China urges other countries to oppose emissions levy

As the 80th session of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) is currently under discussions, one of the main concerns is whether the IMO will adopt a carbon emission levy. As expected, not all nations are on the same page, with China reportedly lobbying other countries into opposing the measure.

As it appears, the two main fronts on the adoption of the levy are developed countries, which back the idea and developing countries that reject it. For instance, the EU has proposed a levy on the shipping sector’s greenhouse gas emissions based on the amount of GHG emitted by the ship concerned.

During a recent Summit in Paris, on June 23rd, 22 nations agreed on the levy (Denmark, Norway, Cyprus, Spain, Slovenia, Monaco, Georgia, Vanuatu, South Korea, Greece, Vietnam, Lithuania, Barbados, Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Ireland, Mauritius, Kenya, Netherlands, Portugal, New Zealand and the European Commission). Alas, the USA has yet to pick a side.

On the other hand, it appears that China is promoting the idea that the levy will dramatically raise supply-chain costs and badly affect the world economy’s ability to recover. Financial Times reports that Brazil, Argentina, and South Africa have also objected to a tax on shipping companies’ emissions because they believe it would raise the cost of exports for their significant commodities markets.

Financial times clarifies that poorer nations do not band together in opposition. For instance, the Marshall Islands have demanded a $100 per tonne carbon fee because they are particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels brought on by climate change.

The nation’s ambassador to the IMO, Albon Ishoda, raised alarm over the extent of polarization, saying that certain participants in private meetings were not upholding their national obligations to decarbonization, Financial Times reports.