Ear: Green

On Jan. 31, heading upriver for Portland, the Drive Green Highway passed by Astoria. Owned by K Line (aka Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd.), and launched in 2016 as part of the company’s Drive Green Project, the environmentally friendly car carrier can carry up to 7,500 cars at a time, according to the International Institute of Marine Surveying.

The ship is notable for its design improvements, which make it emit 25% less carbon dioxide, 50% less nitrogen oxide and 90% less sulfur oxide per vehicle transported. There are more than 900 Solar Frontier solar panels on the deck, which power all of the LED lighting on the vehicle deck. The ship’s assets did not go unnoticed, as she was declared the 2016 Ship of the Year by the Japan Society of Naval Architects and Ocean Engineers.

“K Line is demonstrating how solar energy can improve the energy efficiency,” said Atsuhiko Hirano, CEO of Solar Frontier, “and reduce the ecological impact of the shipping industry.”

Drive Green Highway was last seen passing Astoria again on Feb. 1, heading back out to sea. (Image: K Line)