Ships avoid EU requirements on emissions

Shipping will probably avoid regulation of CO2 emissions from the EU this time around. The Commission proposes that the regulation should be in international trade organizations. It is criticized by environmental organizations Ecological Council and World Wildlife Fund.

“Everything looks as if the EU sends it on to the international organizations, and that which comes from there is often somewhere between ridiculous or business as usual. We would like for the commission to come up with a proposal which did something to reduce emissions from these sectors also,” said WWF’s climate and environment manager John Northman to Ingeniøren.

The Commission envisages that the international organization for the industry, International Maritime Organization, IMO, must reach a global comprehensive agreement. However, it has not been able to do that so far, and the prospect of that happening is extremely unlikely.

However, the Danish Shipowners’ Association supports that regulation for the shipbuilding industry will take place at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), which is an environmental meeting for all member states in October. Here, they will discuss how the shipping industry must take advantage of the upcoming data system to reduce emissions from shipping.

“Shipping will also do its part in the climate battle, and we believe that international agreements are more useful than regional agreements. So it makes sense that the commission passes the ball to the UN organizations,” head of the Danish Shipowners’ Association office in Brussels, Simon Bergulf, said.

IMO is working towards the adoption of a data collection system to collect information on emissions from all the world’s ships. Foreign resistance and the limited options for controlling cheating from ships arriving at ports in the EU, minimizes the effect of a regional agreement according to Simon Bergulf.