Tag: black carbon

The Clean Arctic Alliance urged the IMO Member States to reduce the impact of black carbon emissions from international shipping on the Arctic environment, as the UN body gathers in London for a meeting of its MEPC74. During the meeting, a number of issues, including black carbon emissions and heavy fuel oil in the Arctic will feature on the agenda.

According to Air&Waste Management Association, in the assumption that the shipping industry was a country, it would have been the sixth largest GHG emitter, producing more emissions than Germany. The Association supports that although IMO's decision on the implementation of the 2020 sulphur cap, they seem to ignore another pollutant, second to the carbon dioxide, the black carbon.

IMO's Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR) will conduct a meeting on 18 to 22 February to IMO's headquarters, London. IMO's agenda includes MARPOL Annex VI guidelines, safety measures on reducing the risks of use and carriage of heavy fuel oil, as well as measures aiming to decrease the impact on the Arctic of Black Carbon emissions from international shipping. 

In his address to the Finnish Climate Summit in Helsinki in mid-June, Finnish President Sauli Niinistö called on the Arctic Council to have 'a first ever Arctic Summit' in order to tackle black carbon emissions in the polar region, noting that there is no time to wait on climate change.

Winter ice conditions in addition to Arctic region’s ecosystem sensitivity to any human interference have always been harshening vessels’ navigation through Arctic shipping routes. However, as global warming started vanishing arctic ice, new shipping routes opened. Currently, the Arctic trading has opened new frontiers.

To address the impact of Black Carbon emissions from shipping on the Arctic, IMO has been developing a definition for black carbon, to find the best methodology for measuring black carbon, and identifying abatement options. The following infographic outlines some of the most effective abatement options and presents their advantages and and disadvantages, based on the most recent scientific literature.

Nowadays, the shipping routes and traffic in the Arctic have been increased. This result in higher Black Carbon emissions from combustion of heavy fuel oil, which causes ice melting, health risks and shipping incidents.

Arctic shipping is projected to increase as ice-melt is making the Arctic waters more accessible, but this also increases the risk of environmental disaster. When emitted and deposited on Arctic snow or ice, the climate warming effect of black carbon is at least three times more than when emitted over open ocean.

A new global challenge and a compliance monitoring market are emerging, due to tightening environmental regulations. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Tampere University of Technology and the University of Turku have joined forces in an international project.

DNV GL has seen the need to look more closely at the the effect of PM DNV-GL - Brochure Black Carbon - 2016_06and BC emissions from shipping.Particulate matter (PM) and black carbon (BC), a fraction of PM, have received increasing public attention,as they affect human health and the climate.Additionally, ships’ emissions take place in close vicinity to shore. Plumes are often visible to the public in harbour areas and therefore receive more and more press coverage.