15th March 2018 ICTSD
Ahead of the 72nd session of the International Maritime Organization (IMO)’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 72), set to take place in London from 9-13 April, delegates are seeking to build consensus in negotiations for a draft text towards a global agreement to reduce maritime greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The Committee is expected to agree on an initial strategy in April, including a list of possible measures to tackle shipping-related emissions in the near term and targets for longer-term sector-wide decarbonisation, with a final plan due to be elaborated by 2023. Delegates will be tasked with deciding on a timeline for implementation and settling on a baseline year to chart changes in emission levels over time.
The international shipping sector is responsible for about 2.5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and rising. Carbon emissions from shipping are projected to be two to five times higher in 2050 than they were in 1990, according to EU estimates. Shipping emissions, like international aviation, are not covered under the UN’s Paris Agreement on Climate Change.