MSC: Ocean Freight Carrier among Top Polluters in EU
The environmental umbrella organization T&E has pointed out in its latest analysis the high emissions of shipping, despite the corona pandemic, and has called on the EU to make operators pay for their pollution and to set up a system for "green" fuel. In a ranking, the organization concludes that a company like the Italian-Swiss container ship and cruise operator MSC would rank sixth in terms of CO2 emissions if the sector were part of the EU's Emissions Trading System (ETS). Places two to five are ingloriously occupied by German coal power plants, while the sad leader in emissions in the EU by far is the Polish mega coal power plant Belchatow.
For the third consecutive time, the largest emitter among shipping companies has risen to the top 10 polluters in Europe, criticized Jacob Armstrong, Sustainable Shipping Officer at T&E. This is emblematic of an industry that wouldn’t pay a cent for its pollution. The fact that a shipping company can even surpass coal power plants shows that "business as usual" is no longer viable. An EU-wide carbon emissions market is needed to force the shipping industry to account for its emissions.
Largest Pollution on Non-European Routes
According to the T&E analysis, the majority of the pollution by the five largest shipping companies occurred on voyages between European and non-European ports, ranging from 65 to 79 percent. In the course of July, the EU Commission planned to announce whether companies would have to purchase pollution rights and certificates in the future and begin using green fuels on non-European routes. According to T&E, these routes cause the greatest damage to the global climate by the European shipping industry.
Establishing Sustainable Fuels for Ships
Anything other than a CO2 market for non-European routes would let the largest shipping companies off the hook and burden the smaller operators, who mostly operate within Europe. It would also prevent revenues from EU emissions trading that could be reinvested in the "greening of the sector," Armstrong further warned. The EU Commission plans to present its Green Deal and climate protection program proposals on July 14, which would also integrate shipping into the EU CO2 trading system and establish the world's first mandate for sustainable fuels in shipping (Fuel Maritime Regulation).
Postponed: Recent Talks Failed
Only recently, talks within the framework of the UN's International Maritime Organization (IMO) in London failed to agree on introducing a global CO2 price in the sector. The proposed $100 per ton is now expected to be decided, if at all, no earlier than in two years. Even a small levy of $2 for the development of new fuels did not pass, although it was brought up by the shipping companies themselves. Behind the scenes, Russia, China, Brazil, and Saudi Arabia in particular blocked further decisions championed by EU countries and the USA.
Unambitious Decisions
The measures that were decided upon, such as higher efficiency levels for the existing fleet, are considered to be hardly ambitious. Freight shipping emits around one billion tons of CO2, accounting for 2.5 percent of total emissions on Earth. If the industry were ranked as a country, it would be the world's sixth largest emitter of carbon dioxide, just on par with the Federal Republic of Germany. Nevertheless, ships are considered an efficient means of transport per ton, particularly when compared to trucks.
Paris Agreement: Shipping and Aviation Excluded
However, the contribution is relevant but, like aviation, it is not integrated into the Paris Agreement. After all, both sectors operate across national borders, according to the argument. Therefore, the IMO should have set its own climate targets. So far, the aim is only to halve CO2 emissions by 2008 standards by 2050. However, achieving the 1.5-degree target would require a completely climate-neutral operation of ship fleets.
"The results of the climate negotiations are extremely disappointing. For short-term measures, they agreed on business as usual instead of quickly implementing effective measures for global shipping," said Beate Klünder, a shipping expert at Nabu, disappointedly.
She fears that the emissions of the industry will increase by another 16 percent by 2030, similar to the original forecast. Moreover, the expert points out that not only CO2 but also other harmful emissions from shipping, especially nitrogen oxides, must be monitored.
"In the search for the climate-neutral fuel of the future, other emissions should not be overlooked. We need strict global exhaust regulations to reduce health-damaging nitrogen oxide emissions, which are generated by burning ammonia as well as the fossil fuels used today," explained the Nabu specialist.
The federal government must advocate at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for the regulation of climactic gases and the immediate establishment of a nitrogen oxide control area on all the oceans to pave the way for completely emissions-free shipping, Klünder further demands. Such regulation could immediately be initiated at the IMO, as this is a proven measure already in place in the North and Baltic Seas and American coastal waters.
Ammonia Has Potential - But It's Also Highly Toxic
For some time now, green ammonia, along with green hydrogen and methanol, has been discussed as an emissions-free fuel for shipping. The environmental organization commissioned a study from the Oeko-Institute to examine under what conditions ammonia could play a role as the fuel of the future. The results showed a high potential of the energy carrier for climate protection and were commendable from the perspective of air quality. However, this is provided that both climate-damaging nitrous oxide and health-damaging nitrogen oxide emissions are eliminated by SCR catalysts. Furthermore, high safety regulations are necessary to prevent leakage, as ammonia is highly toxic, warns Nabu.
Translated automatically from German.Elektromobilität , Newsletter Elektromobilität , IAA Mobility , SUVs und Geländewagen , Hybrid , Antriebsarten, Kraftstoffe und Emissionen , Oberklasse- und Sportwagen , Carsharing , Autonomes Fahren (Straßenverkehr) , Ladeinfrastruktur , Verkehrspolitik , Formel E , Brennstoffzellen , Fahrzeug-Vernetzung und -Kommunikation , Fahrzeuge & Fuhrpark , Automotive-Messen & Veranstaltungen , Pkw, Kompakt- und Mittelklasse , Minis und Kleinwagen , E-Auto-Datenbank, E-Mobilität-/Automotive-Newsletter, E-Auto-Tests