Topic: Marine Technology & Innovation

Why commercial ships carry ballast water on board, and how it affects the marine environment.

The Marine Acoustic Research Station (MARS) project aims to measure the acoustic signature of vessels transiting the St. Lawrence River to help manage the effect of ship noise on marine mammals.

Climate change leads to more sea ice and higher risks for commercial marine shipping

Commercial ships resupplying the remote communities of Canada’s Eastern Arctic face multiple logistical challenges along the way. This year, COVID-19 and the threat it posed to both the ships’ crews and northern communities was another challenge they had to deal with.

“We must remember the premise of using chemical oil dispersants: Diluting the oil from a surface slick into the water column at sea to reduce its concentration to below toxic levels, enhance its degradation rate, and reduce its probability of reaching shore.” – Kenneth Lee

Efforts to reduce emissions from ships – including stricter regulations about marine fuels’ allowable level of sulphur – are curbing the use of heavy fuel oil (HFO) in the marine shipping industry.