Shipping to be included in carbon targets

UK government climate change advisors have said that emissions from shipping should be included in the UK’s carbon targets, and have already drawn up plans for the industry to reduce its footprint. The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) said that shipping must be included in targets if global warming is to be properly tackled, but added that such a move should be delayed until progress had been made on the particular methodological problems involved in measuring emissions from the industry. The CCC has outlined a series of measures the sector could take, however, such as saving fuel by slower travel, making efficiency upgrades to engines, introducing route-planning software and even returning to wind power with the use of sails. There have been suggestions that shipping could be included in the European Union’s emissions trading scheme, whereby firms must buy carbon permits in line with their emissions – though the recent inclusion of aviation has led to a backlash elsewhere, with threats of legal action made against the EU over the issue (see page 3).