2016 climate deadline unrealistic

The resolution which was made last Wednesday ahead of the UN conference on climate change in Paris this December, calls for the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to head a concerted effort to meet targets. The EU has committed to reducing carbon emissions by 40%, compared with 1990 levels, by 2030.

According to the latest IMO Green House Gas study, published in 2014, international shipping is already delivering carbon neutral growth, producing only around 2.2% of the world’s total CO2 emissions (down from 2.8% in 2007).

Key to this success is the IMO’s track record in developing CO2 energy efficiency measures. International shipping is the only industrial sector already covered by mandatory and binding global measures. The IMO also introduced measures to ensure that all ships constructed after 2025 are 30% more efficient that those built in the 2000s, with further improvements planned for the future.

Commenting on the resolution, Patrick Verhoeven, secretary general of the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA), said: ”We are concerned by the deadline adopted by MEPs on Wednesday. 2016 is right around the corner and as such it is rather unrealistic to expect the IMO to come up with a solution in a matter of months.”

”Despite being inconspicuous, by transporting 90% of the world’s goods, shipping is as essential to global trade as it is vital to our daily lives. Things have started to move in the right direction and it would be regrettable to reverse the progress achieved so far by jumping the gun,’’ he concluded.