Shipping industry no nearer to emissions agreement

Source: Energy Efficience News

The shipping industry is no nearer to reaching an agreement on action to control greenhouse gas emissions following an International Maritime Organisation (IMO) meeting in London last week. The IMO meeting was scheduled to discuss and move ahead with market-based measures such as emissions trading schemes. But there continues to be a split between developed countries, which are calling for any number of options including emissions trading schemes, global levies or trading of fuel efficiency credits, and developing nations, who feel they should have less responsibility for cutting emissions. The EU has threatened to take its own action to curb shipping emissions if the impasse continues until the end of 2011. Time is now starting to run out for the IMO and green groups, Seas At Risk (SAR), Transport & Environment (T&E) and Environmental Defence Fund (EDF), are calling for the EU to get on with the job. However, the IMO says it is still making “steady progress” in its consideration of market-based methods to address emissions from international shipping. For further information: