Manzanillo International Terminal Panama S.A. (MIT) is committed to reduce its environmental impact by implementing energy efficient measures in several areas of operation.
Rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTG) used to work with diesel, generating CO2 emissions into the environment. Since 2013 we started to replace the diesel to electric energy. Savings account for 400 less tons of CO2 per crane per year. With the replacement of 14 RTGs so far, total savings account for 1,120 trees per year.
LED lights are now being used at the terminal. Cranes used to have sodium and mercury vapor bulbs. These bulbs consume a lot of energy and are difficult to dispose due to their components. LED lights on the other hand, produce the same light by using half the energy, focus the light where it is needed and have improved life time. This change represented savings equivalent to 845 trees per year.
MIT has reduced energy consumption by using demand-based systems for the supply of drinking water and air conditioner. Water supply and pumping systems are centralized, enabling the supply to be adjusted according to the demand. Savings in energy consumption are equivalent to 970 trees per year.
Technology replacement to environment-friendly options can reach high costs, however reducing the environmental impact is not always expensive. Mechanics used to dispose all liquids in the same tank (oil, lube oil, residual diesel, coolant), which made it impossible to reuse. Workers now collect the residual liquids from filters, and segregate the liquids by type. In this way, the waste oil and residual diesel can be reused. Waste liquids have diminished by 40% since the implementation of these actions.
In the last years MIT developed a conservation program with recycling facilities and training on environment care, influencing the behavior of more than 3,000 people that use MIT facilities.