A new air pollution reduction device will be tested for the first time on an APL containership visiting Southern California in a three-year, US$3.4 million project launching in the spring.

The project, which is sponsored by the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, will evaluate the potential of a device called the Seawater Scrubber to cut diesel soot on ships by up to 85% and reduce a ship's sulphur oxide emissions by up to 99.9%.

Geraldine Knatz, Port of LA Executive Director, said: "Seawater scrubbing technology shows tremendous long-term potential for reducing emissions at our ports and improving the environment."

The project is partly funded by a $1.65 million grant from the Technology Advancement Programme (TAP), a joint initiative by the ports of LA and Long Beach.

The Seawater Scrubber features advanced emission control technology in which seawater is used to filter contaminants from a ship's auxiliary engines and boiler before exiting via the exhaust stack of a ship.

Once solid carbon contaminants have been removed, the seawater used during the scrubbing/filtering process is then treated and cleansed before being discharged. The solid contaminants are contained and collected for disposal