Danish shipping giant switches to 'green' wood in containers

Deutsche Welle, May 24, 2011

Maersk says 'green' containers are
just part of its strategy

The Copenhagen-based Maersk Line has pledged to stop purchasing containers fitted with floorboards made from uncertified tropical hardwood in a bid to reduce illegal logging in tropical forests and combat climate change.

Denmark's Maersk Line announced on Monday that it was the first shipping company to stop buying containers with floors made from uncertified tropical hardwood.

The Copenhagen-based company, which is also building a new generation of energy-efficient vessels, is charting a course toward greater environmental responsibility throughout its shipping operations.

"So far, much of our focus has been on vessels and using as little fuel as possible," said Jacob Sterling, head of climate and environment at Maersk Line. "But we also need to look at containers."

Shipping firms, including Maersk Line, traditionally use containers fitted with tropical hardwood floors, according to Sterling. "This wood is highly durable and fairly low cost."

About two cubic meters of hardwood are required to produce floors for three 40-foot containers. The container industry uses between 1.2 and 1.5 million cubic meters of hardwood each year.

Maersk says illegal loggers have profited from the shipping industry's demand
for wood for too long

Certified hardwood

Under its new policy, Maersk Line will purchase containers equipped with floors made from either certified tropical hardwood, bamboo or recycled plastics.

All tropical hardwood has to be certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The certification, according to Sterling, requires that wood is harvested in a sustainable way for both the forest and the animals and people living there.

Bamboo is an attractive alternative because it is a fast growing plant and is highly abundant near factories making containers for Maersk Line in China, Sterling said.

The recycled plastic floor material, on the other hand, comes from waste collected through Germany's Grüner Punkt program. "This is a very high-quality floorboard, which is mixed with sawdust," Sterling told Deutsche Welle. "We favor the floors made of recycled plastics but will support the other two because we want to have a choice."

Maersk Line has purchased 64,000 containers that comply with the new policy. Over the next five years, the company plans to purchase up to 3 million containers. It expects to have its entire fleet of containers equipped with environmentally friendly floors within 18 years, the typical lifetime of a container.

Sterling noted that the three alternatives to uncertified hardwood floorboards will initially cost slightly more, but expects prices to drop over time. 

Welcome change

The Maersk initiative has been welcomed by environmental groups such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

"Their conversion to using a globally recognized standard of certification... is a truly substantial contribution to the sustainable management of tropical forests, biodiversity conservation and improving local livelihoods," said Stephen Kelleher, Deputy Head of the Forest Conservation Programme at IUCN.

"Achieving sustainable development and environmental conservation will not be possible without the full engagement of the private sector, and we hope this bold move will inspire other businesses to follow suit - not only within the shipping industry, but across the commercial sector."

Author: John Blau

Editor: Sam Edmonds