia, Green Hydrogen, Green Methanol, Green Methanol, Green Ethanol and Green Ammonia.
The objective of the guidelines is to achieve zero waste discharge from port operations by minimizing waste through the 4 R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle) and promoting monitoring based on Environmental Performance Indicators. They provide a framework for Major Ports to draw up a comprehensive action plan to achieve targeted outcomes in terms of quantified reduction in carbon emissions over defined timelines.
During the launch event, it was highlighted that the “Harit Sagar” Guidelines are significant in promoting environmental-friendly practices across all ports and thus reduce carbon emissions within the designated time period. Awards were also conferred by the Ministry upon the major ports that showcased best performance on financial as well as operational parameters in the financial year- 2022-23. Other ports, such as Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Paradip Port, Kamarajar Port, and Cochin Port, received performance shields and awards for their exceptional performance in different categories. Overall, the “Harit Sagar” Guidelines and awards serve as a step towards achieving sustainability goals and promoting environmental-friendly practices across all ports.
