Reducing emissions from ocean-going vessels as they sail near populated areas is a widely recognized goal, and vessel speed reduction regulations is one of several strategies that is being adopted by regulators and port authorities. A Californian research shows that slowing the speed of cargo ships near coastlines could dramatically cut ships’ air pollution.
The European Commission has announced today that it will propose, in early 2013, measures to monitor, verify and report on Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions from shipping. This measure will apply to all ships calling at EU ports and could also be the basis for a global approach towards cleaner shipping. However, green groups are disappointed because emissions monitoring doesn’t address the main issue at stake: reducing GHG emissions from ships.
The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) meets for its 64th session from 1 to 5 October 2012, at IMO Headquarters in London. As well as discussing matters relating to the implementation of energy-efficiency, ballast water management and ship-recycling regulations, the MEPC will also consider formally designating the Saba Bank, in the North-eastern Caribbean area of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA).
Prominent environmental campaigner Jonathon Porritt, from the Sustainable Shipping initiative, told last week’s International Chamber of Shipping conference that the various targets for CO2 reduction that shipping was currently struggling towards would eventually prove “irrelevant”. He said that the industry would have to be 95% de-carbonised by 2050 as part of global efforts to prevent global warming reaching dangerous levels.
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Officer of the Watch 