Yesterday, I wrote on the Natural Resources Defense Council Staff Blog about how Maersk was leading the pack in greening its shipping fleet, by switching to low-sulphur fuels and investing in energy-efficient vessels, far in advance of regulatory mandates to do so.

I also wrote about how their leadership made it easier for advocates to demonstrate that such practices and investments could be made cost-effectively, and that Maersk's examples can become the basis for policy actions that make these practices the industry standard.

What I didn’t write about, but should have, is that industry leadership by one company often leads to additional voluntary actions by other companies in the industry.  When company A shows that a cleaner way of doing business is feasible and works well for the bottom line, company B is more likely to follow suit.

So, here’s an example of how that works.

Today, I read on Sustainable Shipping, that Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) has announced that all of its 79 vessels have switched to lower-sulphur, cleaner-burning marine gas oil while at berth in Singapore.

Just switching to the new fuel will cut sulphur dioxides by NOL’s ships by roughly 90 percent—and with more than 900 calls to Singapore annually, this will be a meaningful step to reduce air pollution in and near the Singapore port.

When they announced their move back in April, a company executive explained that the company felt a “responsibility to manage the environmental impact of global trade.”

NOL deserves credit for taking this step, and for showing that the low-sulphur fuel model works for them.

There is an important lesson here:  first, Company A shows that the more sustainable behaviour works; then Company B follows suit; eventually, it becomes the industry standard.