The IMO has come under heavy criticism lately from environment enthusiast for failure in implementing a structured plan to slash the emission of greenhouse gas.
The IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) has agreed to cap sulphur emissions from marine fuel by 2020 and has planned to launch a new three-year data collection project to monitor ship efficiency, but lately no agreement was reached on capping carbon dioxide emissions.
Fresh round of negotiations:
The Committee instead has agreed to a fresh round of discussions and a new target to agree an initial strategy by 2018, to be finalised by 2023.
In a statement issued, the IMO has agreed to gather more data on ship efficiency would help inform its emissions reduction strategy later in the decade.
Future plans to cut emissions:
From 2018 ships weighing more than 5,000 tonnes will have to collect consumption data for each type of fuel oil they use. The IMO said the new data collection regulations will cover around 85 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions from international shipping, providing a “firm basis” for future decisions on additional measures on ship efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction targets.
Concern of climate crusaders:
However, crusaders argue waiting another seven years for the shipping industry to produce a detailed emissions reduction plan for the sector is too long, insisting the industry immediately needs to take action to tackle rising emissions now.
Ahead of the meeting hopes were high – both from campaigners and ‘progressive’ firms in the industry – that the IMO could be persuaded to adopt carbon emission cuts to bring the sector into line with the emission reduction goals set out in the Paris Agreement.
Shipping presently accounts for around two per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, but this is forecast to rise to as high as 17 per cent by 2050 if left unchecked. And since the aviation industry agreed earlier this month to an emissions offset plan designed to halt growth in aviation emissions at 2020 levels, shipping is now the only sector not subject to a climate change agreement.
Campaign group Transport & Environment said the decision to kick start fresh talks rather than reach an agreement now constitutes an “abject failure” by national governments and the industry. In a statement issued by the organization, “The IMO first established a work plan on greenhouse gases in 2003, but this week it decided to create a fresh process for yet more talks – betraying the Paris Agreement’s call for urgent action to limit global warming at 1.5/2C,” it said in a statement.
EU’s role:
Senior figures in the European Parliament’s environment committee called on the bloc to now take the lead on climate action in shipping.
“The shipping sector must play its role in Europe’s transition to a low-carbon society,” said Socialist MEP Jytte Guteland, shadow rapporteur for the revision of the EU’s emissions trading system. “But time is of the essence and, in the absence of IMO action, the EU must include ships’ emissions in its 2030 climate target. By setting up a climate fund for shipping Europe can help industry cut CO2 in a cost-effective way.”
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Source: Business Green
