The drone emissions monitoring system of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), in cooperation with the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH), had only just begun operation. On Thursday, it crashed into the sea near Fehmarn.

The drone flights are operated on behalf of EMSA by the Norwegian company Nordic Unmanned. The sensors for the emissions measurements are supplied by the Danish company Explicit. The crash is said to have occurred only 40 meters from the beach of the German Armed Forces radar station Staberhuk.

The North Sea and the Baltic Sea are among the busiest and most heavily trafficked seas in the world. The Great Belt and the Kadet Channel are particularly busy shipping lanes in the Baltic. Forecasts predict that 80,000 ships will transit the Great Belt alone by 2030. With the increasing shipping traffic on the Baltic Sea, emissions of carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide are also rising.

While internationally only marine fuels with a maximum sulfur content of 0.5 percent are permitted, in Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) such as the North Sea and Baltic Sea, the limit is even lower at 0.10 percent. "With drones, we are using a technology that makes it possible to analyze ship emissions at sea and thus monitor whether the legally defined limits for the sulfur content in fuels are being met," said BSH President Karin Kammann-Klippstein at the start of the measurement campaign. "Limits are only effective if compliance is monitored.".

The drone flights depart from the east coast of Fehmarn and, twice daily, fly for an average of 2.5 hours per flight, targeting ships operating in the Fehmarn Belt and the Kadet Channel. They fly through the ships' exhaust plumes and use specific sensors to measure the sulfur dioxide content. The measurement results are used to determine the sulfur content of the fuel being used. An information system operated by EMSA provides the measurement results, along with data from the measured ship, to the regulatory authorities in all European ports in real time. If the data indicates that the permitted sulfur content of 0.10 percent in the fuel is exceeded, ships can be specifically selected for inspection at their next ports of call, and fuel samples can be taken. Those responsible face heavy fines if violations of the strict fuel regulations are proven.

The BSH is Germany's central maritime authority. At its two offices in Hamburg and Rostock, as well as on five vessels, it employs around 1,000 people from over 100 different professions. Its core tasks include promoting, ensuring the safety and monitoring of maritime shipping; research and the collection of long-term data series in oceanography and marine chemistry; water level forecasting; and nautical hydrography, which includes the creation of official nautical charts. A steadily growing area of ​​responsibility is its role as the permitting and monitoring authority for offshore wind energy installations. As a German flag state authority and service provider, the BSH supports the maritime industry with permits, liability certificates, product testing, approvals, and data provision.

www.bsh.de