Reducing Emissions From the Shipping Sector
By Aiswarya Lakshmi
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
The EU is calling for a global approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping – a large and growing source of emissions.
As a first step, large ships using EU ports will be from 2018 required to report their verified annual emissions and other relevant information.
Maritime transport emits around 1000 million tonnes of CO2 annually and is responsible for about 2.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Shipping emissions are predicted to increase between 50% and 250% by 2050 – depending on future economic and energy developments. This is not compatible with the internationally agreed goal of keeping global temperature increase to below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels, which requires worldwide emissions to be at least halved from 1990 levels by 2050.
Ships' energy consumption and CO2 emissions could be reduced by up to 75% by applying operational measures and implementing existing technologies.
Many of these measures are cost-effective and offer net benefits, as reduced fuel bills ensure the pay-back of any operational or investment costs.
Further reductions could be achieved by implementing new innovative technologies.
The EU and its Member States have a strong preference for a global approach led by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) as this will be most effective.
The MRV Regulation adopted on 29 April 2015 creates an EU-wide legal framework for the monitoring, reporting and verification of CO2 emissions from maritime transport. It also helps the EU generate momentum for the best possible outcome in the international discussions.