Green Port Indicators: A Review

Abstract

Unlike the shipping sector that has witnessed concerted international efforts to address sub-standard ships, similar action has not been seen in the port sector. Other than the efforts taken by the European Sea Ports Organisation that has produced various environmental guidelines to seaports located in the European Union, most efforts to become green or environmentally sustainable are arguably unilateral in nature. As interest in ensuring greener shipping began to accelerate after the implementation of Annex VI of the International Maritime Organization’s MARPOL Convention in 2003, the interest to extend its effect on greener seaports has begun to be seen. This resulted in an increase on green port studies beginning 2010. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to review the accessible literature on green ports and to identify the indicators or determinants that were normally addressed to ensure their green performance. Literature search was done through the google scholar search engine using the keywords “green port” and “sustainable port” to identify the relevant literature. Subsequently, a qualitative content analysis technique was used on the 27 identified articles in order to merge the various findings into suitable categories.