Tag: carbon

Shipping line says new vessel, reduced speed help curb greenhouse gases Container carrier APL said today it's on course to reduce a key carbon exhaust measure 30% by 2015 from its global shipping operations. The Singapore-based line said an influx of new vessels, running at reduced speed, puts the target within reach.By 2015, APL said its fleet will produce 130 grams of carbon exhaust for every TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) of cargo transported one nautical mile. That would be a 30% reduction from emission levels in 2009, when outside auditors first calculated APL's carbon footprint."We're changing the profile of our fleet with larger, more efficient ships that will significantly curb exhaust emissions," said APL President Kenneth Glenn. "It's the most effective way we know to make global trade environmentally sustainable."APL said it will deploy 32 new vessels in the next three years. It said the ships will be significantly more fuel efficient than its existing fleet, resulting in reduced emissions. What's more, the ships will run at less than full speed, further curbing exhaust.The first two of the new vessels - each with 10,000 TEUs of container-carrying capacity - arrived last December. Two more are due in April.APL said it ...

There Will Be Blood - On the Supply Chain Fuel price increases, passed on by the ship owners through surcharges or increased operating costs, have laid waste to transport budgets, at the same time as media, consumers, shareholders and regulators apply pressure on organizations to measure and lower their carbon emissions. This combination has forced companies to look for steps to become more fuel-efficient.There is already plenty of work going on to reduce emissions in the shipping industry, which annually emits more than a billion tons of CO2. The UN's International Maritime Organization (IMO) has put significant time into developing methodologies to improve vessel efficiency. Meanwhile, high-profile companies including Coca-Cola, Nike and Wal-Mart, have joined container lines to create a container-specific index, under the banner of the Clean Cargo Working Group (CCWG).Creative approaches from supply chain managers can lead to an increase in fuel efficiency and an increase in shipment density. Ships can also be designed more efficiently, with better hull shapes, built-in speed reductions and waste heat recovery systems, while many fuel-saving technologies can be retrofitted: air lubrication systems, hull coatings, propeller 'Boss Cap Fins' can be installed, advanced propeller and thrusters introduced, and there are a multitude of ...

Carbon dioxide makes the oceans more acidic As the republican presidential primary race drags on, the politics of global warming seem ever more divorced from scientific reality. The process of scientific inquiry, meanwhile, offers yet more warnings about what might happen if fractured climate politics stymie long-term action.Emitting massive amounts of carbon dioxide doesn't just change the chemistry of the atmosphere; it makes the oceans more acidic. Predicting the impact on ocean ecosystems involves educated speculation, which often involves applying evidence of what has happened before. In the latest edition of the journal Science, a team of researchers reckons that today's human-emitted CO2 is increasing ocean acidity far faster than previous, naturally occurring episodes scientists have studied, which themselves appear to have had very alarming results.Editorials represent the views of The Washington Post as an institution, as determined through debate among members of the editorial board. News reporters and editors never contribute to editorial board discussions, and editorial board members don't have any role in news coverage.Mayor Vincent Gray raises questions about the chief financial officer's calculations.The harrowing history is recorded in mud samples millions of years old, taken from the sea floor near Antarctica: It reveals a mass extinction ...

WWF states Affluent Singapore had the largest carbon footprint per head in the Asia-Pacific in 2010, conservation group WWF said Monday.The environmental advocacy group said Singapore's 2010 per capita gross domestic product of more than $40,000 -- one of the highest in the region -- fuelled exorbitant consumption habits.But the group also fingered the corporate sector and in particular the construction industry for crowning the tiny city-state as the region's top per capita carbon emitter.Precise figures for various nations in the Asia-Pacific will be released together with the WWF's Asia Footprint Report in June.But WWF president Yolanda Kakabadse revealed Monday that Singapore topped the list."Every member of the population in relation to the size of the country is consuming a lot in food, in energy," she said."Singapore... is a society that maybe is one of the best examples of what we should not do."Singapore emitted 43,454 kilotonnes of carbon dioxide from combustion of fossil fuels in 2010, official statistics showed.But Kakabadse said it could atone for its excessive carbon footprint by sharing its energy-efficient technologies with the world."It has a tremendous capacity to contribute with technology. Technology for energy, technology for water management, technology for whatever, even for food production ...

