Posted on 14 October
2010
Brussels, Belgium: While the European Environment
Council today baulked at increasing 2020
emissions cuts from 20 to 30 per cent, it
signaled that more
aggressive 2020 goals would be necessary
to meet its targets for mid-century.
The council, composed
of environment ministers from EU nations,
was highlighting a European Commission analysis
of what would be required to meet the council
objective of a 80-95% cut in emissions by
2050
“European CO2 emissions
have already dropped by more than 17%, and
the EEA anticipates stable emissions even
with economic recovery. That means the 20%
target will require virtually no effort
to achieve.’ said Jason Anderson, Head of
EU Climate and Energy Policy at WWF.
The Environment Council
also presented its views on the international
climate negotiations in preparation of the
upcoming UNFCCC meeting in Cancun, where
2050 again plays a role.
‘Environment Ministers
have explained what they expect from the
next round of UN climate talks and it is
positive that the EU wants to talk about
intermediate ambition levels for 2030 and
beyond. However, WWF has called for more
clarity and asks that all developed countries
agree in Cancun to develop Zero Carbon Action
Plans that will set out a pathway for that
country to 2050.’ said Jason Anderson.
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Shipping nations risk
loss of control over greenhouse gas regulation
Posted on 01 October
2010
London, UK: Shipping nations are risking
losing their control over maritime greenhouse
gas reduction standards, global environment
organisation WWF warned today in the wake
of another failure to reach specific agreement
on curbing maritime carbon emissions.
The key environmental
sub-group of the UN-linked International
Maritime Organisation (IMO) concluded a
week long meeting today possibly further
away than ever from agreement on efficiency
and technology initiatives and market based
mechanisms to cut shipping emissions.
Under existing UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) agreements,
the shipping and aviation sectors have been
charged with coming up with mechanisms to
cut emissions.
At its last meeting
in March, the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection
Committee (IMO MEPC) had endorsed a package
of efficiency measures, specifically a mandatory
energy efficiency design index (EEDI) and
ships energy efficiency management plan
(SEEMP). But the week-long meeting concluding
tonight has failed to reach any consensus
on implementing these measures.
“Like the aviation industry,
the world’s maritime nations either need
to find an emissions reductions solution
within the IMO framework or face the possibility
of less sympathetic regulation from elsewhere,”
said Dr Simon Walmsley, WWF’s observer to
the IMO talks.
“The worst outcome for
a global industry like shipping would be
to have differing emissions reductions schemes
being imposed in different places – but
that is the future shipping nations are
courting by failing to reach agreement in
their own forum.”
The world’s shipping
industry accounts for over 2.7 % of total
carbon emissions, and plays an important
role in the global economy, transporting
over 90% of global trade.
The meeting exposed
further rifts between developed and developing
maritime nations and was marked by a blunt
refusal by some nations to acknowledge that
shipping needs to contribute substantially
to the global emissions reductions needed
to avoid catastrophic climate change.
All shipping flag states
are treated equally under IMO rules, while
in other forums such as the UNFCCC concessions
are made to the needs of developing states.
“Drawing such distinctions
between developing and developed countries
in shipping is not that simple,” said Dr
Walmsley. “Shipping owners may be from a
developed country, but their ships could
be built, flagged and crewed in developing
countries.
“Shipping states can
either find creative ways to slash emissions
together or see additional costs imposed
on world trade as some trading blocks, states
or even just ports bring shipping into their
own regional schemes for reducing greenhouse
gases.”
No rules required for
one solution
Ironically, some leading
shipping companies are steaming ahead with
an option which dramatically reduces emissions
with “no rules, regulations, investments
or even research needed”.
Writing to mark World
Maritime Day, traditionally held during
the last week of September, Wallenius Wilhelmsen
Logistics (WWL) CEO Arild Iversen and WWF
International Director General James Leape
noted that just a four knot reduction in
sailing speed could reduce daily emissions
by nearly 40 percent.
But with surveys showing
goods in transit spend lengthy periods just
waiting for connections, “slowing vessels
down would not mean slowing up trade” the
two leaders wrote.
”By planning more precisely,
goods and cargo could actually travel slower,
yet arrive to consumers sooner, while reducing
emissions, cost and port congestion at the
same time.
“We appreciate that
manufacturers have capital invested in cargo,
and sitting cargo is sitting capital, but
a better balance between time and emissions
can be reached.”
WWL, the world’s largest
provider of Ro-Ro ocean transportation,
has long been a key partner in WWF’s high
seas conservation work and has a vision
of largely emissions free shipping by 2040.
