Background Inland Waterway Transport (IWT) causes considerable emissions of the air pollutants NOx and PM10. Many European regions are struggling to tackle air quality problems, though the often expensive measures implemented to meet air quality limit values are mainly directed at industry and road transport. However, it is increasingly recognised that inland shipping disproportionately contributes to the concentrations of NOx and particulate matter, and also strongly affects the air quality of areas along inland waterways and nearby inland ports. Especially in the bigger ports, the emission of NOx by inland navigation can reach up to 25% of total NOx emissions in the Netherlands. Many inland ports are situated in or close to cities, thereby directly affecting the air quality and health of populated areas. Because emissions at low height are involved, the impact on the direct surroundings is relatively high. Objectives The objective of LIFE CLINSH is to improve air quality in urban areas situated close to ports and inland waterways, by accelerating IWT emission reductions. It will demonstrate the environmental impact of emission reduction technologies to facilitate the implementation and enforcement of EU policy and legislation on air quality, in particular, the Clean Air Policy Package (2013) and the Air Quality Directive. Furthermore, nitrogen deposition (eutrophication) caused by ship emissions in Natura 2000 network sites close to waterways will be reduced to the benefit of biodiversity. The project will help facilitate a switch to lower emission levels in inland vessels, thereby helping to green the fleet with resulting health improvements in local populations. CLINSH will provide insight into the effectiveness and cost benefits of emission-reduction measures under real-life conditions, and explore the available incentives for such measures (i.e. investment readiness). The project will demonstrate measures for emission reduction in selected vessels over two years. In tandem, the project team will undertake air quality modelling for different scenarios to show the impact on NOx and PM10 concentrations, a methodology that will provide input for the further development of a Clean Shipping Index (CSI). The methodology will be disseminated to policy-makers, ship owners and suppliers, and other decision-makers, and will help to improve the competitiveness of the inland navigation sector. In addition, the project aims to: Demonstrate and measure the extent to which emission reduction technologies, alternative fuels and Onshore Power Supply (OPS ) can reduce air pollutant emissions of the inland waterway fleet in real-world conditions (NOx, PM10); Demonstrate how emission reduction can be applied to the existing European inland water fleet (costs and benefits); Demonstrate the effect of various implementation scenarios on air quality; and Increase awareness and support among ship owners and policy-makers on cleaner inland shipping. Expected results: 30 ships provided with various NOx and PM reduction techniques and monitored for NOx, PM and all other necessary parameters (plus 15 already equipped with Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) for NOx monitoring, which initial results suggest reduce emissions by 70-80%); Emission reductions in the demonstration actions of 288 NOx and 7.2 PM tonnes per year; An Onshore Power Supply demonstration that is expected to reduce emissions in port areas; An emissions inventory database, including all relevant ship information under real-world conditions; Scenarios that show the expected impact on emissions depending on policy changes and/or incentives; Air pollution concentration maps for various scenarios based on high resolution modelling; A monitoring protocol leading to a clean shipping index for financial incentives; A decision-making tool, enabling ship owners to make a first selection of feasible greening methods and their costs; Policy tools and recommendations based on scenarios; and Total emission reduction of 6k tonne (comparable to the yearly NOx emission of Malta) over the total depreciation time of the vessel/engine (on average 20 years), with vessels maintaining the technology after the project.