China is firmly opposed to the EU's unilateral legislation on carbon tax China on Thursday called on the European Union (EU) to take seriously the concerns of the international community on its carbon emissions charges, warning the 27-nation bloc not to complicate the matter.Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei made the appeal at a regular press briefing in response to a question regarding the EU Commission's plan to impose carbon emissions tax on sea transportation from June this year. "China, like many other countries, is firmly opposed to the EU's unilateral legislation on carbon tax," Hong said. "The truth is that the unilateral move is unpopular, and is unlikely to meet the EU's expectations."He said the carbon tax issue on air and sea transportation should be solved within a multilateral framework through thorough consultation." should not be separated from the legal framework of the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol. Meanwhile, it should not violate the principle of 'common but differentiated responsibilities' and fair spirit," the spokesman said.Hong urged the EU side to commit itself to solving the matter instead of complicating it.On Jan. 1 this year, the EU began charging airlines using EU airports ...

IMarEST and ICCT provide authoritative definition of BC The Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST), in association with the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), has defined Black Carbon and presentation it definition at a recent IMO Sub-Committee on Bulk Liquids and Gases (BLG). While BC is claimed to be second only to CO2 in terms of climate change until now there had been no definition, making it it difficult to introduce any measure to reduce BC emissions.Black Carbon (BC) is the name given to solid particles emitted during incomplete combustion and is also referred to as 'soot', 'elemental carbon' and 'graphite carbon'. BC contributes to climate change in two ways - first, in the atmosphere where it absorbs sunlight and re-emits the energy as heat. Secondly, when deposited on ice or snow, in addition to warming the surface and air directly, it reduces the surface reflectivity (albedo), causing it to absorb more sunlight.It is believed that, because it is short-lived, remaining in the atmosphere only a few weeks, reducing BC emissions could have a very rapid and significant effect on the rate of warming.IMarEST's Chief Executive, David Loosley said: "The definition arrived at by IMarEST and ICCT ...

IMO BLG 16/15/4 IMO issues document which proposes a definition of Black Carbon, identifiespotential measurement methods, offers evaluation criteria to compare measurement techniques, and suggests an appropriate measurement method for international shipping, based on expert guidance and scientific review.The information provided contributes to the current discussions on Black Carbon by identifying the state of the art for its definition and measurement.For more information, click here.Source: IMO

The Filipino Shipowners Association (FSA) has joined the global call The Filipino Shipowners Association (FSA) has joined the global call for the reduction of greenhouse emissions from international shipping."The Philippines, being the leading provider of nearly 30% of the world's maritime professionals, has a huge stake in any talks affecting the shipping industry. Climate change is an issue that concerns not onlythe shipping industry, but everybody in this planet as well," said Ambassador Carlos C. Salinas, FSA chairman. "The FSA and our members offer our full support for the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in its continued efforts in regulating the shipping industry's carbon emissions and we remain positive in our industry's role in addressing the global problem of climate change," said Salinas.As one of the leading and oldest maritime associations in the country, the FSA holds a pivotal role in the development of both the local and overseas shipping sector and the involvement of the Philippines in international maritime affairs.In over 60 years, the FSA has promoted the highest environmental protection standards among its members and sought to cultivate a culture of social responsibility within the country's maritime sector.FSA has joined other internatinal organizations such as Oxfam, the World Wildlife ...

Carbon Group at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory The Carbon Group at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) works to advance our scientific understanding of the ocean carbon cycle and how it is changing over time. PMEL's research includes documenting the evolving state of the ocean carbon chemistry with high quality measurements on ships and autonomous platforms, studying the ocean's role in the global carbon cycle and the processes involved, and investigating how rising atmospheric CO2 and climate change affect the chemistry of the ocean and its marine ecosystems.PMEL's efforts support NOAA's commitment to improve the Nation's ability to anticipate and respond to climate impacts, and to conserve and manage healthy oceans, coastal ecosystems, and marine resources.

Global carbon tax on bunker fuels for the international aviation and shipping industries South Africa could be negatively affected by the proposed global carbon tax on bunker fuels for the international aviation and shipping industries, but there are methods of alleviating this which the government is exploring as part of its negotiating position at the COP17 climate summit.This was revealed by Deputy Minister of Transport Jeremy Cronin, who was speaking at a panel discussion at the launch of a WWF-SA report, "Towards a Green Economy: Envisaging success at COP17" - one of numerous side events at the summit this week.The carbon tax has been proposed as one of the major funding sources for the UN's Green Climate Fund which is designed to help developing countries mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change. It is supposed to reach $120 billion by 2020."This (proposed transport tax) has been heavily caucused by WWF, and rightly so," Cronin noted.Although the tax would have negative impacts on some countries like South Africa, Chile and Argentina which had to send their exports long distances to primary markets, there could be a rebate system for developing countries, he suggested."And in our (COP17) negotiating position, we're ...