As delegates fly and equipment is shipped to another climate conference in Bonn, the question of who is responsible for the resulting emissions arises. The conventional wisdom is that they are covered not by the Paris agreement but by the two UN agencies which were established to regulate these sectors – the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). Three years ago this may have made sense. Until the Paris agreement was finalised at the end of 2015, the major climate agreement in force was the Kyoto Protocol which tasked developed countries to work through ICAO and IMO to cut emissions.
As the rule book for the Paris Agreement is finalised, T&E produces a paper which proposes the full inclusion of emissions from international shipping and aviation in national climate targets, known under the Paris Agreement as nationally determined contributions (NDCs). States should pursue decarbonisation of these sectors through a combination of measures adopted at international and national level.
Sustained pressure on governments to regulate the shipping sector’s climate impact has finally resulted in a pledge to require international shipping to at least halve its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. However, states meeting at the International Maritime Organisation last month made no progress on agreeing a roadmap to devise the measures needed to implement immediate emissions cuts. T&E said it's now up to Europe and its climate allies to get things moving.
Statement from Clean Shipping CoalitionToday’s commitment by governments to require international shipping to decarbonise and at least halve its greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 is a welcome and potentially game changing development, the Clean Shipping Coalition (CSC) has said. But the lack of any clear plan of action to deliver the emissions reductions, including urgently needed short-term measures, is a major concern, according to the group of NGOs[1] with observer status at the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO).
The first difficult week of talks on an interim greenhouse gas strategy for shipping saw little progress towards a final outcome with some deep divisions and much work remaining, sustainable transport group Transport & Environment (T&E) has said. EU states and a ‘high ambition’ coalition called for countries meeting at the International Maritime Organisation to agree emissions reduction targets that are compatible with the Paris agreement. But progress was blocked by a vocal minority composed of developing and flag states.
A call by the shipping industry [1] for governments to compromise on ambition ahead of key UN discussions to reduce maritime emissions actually abandons the goals of the Paris agreement, sustainable transport group Transport & Environment (T&E) has said. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) meets from 3-13 April to adopt an initial greenhouse gas (GHG) strategy for the shipping sector.
EU member states’ decision to support a 70-100% reduction in maritime greenhouse gas emissions worldwide by 2050, compared to 2008 levels, has been welcomed by sustainable transport group Transport & Environment (T&E). However, pressure from the major EU shipping nations saw the EU’s common position, agreed last Friday, being made less firm and more aspirational than what the high-ambition EU countries and environmental groups initially called for. [1] The member states will attend a meeting of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) from 3-13 April to adopt an initial GHG strategy for the shipping sector.
After several attempts to act on ship greenhouse gas emissions, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) finally agreed in 2016 on a seven-year GHG Roadmap (work programme) to discuss and agree on measures to address shipping’s climate impact. The organisation is meeting in London this April 3-13 to agree an initial GHG strategy as part of its GHG Roadmap. This paper outlines what T&E believes that stratedgy should contain.
