The Sustainable Shipping Initiative (SSI), a pioneering coalition of companies from across the global shipping industry, has released today a statement calling for the shipping industry to play its part in contributing towards UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) global CO2 reduction target.
The statement, which has been released ahead of COP21 (the Conference of Parties to be held in Paris from 30th November to 11th December) encourages the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to act urgently in establishing timely and progressive frameworks to deliver a carbon strategy that enables shipping to achieve the UNFCCC global CO2 reduction targets.
The statement also suggests that results from the IMO 3rd GHG study and SSI commissioned research from University College London (UCL) show that the current IMO regulatory framework to manage CO2 emissions will not be sufficient to meet a 2-degree target. Furthermore, they suggest that each year of delay results in the need for increasingly harsh and more costly emissions reduction measures to be implemented in order to achieve the targets in the required timeframe.
Finally, the statement draws upon the notion that climate change is one of the biggest risks to the future of global trade and the shipping industry. The SSI believes that it is not commercially, environmentally, or socially sustainable for the shipping industry to continue on a Business As Usual carbon emissions pathway. SSI believe that the industry needs to recognize and accept climate change as a business risk and acting now is vital to meet a global objective.
SSI members include some of the shipping industry’s leading companies: ABN AMRO, AkzoNobel, American Bureau of Shipping, Bunge, Cargill, Carnival Corporation, China Navigation Company, Gearbulk, IMC, Lloyd’s Register Maersk Line, Namura Shipbuilding, Unilever, U-Ming Marine Transport Corporation and Wärtsilä.
Alastair Fischbacher, CEO, the Sustainable Shipping Initiative commented: “The challenge faced by the industry on CO2 is clear. It would be unacceptable for shipping to increase its share of global emissions and not play its part in the global reduction. Importantly, the longer the delay in implementing reductions, the further behind we fall and the harder it will become. It is crucial that there are progressive targets and timeframes set now for the industry to work towards, where it contributes fully to reducing global CO2emissions”.
The research SSI commissioned from UCL’s Energy Institute has also been released and can be accessed here.
