A hydrogen-powered ferry built in Washington state is operating in San Francisco Bay.
Clean energy advocates are hoping it spurs action closer to home. The Sea Change is the first ferry in the world to run entirely on zero-emission hydrogen fuel cells. Its exhaust is water, which is safe to drink.
Erika Thi Patterson, senior director of climate programs at Pacific Environment, was on the ship’s inaugural trip July 19. She said it shows what is possible for other ferry fleets.
“We’ve heard from port and municipal leaders in other cities that are running ferry services, like New York and Seattle,” Patterson noted. “They’re interested in this technology and have said that they’re looking for opportunities to deliver more hydrogen-fueled passenger ferries to their cities soon.”
The ship was built by All American Marine in Bellingham. King County Metro aims to have a zero-emission transportation fleet by 2035.
Patterson argued decarbonizing maritime fleets is important in order to combat climate change as well as protect people’s health.
“Reducing shipping emissions is not only an urgent priority for addressing our climate crisis,” Patterson contended. “It’s also critical to eliminating harmful pollution in port side communities, which tend to predominantly be working class communities of color.”
Patterson added an interesting detail she learned on the Sea Change’s maiden voyage is the ferry’s only exhaust is water.
“It’s so pure that you can actually drink it,” Patterson observed. “There’s a drinking fountain on board that allows passengers to drink the exhaust, which I did and it was very refreshing.”
Featured photo: The Sea Change, powered by hydrogen fuel cells, took its first trip on July 19. (Pacific Environment)
