WODA issues statement on the decarbonisation of dredging

The twenty third World Dredging Congress and Exhibition, WODCON XXIII, was held in Copenhagen, Denmark, from 16-20 May 2022.

From the initial feedback received, WODCON XXIII was a huge success. With 400 participants, 35 exhibitors and 15 sponsors from 22 countries, it was a wonderful post COVID reunion of the dredging community with a lot of great content and plenty networking opportunities.

Main objectives for attending were being updated on the latest technical developments, hear about business best practice and network with peers. 98% succeeded in achieving these objectives fully (90%) or partially (8%). 95% felt that the overall programme content was good and 90% said there was a good level of technical content.

Amongst the most popular sessions were the Corporate Executives Sustainability Debate, the Fehmarnbelt Tunnel Link: A Deep Dive and Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation. Details about these and other sessions are available here.

With the theme ‘Dredging is Changing’, WODCON XXIII focussed on how the industry is changing to tackle the economic, social and environmental challenges of our changing world. In view of this, the board of the World Organization of Dredging Associations (WODA) has decided to issue a statement on the decarbonisation of dredging.

“Dredging is essential to maintaining and improving our quality of life, economic well-being, and ecosystem health. This is achieved through creating and maintaining marine and freshwater infrastructure, contributing to climate mitigation and adaptation/resilience, ensuring the reliability of water-based supply chains, providing minerals and construction materials, supporting sustainable offshore energy production and enhancing the environment,” WODA said in the statement.

As disclosed, WODA endorses the significance and necessity of the 2015 UN Paris Climate Change Agreement and the 2015 UN Sustainability Goals to achieve a better and more sustainable future. This statement builds on and furthers earlier WODA statements on Sustainable Dredging (2013), on Mitigating and Adapting to Climate Change (2016) and the Shanghai Consensus for Promoting Sustainable Dredging Development (2019).

Decarbonisation, i.e. reducing the emissions of CO₂, and other greenhouse gases by all sectors is central to achieving the objectives of both UN agreements. The dredging community recognizes that this includes immediate action by all those involved in dredging and marine construction.

Given its broad membership covering a wide range of stakeholders, including project owners, dredging companies, designers and builders of dredging vessels and their suppliers, as well as consultants and academia, small and large, WODA will leverage its unique position to expedite decarbonization of dredging. WODA’s ambition is to contribute to dredging decarbonisation through enhanced communication, mutual trust, and cooperation within the dredging community.

The full statement can be found here.