Energy efficiency rating for ocean-going ships launched by Richard Branson
Ships could be charged different port fees depending on how mmuch carbon they emit, according to ideas being discussed at the UN climate summit in Cancun.
A free internet database set up by Richard Branson will list the energy efficiency of almost every ocean-going vessel, in a scheme designed to reduce shipping emissions by nearly 25 per cent.
Using publicly available data on the engine size and CO2 emissions of nearly 60,000 ships, exporters and importers, as well as holidaymakers on cruises, will be able to choose between clean and dirty ships.
The initiative, called Shippingefficiency.org, rates ships from A-G in a similar fashion to ratings given to fridges or washing machines. It will allow supermarkets, oil and mining companies, food importers, retailers and manufacturers to specify that their goods are sent from places like China or Australia only by the least polluting ships.
Britain, which imports most of its food and manufactured goods by sea, is expected to be one of the heaviest users of the database.
Shipping contributes around one billion tonnes of CO2 a year, about three to four per cent of the world's total. This makes it collectively the sixth largest greenhouse gas polluter in the world, just after Germany.
Shipping has been slow to address carbon emissions. The world fleet has been driven for years by engines designed to burn the cheapest, dirtiest "bunker" fuel. Nearly 15 per cent of the world's ships account for about half of all the industry emissions.
Under the new ratings, the biggest ships in the world range from the most to the least efficient. The giant tax haven cruise ship, The World, rates an F - the second worst score - the Queen Mary 2 is only slightly better with an E, and the massive Allure of the Seas - launched last week and officially the largest cruise liner in the world - is an F.
The lowest score, G, goes to the mighty Aegean, a giant crude oil tanker built nearly 40 years ago, but top marks go to the Berge Stahl, a bulk carrier which is so big it can only dock in two ports in the world.
The database is expected to be used by ports to offer incentives to clean ships, as well as to shipowners and designers.
For more information visit:
http://www.shippingefficiency.org
Send this story to a colleague
