Sustainability and environment
In order to become a future-oriented, sustainable and environmentally friendly harbor, the Port of Drammen has planned and initiated a number of initiatives. One of the most important goals is for the Port to have emission-free operations by 2030, which is laid down in the strategic plan.
Read more about zero emissions here (in norwegian)The road towards an emission- and sustainable port
At the Port of Drammen, targeted work is being carried out to help realize the UN´s Sustainable Development Goals. The main focus is on five of the goals where the Port´s interests and operations will have the greatest impact.
#9 Innovation and infrastructure: Intermodality will be further developed and strengthened.
An example of this is the continuous job of relocating freight transport away from the roads and onto the sea and railway.
#11 Sustainable cities and communities: Arrangements will be made for city-friendly port operations that will be a natural part of the local environment in Drammen.
One example is a green belt towards the city, at both the Strømsø and Bragernes estuaries, which is being planned and designed. Another example is the placement of new terminal buildings so that noise from port activities is less noticeable to the city
#13 Stopping climate change: Emissions linked to Port operations shall be reduced.
Here, the replacements with electric cars and the electrification of cranes have already started, in addition to relocating more goods from the roads to the sea and railway.
#14 Life under water: Continuous work is carried out to maintain a sustainable life under water, and to ensure safe use of the water around the port. The Port of Drammen has participated in the project “Clean Drammensfjord” and has mapped the seabed and water quality in Drammensfjorden over many years. In addition, the need for clearing the seabed is being explored
In line with the sustainability target, the seabed is covered with masses of clean gravel in the areas that are under expansion.
The port has stopped pushing snow over the quayside due to the possibility of litter, micorplastics and heavy metals mixed in with the snow.
The port regularly carries out beach clean-up operations.
#17 Cooperation to achieve the goals: The Port of Drammen works closely with shipping companies, freight forwarders and cargo owners to implement environmentally friendly transport solutions, where the link between sea and railway is a major focus.
Environmentally friendly measures
The Port of Drammen has a social responsibility, and in order to realize the sustainability goals, a number of environmentally friendly measures have been initiated and are being planned, in addition to the aforementioned measures.
Concrete measures:
- Strengthening of the intermodal port, with the aim of having 50 percent of goods transported by rail by 2030, on the routes served by freight trains
- The Port of Drammen has shore power facilities that ship can connect to
- There will be more train departures from Drammen harbor, with direct departures to Bergen and Trondheim
- An environmental discount on the port fee is given for ships that have less emissions than the current requirements from the International Shipping Organisation
- Half of the cranes are operated electrically
- Waste from ship is sorted at source
- Regular noise measurements are carried out
- Clearing of the seabe
- Single-used measures have been applied in the offices and in Shed 1. This will be prioritized and worked on further in 202
- A significant part of the car transport is carried out with the UECC´s (United European Car Carriers) new car ships. LNG-powered ships have 25-30 percent lower CO2 emissions, up to 80 percent lower NOx emissions (gas that is hazardous to the environment and health), and almost zero emissions of sulfur and particles.
- Replacement of today´s tools, vehicles and cranes with electrical solutions
- We also work to facilitate the cooperation between partners at the Port, so that it is easy for them to choose electrical solutions. We gladly encourage the installation of solar cell systems
- 25 percent of the new cars that arrive at the Port are transported onward by train
- We develop green areas to reduce noise and to create shielding from the city, and we continuously follow up with noise measurements
- A separate group that follows up the implementation of the planned measures and that continuously assess new ones
More goods by sea and rail
An efficient climate measure is to transport goods by sea and rail, rather than by road. One goal is therefore to get a minimum of 50 percent of the freight transport that is currently transported by car to rail by 2030 – on the routes where freight trains run. Freight transport by sea provides a significant reduction in CO2 emissions.
Read about the advantages of logistics at sea at Grønt Skipsfartsprogram.
Compared to road, rail and shipping have approximately 90 percent and 60 percent lower emissions per tonne kilometer.
This is precisely why this type of freight transport has been highlighted as an important measure by the Norwegian Environment Agency. In National Transport Plan 4, a target has been set to convert 30 percent of freight transport with distances over 300 kilometers from road to sea and rail.
The Port of Drammen works actively to strengthen the transport hub, and therefore collaborates with railway operators to strengthen the offer and further develop the railway structure. It is a prerequisite for the cargo owners and for the Port that there is sufficient capacity on the railway.
There has been an expansion and increase in the number of tracks, and soon five weekly departures will be set up to run directly from Drammen to Bergen, as well as three weekly departures directly to Trondheim. These departures will have room for cars, containers and semi-trailers. Today, approximately 25 percent of new cars from Holmen are transported by train, and the share of train transport can now be increased for several important goods flows.
Electrification
In the effort to become an emission-free port, we are electrifying our operations. In this regard, we have an ongoing process of renewing all equipment.
Half of the car fleet has already been changed to electric cars, and half of the cranes are also electric. This purposeful electrification will take place over time, and will include the replacement of equipment, boats, machines and tools.
In addition, there is a long-term effort to ensure that the operators at the Port have emission-free types of energy available for use. In this regard, we have an ongoing collaboration with the other operators at the Port to look at the possibilities for establishing biogas- and hydrogen fueling stations.
A good neighbour
As the Port of Drammen is established in the vicinity of a city and houses, it is important to be a team player with the residents. Both noise levels and structure are taken seriously.
The green belts will include hiking trails and enjoyable recreational areas, and will have a noise dampening effect. We are monitoring the noise levels closely to verify that the noise of the company is at a legal level.
We are also carrying out surveys and interviews in the local environment to measure how the people of Drammen perceive the Port. It is common for many Norwegian companies to carry out these types of reputation surveys. Out of a maximum of 100 points, a company with 70 points or above is considered to have a strong reputation. We will work hard to gain a solid reputation.
