Air pollutant emission calculation and shipping costs: The case of yacht transport between the North Sea and Mediterranean ports

Abstract

This research aims to determine the optimal transport mode for yacht relocation on a selected shipping route by calculating and comparing air emissions of yacht transport as deck cargo on a cargo ship with those from conventional navigation. Based on the most recent findings, the main emission pollutant categories of CO2, SOx, NOx, PM10, and PM2.5 were estimated and compared between the two options. The cost-effectiveness criterion of selected transport modes was an auxiliary objective of this study. With the created mathematical modeling method application, considering the individual vessel specifications, performance, and route characteristics, the results evidenced higher external costs of a cargo ship transporting yachts onboard versus conventional yacht voyage on examined traffic route by 7.7 times. On the contrary, the economic implications showed higher yacht voyage costs by almost two times. With the possibility of exploiting the principle of economies of scale for a general cargo ship, the yacht transport on deck has the comparative advantage considering the total sum of external costs generated by the transport modes in this study. These results might have implications for creating policies on emission control and sustainable development of the shipping industry. They encourage a more restrictive policy considering the environmental transport activities impacts, including the requirement of the complete application of external cost internalization and the more rigorous and precise implementation of the "polluter pays" principle.