The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) says it hopes meetings next week of global maritime regulators will help provide a roadmap for shipowners to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
ICS says "it is satisfied with progress" made by governments on a draft proposal for reducing carbon dioxide emissions in shipping. The draft proposal will be submitted to the International Maritime Organisation's meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) next week.
‘What IMO has been attempting to negotiate is a Paris Agreement for the shipping industry. The enormous political challenges involved really cannot be exaggerated," ICS Deputy Secretary General, Simon Bennett said.
The proposal outlined calls for short-term efficiency improvement in shipping with an actual reduction in carbon dioxide output scheduled for 2050.
ICS says adopting the proposal would "provide the signal needed to stimulate the development of zero CO2 fuels, so we can collectively get on with the job of eliminating green house gas emissions from shipping as soon as possible."
ICS's Bennett added that country and regional-specific proposals would derail global efforts at this point "unless they wish to risk unravelling what will be a very significant climate deal covering a major industrial sector that moves around 90% of global trade."
